House of Representatives
House of
Representatives
360 panorama view of the House of Representatives
Washington
State has a bicameral legislature, which means that it is comprised of two
individual chambers, the Senate and the House of Representatives. The
state is divided into 49 legislative districts. Each district elects two
representatives to serve in the House, totaling 98 members in this
chamber. Representatives are elected to two year terms. Each member
has an assigned desk on the floor of the chamber.
The leader of the House of Representatives is the Speaker of the House. The speaker is elected by the majority party and sits in the center chair of the rostrum and directs the proceedings. During the session only the members, pages and security staff are allowed on the House floor. Media staff are assigned areas on either side of the rostrum at a small table.
Representatives must always be recognized by the Speaker before addressing the House. The clerk then activates their microphone from the rostrum, so they can be heard.
The walls in the house are lined with French marble and the original furniture is made of walnut. The carpet on the floor was installed during the renovation in 1987. It features rhododendrons, the state flower, and trilliums. Names of each of the thirty-nine counties in Washington are listed around the ceiling. In each panel there is a name of a county in Eastern Washington and one in Western Washington. This symbolizes unity across the state.
The
voting system of the House is computerized. The title of the bill being
debated is listed on the center panel above the rostrum and the names of the
representatives are listed on the two panels, one on either side of the center
board. Each member has a red button, for a "nay" vote, and a
green button for a "yea" vote on their desk which they push to
register their vote. It takes fifty votes to pass a bill in the House.
Votes can be added or changed until the Speaker locks the voting system.
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