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MetaphysicalMayhem t1_j5m9brl wrote

Right. The amendment bill is a shit sandwich. There’s still infectious shit there, in between the white Wonderbread slices. Or maybe it’s an open-faced sandwich with one layer of bread and two slices of shit.

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IamSauerKraut t1_j5n69rx wrote

Wonder if the "single subject" rule will be considered.

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TMax01 t1_j5oosba wrote

The amendments to the bill putting additional proposed constitutional amendments on the ballot aren't related to the "single subject rule", which only governs how the proposals appear on the ballot, not the legislation putting them there.

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nttnypride t1_j5otyra wrote

That’s what the Republicans say, but I think that question is before the PA courts now to decide.

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IamSauerKraut t1_j5phf9x wrote

From PennCapital-Star: "[Legislators] said that the amendment package would violate Pennsylvania's single-subject rule for legislation, which stops lawmakers from grouping multiple unrelated subjects into one bill. A constitutional amendment proposing a bill of rights for crime victims, which voters approved in 2019, was ruled unconstitutional by SCOPA in 2021." [See Marsy's Law kerfuffle.]

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TMax01 t1_j5pxxvi wrote

Unfortunately, this additional information does not actually clarify the matter. Apparently there are two distinct "single subject rules", one pertaining to legislation, another to ballot initiatives. To add to the confusion, the legislative rule is part of the state constitution, and the rule that proposed amendments to that constitution, properly identified as the separate vote requirement, is often referred to as a "single subject rule".

Regardless of all that, since the legislation being voted on relates to the 'single subject' of proposed constitutional amendments, I can't see it being an issue. As long as the ballot allows each proposed amendment to be voted on separately, it doesn't matter if the legislation contains multiple proposals any more than it does if several amendment proposals appear on the same ballot, as long as they are not bound together so that they must all be affirmed or rejected as a group.

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