Overview
A "shell bill" is a bill introduced with little or no substantive text, intended to serve as a placeholder that can later be amended with the actual legislative language. This practice exists across numerous US states, though each state uses its own terminology and follows its own procedural rules. The common thread is that these bills allow legislators to bypass bill introduction deadlines while reserving a legislative vehicle for future use.
The core mechanism is straightforward: most legislatures impose deadlines for introducing new bills, but amendments to existing bills face far less restrictive timelines. By introducing a placeholder bill before the deadline and amending it later with substantive content, legislators can effectively introduce new legislation after the filing window has closed.
Methodology: This report draws on a combination of sources: survey data from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) on formal legislative procedures; independent research into each state's current practices using legislative rules, official legislative guides, news coverage, and advocacy group analyses from 2024–2026; and insights from BillTrack50 customers operating in several of the states covered.
States That Use This Process
The following twelve states formally permit or commonly use some form of skeleton, short-form, or placeholder bill introduction. Where a state permits the practice in only one chamber (House or Senate), this is noted in the Chambers column.
| State | Term(s) Used | Chambers | Initial Content | Key Mechanism | Notable Safeguard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CA | Spot bill / Intent bill | Assembly & Senate | Nonsubstantive change or intent statement | Amendment after Rules Committee referral | 15-day in-print rule before vote |
| CT | Proposed bill | Senate & House | Short concept statement | Committee screening and drafting | Committee must vote to draft |
| FL | Shell bill (via CS) | Senate & House | Minimal / narrowly scoped text | Committee substitute; "delete everything" amendments | Rule 7.18(a) lays original on table |
| HI | Short form bill | Senate & House | Title and general idea only | Committee inserts provisions | Must recommit for public hearing |
| IL | Shell bill / Vehicle bill | Senate (formally); both in practice | Trivial change (e.g. "the" → "the") | Floor amendment at 2nd reading | 1-hour posting (vs 6 days for new bills) |
| IN | Vehicle bill | Senate (formally); both in practice | Titled "Vehicle Bill" | Committee substitute / gut and replace | — |
| KY | Shell bill | Senate & House | Minimal content | Committee substitute | Court-imposed limits on germaneness |
| ME | Concept draft | Senate & House | Plain English summary | Sponsor's amendment before hearing | 3-day drafting / 2-day posting rule (2025) |
| MN | Delete-all amendment / Carrier bill / Gut and go | Senate & House | Small bill used as carrier | Delete-all amendment replaces entire text | Germaneness ruling by chair |
| NM | Dummy bill / Generic bill | Senate & House | Empty template, generic title | Committee substitute | Very short sessions create pressure |
| OK | Shell bill | Senate & House | Blank / minimal | Language filed by deadline, then substitute | Specific deadline for filing shell language |
| UT | Substitute bill (S01, S02, etc.) | Senate & House | Substantive bill transformed via substitutes | Numbered substitute versions mid-session | Striking the enacting clause can kill a bill |
Additionally, several other states use functionally similar mechanisms: Montana does not formally allow skeleton bills, but committees can combine bills through amendment, achieving a similar effect. Ohio, Pennsylvania, and others use "gut and replace" or "gut and amend" procedures on existing bills, achieving a similar outcome without dedicated placeholder bill procedures.
State-by-State Detail
CA California — "Spot Bills" and "Intent Bills"
Terminology: California uses the terms spot bill, intent bill, and increasingly placeholder bill as an umbrella term for all three variants.
What they look like: A spot bill makes a trivial, nonsubstantive change to existing law — for example, adding or removing a comma, changing "that" to "which," or updating gendered language. The Legislative Counsel's Digest will typically state the bill "would make a technical, nonsubstantive change to the law." An intent bill contains only a statement of legislative intent. A findings-and-declarations bill contains only legislative findings with no statutory language.
Process: Legislators introduce these before the mid-February bill introduction deadline. By the rules of both chambers, spot bills and intent bills cannot be referred to a policy committee until they are amended with substantive language. In the Assembly, Rule 51.5 governs this: once the author proposes substantive amendments to the Rules Committee, the committee may refer the bill along with the proposed changes. A separate deadline (typically a few weeks after bill introduction) applies for submitting amendments. Once amended, the bill must be in print for at least 15 days before a vote can be taken.
Scale: In a typical session, roughly 30% of all introduced bills are spot or intent bills. In 2026, over 600 of the 1,799 Assembly bills introduced were spot bills.
Related practice — "Gut and Amend": California also uses a distinct but related practice where a bill that has already been substantively drafted is completely stripped of its content and replaced with entirely new, often unrelated, language. This is separate from the spot bill process but serves a similar deadline-avoidance purpose.
CT Connecticut — "Proposed Bills"
Terminology: Connecticut uses the term proposed bill.
What they look like: A proposed bill is not a fully drafted bill but rather a short statement in non-statutory language expressing what the legislator would like a committee to consider — often only a sentence describing the goal or subject matter.
Process: Each proposed bill is referred to a committee of cognizance based on its subject matter. The committee screens the proposed bills it receives. Those that survive screening may be voted on by the full committee and drafted into formal statutory language as a committee bill. If a proposed bill does not survive screening, the concept may still be resurrected later as a raised bill, incorporated into a related bill, or offered as an amendment. Connecticut does not have a single-subject rule, which provides additional flexibility.
FL Florida — "Shell Bills" / Committee Substitutes
Terminology: Florida uses the term shell bill, with the mechanism implemented primarily through the committee substitute (CS) process.
