After two days of often-cantankerous debate, members of the state House of Representatives Tuesday unanimously passed a package of new rules designed to change the way legislative business is conducted.

Among the reforms are:

• Establishing a 24-hour waiting period between the time a bill has been amended and when it can be voted on.



• Making bills, votes, employee salaries and expenditures from the House accessible online.

The new rules also put restrictive parameters around the Rules Committee's ability to amend proposed legislation.

"There will no longer be the shenanigans played" as they were in years past by Rules Committee members, Rep. Scott Boyd, a West Lampeter Republican, said.

Other members of the Lancaster County delegation offered varied views on how significant the reforms are.

"I don't think we scored real high," said state Rep. Katie True, an East Hempfield Republican, "but we scored nevertheless, which would have never happened a couple of years ago."

Among other Republicans, state Rep. John Bear of Lititz called the reform package "baby steps," while Rep. Bryan Cutler of East Drumore Township described it as "mediocre."

"We had an opportunity to make a real stand on ghost voting and limiting the terms of committee chairmen, and unfortunately none of those passed," Cutler said. "Those are two items the electorate has repeatedly cried for, and I find not passing them very disturbing.

"I'm hopeful, though, that the new rules are a good starting point."

The rules changes are the work of a 24-member bipartisan panel on reform convened in January by House Speaker Dennis O'Brien.

The lengthy debate was marked as much by what failed as by what passed.

Local Republicans repeatedly pointed to four proposed rules changes that did not succeed:

• A proposal that would have allowed leaders of either party to call for a roll-call vote on any piece of legislation.
  
  The proposed rule change failed along party lines by a 99-98 vote with Democrats in the majority.
  
  Supporters said the change would have cracked down on the practice of ghost voting, in which a member registers a vote even though he or she is not present on the House floor.
  
  Several current and former representatives have been accused of jamming coins into voting buttons at their desk or having someone else register their votes for them.



• An amendment that would have required that a majority of committee members be present before any action is taken. Currently, committee members can vote by proxy.



• A proposal to limit chairmen of committees to serving four consecutive two-year terms. There is currently no limit.



• An amendment that would have weakened the Appropriations Committee by restricting it to changing only bills and amendments that deal with spending.

Despite the failures, representatives said the new rules put more influence in the hands of rank-and-file members.

"We are seeing a decentralizing of power," Cutler said.

The two days of debate turned testy at times, even between members of the same political party.

Republicans and Democrats sparred about who was responsible for past abuses of the legislative system shortly after Democratic state Rep. Mike Sturla of Lancaster admonished the GOP Tuesday for not reforming the chamber while they held control from 1994 until 2006.

The assertion that Republicans "perverted the rules is just crap," said GOP Minority Leader Sam Smith, adding he could list Democrats who abused the rules.

"We all know we have to change," Smith said.

In response, Democratic Majority Leader Bill DeWeese said: "In 12 weeks, we will have done more (to reform the House) than the Republicans did in 12 years ... and we did it with Republican help."

Had Republicans maintained control of the House this year and the "status quo antebellum was established, this would not be happening," he said.

The rules changes go into effect immediately.

Earlier this year, the state Senate passed its own set of rules changes.

Gov. Ed Rendell is expected to introduce a package of government reform in the coming weeks.

E-mail Dave Pidgeon at dpidgeon@lnpnews.com.