The regular calendar is a list of bills that have been reported from committee and are ready for consideration by the membership of the entire house. Bills are listed on the calendar by number,sponsor, and title, in the order in which they are reported from committee.

Ideas for legislation come from a wide variety of individuals and organizations. Legislators gather ideas for new legislation from constituents, professional associations, businesses,governmental agencies and other state legislatures. Many times, these groups or individuals will seek out a legislator to sponsor a piece of legislation.

Only legislators can introduce legislation, and most bills are drafted and written by the legislative staff. The staff is comprised of attorneys and research personnel who are experts inthe field of properly drafting legislation according to state law.

Once a bill has been drafted in its proper form, it is ready to be introduced into the process. Legislators may "pre-file" legislation prior to the start of each regular session, but no action can be taken on any legislation until the legislature is actually in session. If a bill is not pre-filed, a legislator may file a bill at any time that the legislature is in session. NOTE: Some state legislatures have time limit requirements on the introduction of bills.

Upon a bill's introduction, it is numbered, given its first reading, and assigned by the presiding officer of that house to a standing committee according to the legislations' subject matter.