the General Assembly, or be distributed among them, at
the public expense

SEC. 17. No Senator or Delegate, after qualifying as
such, notwithstanding he may thereafter resign, shall dur
ing the whole period of time, for which he was elected, be
eligible to an^ office, which shall have been created, or th<-
salar), or profits ofwhich shall have been increased, during
such term

SEC. 18 No Senator or Delegate shall be liable in any
civil action, or criminal prosecution, whatever, for words
spoken in debate

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SEC. 19 Each House shall be judge of the quallfi
cations and elections of its members, as prescribed by the
C onstitution and Laws of the State, and shall appoint its
own officers, determine the rules of its own proceedings,
punish a member for disorderly or disrespectful behaviour
and with the consent of tvvo thirds of its whole number of
members elected, expel a member, but no member shall
be expelled a second time tor the same offence

SEC. 20. A majority of the whole number of members
elected to each House shall constitute a quorum tor the
transaction of business, but a smaller number may adjourn
from da) to day, and compel the attendance of absent
members, in such manner, and under such penalties, as
each House may prescribe

SEC. 21. The doors of each House, and of the
Committee of the Whole, shall be open, except when the
business is such as ought to be kept secret

SEC. 22. Each House shall keep a Journal of its
proceedings, and cause the same to be published The veas
and nays of members on any question, shall at the call of
any five of them in the House of Delegates, or one in the
Senate, be entered on the Journal

SEC. 23. Fach House may punish by imprisonment,
during the session of the Geneial Assembly, any person, not
a member, for disrespectful, or disorderly behavior in its
presence, or for obstructing an) of its proceedings, or any
of its officers in the execution of their duties, provided, such
imprisonment shall not, at any one time, exceed ten days

SEC. 24. The House of Delegates may inquire, on the
oath of witnesses, into all complaints, grievances and of
fences, as the grand inquest of the State, and may commit
any person, for any crime, to the public )ail, there to remain,
until discharged by due course of I.aw They may examine
and pass all accounts of the State, relating either to the
collection or expenditure of the revenue, and appoint
auditors to state and ad)ust the same They may call for all
public, or official papers and records, and send for persons,
whom they may judge necessary in the course of their
inquiries, concerning affairs relating to the public interest,
and ma> direct all office bonds which shall be made payable
to the State, to be sued for any breach thereof, and with a
view to the more certain prci ention, or correction of the
abuses in the expenditures of the money of the State, the
General Assembly shall create, at every session thereof, a
Joint Standing Committee of the Senate and House of
Delegates, who shall ha\ c pow er to send for persons, and
examine (hem on oath, and call for Public, or Official Papers
and Records, and whose dun it shall be to examine and

report upon all contracts made for printing stationery, and
purchases for the Public offices, and the Library, and all
expenditures therein, and upon all matters of alleged abuse
in expenditures, to which their attention may be called by
Resolution of either House of the General Assembly

SEC. 25. Neither House shall, without the consent of
the other, adjourn for more than three days, at any one
time, nor adjourn to an) other place, than that in which
the House shall be sitting, without the concurrent vote of
two thirds of the members present

SEC. 26. The House of Delegates shall have the sole
power of impeachment in all cases, but a majority of all
the members elected must concur in the impeachment All
impeachments shall be tried by the Senate, and when
sitting for that purpose, the Senators shall be on oath, or
affirmation, to do justice according to the law and evi
dence, but no person shall be convicted without the
concurrence of two thirds of all the Senators elected

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SEC. 27. (a) Any bill may originate in either House
of the General Assembly and be altered, amended or rejected
by the other No bill shall originate in either House during
the last thirty five calendar days of a regular session, unless
two thirds of the members elected thereto shall so determine
by yeas and nays, and in addition the two Houses by joint
and similar rule may further regulate the right to introduce
bills during this penod A Bill may not become a law until it
is read on three different days of the session in each House,
unless two thirds of the members elected to the House
where such bill is pending determine by yeas and nays, and
no bill shall be read a third time until it shall have been
actually engrossed or printed tor a third reading

(b) Each House may adopt 05 rule a "consent calen
dar" procedure permitting bills to be read and voted upon
as a single group on first, second and third readings,
provided that the members of each House are afforded
reasonable notice of the bills to be placed upon each
"consent calendar " Upon the objection of any member,
any bill in question shall be removed from the "consent
calendar "

SEC. 28.⁶⁰ No bill, nor single group of bills placed on
the "consent calendar," shall become a Law unless it be
passed in each House by a majority of the whole number
of members elected, and on its final passage, the yeas and
nays be recorded, and on final passage of the bills placed
on the "consent calendar" the veas and nays on the entire
group of bills be recorded A resolution requiring the
action of both Houses shall be passed in the same manner

SEC. 29. The style of all Laws of this State shall be,
"Be it enacted b) the General Assembly of Maryland " and
all Laws shall be passed by original bill, and every Law
enacted by the General Assembly shall embrace but one
subject, and that shall be described in its title, and no Law,
nor section of Law, shall be revned, or amended by
reference to its title, or section onl}, nor shall any Law be
construed by reason of its title, to grant powers, or confer
rights which are not expressly contained in the body of the
Act, and it shall be the duty of the General Assembly, in
amending any article, or section of the Code of Laws of
this State, to enact the same, as the said article, or section
would read when amended And whenever the General