House Bill No. 6514
Public Act No. 11-208
AN ACT CONCERNING THE LEGISLATIVE INTERN PROGRAM.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 2-81 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2011):
There is created a Committee for Legislative Staff Internships which shall consist of six representatives appointed at the time of appointment of the joint standing committees of the General Assembly by the speaker of the House of Representatives, and six senators appointed by the president pro tempore of the Senate to serve for the terms for which they were elected. Not more than one-half of the members of said committee from each house shall be members of the same political party. Members of said committee shall receive no compensation for their services as such but shall be reimbursed for necessary expenses in performance of their duties. [On and after January 1, 1981, the members of said committee shall elect from among their members] There shall be two cochairpersons, one of whom shall be a member of the Senate and one of whom shall be a member of the House of Representatives, each appointed by the applicable appointing authority, provided the cochairpersons shall not be members of the same political party and shall be from alternate parties in the respective houses in each successive term. For purposes of this section, "appointing authority" means the speaker or minority leader of the House of Representatives and the president pro tempore or minority leader of the Senate, as appropriate according to the respective house and party of the member to be appointed.
Sec. 2. Section 2-82 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2011):
The agencies of the Legislative Department and the State Librarian shall assist the committee on request. [and the committee shall appoint a secretary from one of said agencies. ] Said committee shall recruit, select, supervise and appoint interns and assign them to [legislative committees, legislative agencies or to] members of the General Assembly to assist in the performance of their duties. Said committee shall coordinate the legislative intern program with the public and private institutions of higher education in Connecticut. Said committee shall have the authority to make application for and receive grants from any governmental agency and any charitable foundation. Said committee shall have such other powers as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter.
Sec. 3. Section 2-83 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2011):
Such interns shall be appointed for [nine to twelve-month terms] the duration of the spring semester of such interns' institution of higher education, and may continue to serve for the duration of the regular session of the General Assembly or any subsequent special sessions of the General Assembly. The committee shall (1) appoint a program coordinator, (2) authorize the expenses of administration of the program, and (3) pay at least one-half of the stipend awarded to such interns, the remainder of such stipend to be paid out of appropriations to the committee therefor.
Sec. 4. Section 2-84 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2011):
[Said] At a time prior to the last day of each regular session, said committee shall report to each house of the General Assembly [on or before the second day of January of the odd-numbered years] concerning the operation of the internship program.