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The Georgia Senate is one of the most progressive legislative bodies in the United States and has been widely studied and copied by other states. A number of reforms during the past decade or so have made the Senate more democratic and responsive to the citizens of Georgia.
In the Senate, all bills are called in the exact order they appear on the calendar, and an electronic voting system records the final vote on all general bills.
Legislative logjams, once common at the end of the Session, are prevented by requiring all Senate bills to be handled by the Senate and all House bills to be received from the House eight days before adjournment.
All Senate committee meetings and conference committee meetings to resolve Senate-House differences are open to the public, and meeting times for Senate committees are posted publicly well in advance.
The Senate Research Office was established to provide Senators with background information essential to introducing legislation and making intelligent decisions.
Decorum was also improved in the Senate with the President's strict enforcement of the decisions of the Rules Committee and a five-person Decorum Committee governing introductions and admissions to the Senate floor.
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