LITTLE ROCK — One House committee chairman banned cell-phone use of any kind by anybody Wednesday in meetings of his committee.
But other committee chairmen said they weren’t likely to do that.
There is also a question whether committees will allow their meetings to be broadcast over the Internet after the House spent nearly $400,000 on audiovisual equipment.
Rep. Clark Hall, D-Marvell, chairman of the House State Agencies and Governmental Affairs Committee, announced at the end of his committee’s first meeting that he wouldn’t allow people to use cell phones.
He said that’s not just for phones that ring or for people talking ontheir phones. He said the ban extends to sending and receiving electronic messages.
Hall said the ban extends to everyone in the room, including legislators and the public.
He said people typing messages on cell phones with their thumbs distracts from committee business.
Further, he said that people who send messages to legislators during committee meetings can unfairly influence debate. He said such people wanting to make comments on bills to legislators should do so publicly by addressing the committee.
House Chief of Staff Bill Stovall and Parliamentarian Tim Massanelli said Clark’s action is the first instance of which they are aware of a committee chairman banning all use of cell phones.
Stovall said he recalls someone a few years ago being kicked out of a meeting after talking on a cell phone.
They said there isn’t a rule that gives committee chairmen power to ban cell-phone use. They said it’s covered by a more general House policy against cell-phone use.
That policy states: “Members and any other persons allowed admittance to the House Floor and legislative committee rooms shall refrain from loud or disruptive conversation and shall not use TVs, radios, cellular phones, beepers, unauthorized cameras, signs, badges, buttons representing candidates or causes, posters, banners, props, etc. Members shall keep the sound on their computers turned off.”
They cited no statute or constitutional provision banning the use of cell phones by the public in committee meetings nor granting authority to legislative committee chairmen to impose such a ban.
Massanelli said the policy has been in effect for years and predates the proliferation of texting and e-mail use on cell phones.
It’s common in committee meetings for lobbyists, legislators, journalists and agency officials to use their cell phones for e-mail or texting.
Stovall said if the policy is being violated, a member may make a point of order asking that it be enforced.
Massanelli said if that happens, the committee chairman would have no choice but to follow the House policy and declare, like Hall did, that cell phones can’t be used.
He said there is no ban in House policy on someone taking a laptop computer into a committee room and sending e-mails on it.
House Speaker Robert Moore, D-Arkansas City, said he presumes that House members use their cell phones for texting on the House floor but it is “not an issue with me right now.” He said that may change if such use becomes distracting.
As for committee use, he said he’d give each committee chairman “reasonable latitude” on how to handle the issue. He said the House policy may have to be rewritten to take into account advances in technology over the years.
Moore said he thought Hall wanted to ban only legislators from using cell phones, not members of the public who attend the meeting. He said he didn’t think it would be practical to make lobbyists and others going into the room to turn their phones off. He said he planned to talk to Hall about it.
Rep. Eddie Cheatham, D-Crossett, said he hasn’t decided how he will address mobile phone use in his Education Committee.
“I’ve got to decide by tomorrow at 10 o’clock” when the committee meets for the first time, he said. Cheatham said in the past he has asked committee members to silence their phones.
Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Darrin Williams said he plans to discuss a cell-phone policy with the committee members.
“I’m not going to dictate,” Williams, D-Little Rock, said. “I’d prefer people pay attention, no doubt.”
Insurance and Commerce Committee Chairman Rep. Fred Allen, D-Little Rock, said he doesn’t mind if people use the Internet or send text messages during committee meetings.
“I’m not going to be heavy handed ... as long as they pay attention,” Allen said.
Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee Chairman Rep. Linda Tyler, D-Conway, said she will ask members to follow the signs posted in committee rooms, which prohibit “audible” cell-phone use.
“If it becomes a problem or becomes too loud, certainly we’ll ask them to step out,” said Tyler, who was wearing a hands-free cell-phone device.
Tyler said she doesn’t consider high-tech phones a distraction in committee meetings.
“Oftentimes, I think people are looking up information,” she said. “I embrace the technology.”
Rep. Johnnie Roebuck, D-Arkadelphia, a member of Hall’s State Agencies committee, said the ban was fine with her. She said she heard no complaints from other members.
“He’s the chairman and we’ll abide by it,” she said. “I’m not one to text during meetings. People are distracted and [Hall] wants their full attention.”
The Senate has no rule on using cell phones for texting, said Senate Secretary Anne Cornwell.
Sen. Gilbert Baker, R-Conway, said there is nothing wrong with people using cell phones to e-mail or text during committee meetings as long as they are respectful and use discretion.
Also, Hall’s committee debated whether to allow live streaming of their meetings over the Internet.
The House spent $377,416 to equip four committee rooms with gear to broadcast meetings.
Stovall said Moore has decided that each committee must determine whether to broadcast. He said that’s because three committees meet in a room without equipment to broadcast. He said the speaker believes that if some meetings can’t be broadcast, it wouldn’t be fair to require that all of the others be broadcast.
Rep. Larry Cowling, D-Foreman, said he didn’t like the idea of broadcasting the meetings. He said people didn’t have to watch him on the Internet because they trusted him enough to elect him, so they should trust him to make the right decision on bills.
Rep. Ed Garner, R-Maumelle, said he favored it because more transparency is good for government.
Hall said the committee would decide that issue next week.
Senate committee rooms don’t have audiovisual equipment.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 01/13/2011