Senate
The Senate (upper house) consists of 16 members (known as Senators) appointed by the Governor-General. Nine of these senators are selected on the advice of the Prime Minister, four on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition, and three on the advice of the Prime Minister after consultation with the Leader of the Opposition. The Senate is authorised by the Constitution to pass Bills in the same manner as passed by the House or it can make such amendments to the Bill should it consider it necessary. Those amendments will then have to be approved by the House of Assembly. The Senate may even reject a Bill outrightly that had been passed by the House. However, if the House passes the Bill in two successive sessions, and the Senate rejects the Bill each time, the House of Assembly may send the Bill directly to the Governor-General without the Senate having consented to the Bill.
If the House passes a Money Bill and sends that Bill to the Senate for its consent, and if the Senate does not give its consent within a month after receiving the Bill, the money bill is sent to the Governor-General for assent even though the Senate had not consented to it
In a historic vote, attorney The Hon. Sharon Wilson was unanimously elected to a second term as President of the Senate, marking the first time a woman won re-election to head that legislative body. She previous served as President of the Senate from 2002-2007, and succeeded The Hon. Lynn Holowesko who served as President of the Senate from 2007-2012.
Read more about this topic: Parliament Of The Bahamas
Famous quotes containing the word senate:
“At first I intended to become a student of the Senate rules and I did learn much about them, but I soon found that the Senate had but one fixed rule, subject to exceptions of course, which was to the effect that the Senate would do anything it wanted to do whenever it wanted to do it.”
—Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933)
“Like Cato, give his little Senate laws,
And sit attentive to his own applause.”
—Alexander Pope (1688–1744)
“We have been here over forty years, a longer period than the children of Israel wandered through the wilderness, coming to this Capitol pleading for this recognition of the principle that the Government derives its just powers from the consent of the governed. Mr. Chairman, we ask that you report our resolution favorably if you can but unfavorably if you must; that you report one way or the other, so that the Senate may have the chance to consider it.”
—Anna Howard Shaw (1847–1919)