Yukon.

• Date: 22 March 2021
• Author: Kolody, Linda

2020 Fall Sitting

The Third Session of the 34th Legislative Assembly reconvened on October 1 and concluded on December 22. The 45-day Sitting was the longest, essentially uninterrupted (no recess weeks) Sitting since 1993. As well, by order of the blouse, the Assembly sat on Friday, December 4--the first non-ceremonial Friday sitting in 40 years--rather than sitting on Thursday, November 12.

As noted in the preceding legislative report, on the first day of the 2020 Fall Sitting, the House adopted three sessional orders related to COVID-19 that had effect for the duration of the Sitting (Motions No. 213, 214, and 215).

The first sessional order provided for any Member unable to attend sittings of the House in-person "due to COVID-19 symptoms, illness or protocols" to participate by teleconference. Unlike video conference, the ability to teleconference into Chamber proceedings was already in place, though it had never been used during a sitting of the Legislative Assembly. The second sessional order established a procedure for registering and recording pairs, with the pairing arrangements applying to all divisions held in the House on a given day. The third sessional order empowered the Government House Leader, acting together with at least one of the other House Leaders, to "request that the Legislative Assembly meet virtually by video conference, with all the Members of the Legislative Assembly being able to participate remotely," if the Assembly stood adjourned for an indefinite period of time. Of these three sessional orders, only the one concerning pairing arrangements was used during the 2020 Fall Sitting (on three sitting days).

Bills

By the conclusion of the Sitting, all government bills (including four bills that had only passed first reading during the abbreviated Spring...