What they look like: Shell bills are filed with minimal, vague, or narrowly scoped placeholder language, designed to be substantively filled in later through committee substitutes. Notation indicates the depth of substitution: CS = one substitution, CS/CS = two, CS/CS/CS = three, with CS/CS/CS/CS being extremely rare and signalling maximum amendment activity.
Process: Under Florida Senate Rule 7.18(a), when a committee substitute is adopted, the original bill is "laid on the table" and cannot be separately considered — the CS replaces the original text entirely. The most extreme form is the "delete everything" amendment, in which a Rules Committee amendment strikes all text after the enacting clause and inserts entirely new policy, effectively creating new legislation under an existing bill number.
Scale and controversy: The 2026 session (January 13 – March 13) saw extensive shell bill use across land use, elections, labor, and civil liberties bills. Notable examples include CS/CS/CS/HB 399, originally about development permit fees, which expanded through three committee substitutes to force approval of a Miami Beach water park and override local rural rezoning protections; and CS/CS/CS/SB 1566, where a Rules Committee amendment deleted all text after the enacting clause and substituted new provisions on impact fees. Cross-chamber substitution — placing a House bill on the Senate calendar in lieu of its Senate companion — compounds the effect by bypassing committee review of amended versions.
HI Hawaii — "Short Form Bills"
Terminology: Hawaii uses the term short form bill.
What they look like: A short form bill contains only a title and a reference to a general idea. It does not contain the actual statutory language needed for enactment.
Process: Hawaii's process includes specific safeguards. A committee to which a short form bill is referred may fill in the details by inserting substantive provisions. However, timely notice of the decision to insert substantive provisions must be given, and all amendments must be affirmed by committee vote. Crucially, the amended bill must then be recommitted to the committee by a floor vote for the purpose of holding a public hearing on the newly inserted contents. This recommittal-and-hearing requirement provides a transparency mechanism that many other states lack.
IL Illinois — "Shell Bills" / "Vehicle Bills"
Terminology: Illinois uses both shell bill and vehicle bill.
What they look like: Shell bills make trivial changes to state law, such as replacing the word "the" with "the" (i.e., no actual change). They can be identified by the word "TECH" added to their description. For appropriation shell bills, a dollar sign ($) appears at the beginning of the description. A large number are introduced across many different subject areas to comply with the state's single-subject constitutional requirement.
Process: Legislative leaders introduce shell bills before the filing deadline. The bills are moved through the committee process and then parked on second reading on the House floor. When needed, a floor amendment is filed to the shell bill, which either goes to committee or is referred directly back to the floor. Once the amendment is adopted, the bill can immediately be moved to third reading for a vote. Amendments require only a one-hour posting notice compared to six days for new bills.
Scale and controversy: The use of shell bills in Illinois has been extensive. In one notable session, the House Speaker passed 936 shell bills and the Minority Leader passed 528. The 2011 tax hike was introduced, passed, and signed within 24 hours using this mechanism. The Illinois Constitution requires three readings on three different days; shell bills satisfy this requirement for the original placeholder text, with the substantive content added via amendment at the second reading stage.
IN Indiana — "Vehicle Bills"
Terminology: Indiana uses the term vehicle bill.
What they look like: Vehicle bills are explicitly titled "Vehicle Bill" in the bill listing with a brief subject reference such as "A BILL FOR AN ACT concerning general provisions." They are clearly identifiable in the Indiana General Assembly bill index.
Process: Vehicle bills serve as placeholders that can be amended with substantive language via committee substitute or floor amendment after the introduction deadline. The "gut and replace" approach is used — the original minimal content is entirely replaced with new legislation. A review of the 2021 session shows multiple consecutive vehicle bills (e.g., HB 1582 through HB 1588, SB 105, SB 108, SB 109, SB 115), indicating systematic use.
KY Kentucky — "Shell Bills" / "Placeholder Bills"
Terminology: Kentucky uses shell bill and placeholder bill.
Process: Shell bills are introduced before filing deadlines and amended later via committee substitute, which requires a majority vote to advance. The Kentucky Supreme Court has imposed limits on this practice — in a notable case, the court overturned pension reform legislation that had been inserted into an unrelated sewer bill, finding it violated the constitutional requirement for three readings on three separate days (the prior readings on the original topic did not count).
Trend: The League of Women Voters of Kentucky reports that shell bill usage exploded from 24 combined shell bills in the 2014 session to significantly higher numbers in subsequent sessions. A Kentucky Public Radio analysis published on 23 March 2026 identified nearly 150 shell bills in the current (2026) session, representing roughly 11% of all bills filed. These are mostly bills making trivial changes such as adding gender-neutral language or correcting the spelling of "website." The League has also documented broader transparency concerns including the elimination of prefiled bills for the third consecutive year.
ME Maine — "Concept Drafts"
Terminology: Maine uses the term concept draft.
What they look like: A concept draft is a summary of what the sponsor intends to accomplish. It does not contain actual statutory language. The summary is a brief, plain English explanation prepared by nonpartisan staff. Some are quite vague — as general as "An Act Regarding Health Care in the State."
Process: Under Joint Rule 208, a legislator may submit a bill as a concept draft. The concept draft cannot be enacted unless and until actual statutory language is substituted for the concept. The committee chairs must communicate with the sponsor about scheduling and when the sponsor's amendment needs to be submitted.
2025 reforms: Maine enacted procedural changes in January 2025 to limit vague concept drafts. Sponsors must now provide fully drafted amendment language to legislative staff three business days before a public hearing, and the amendment must be posted online at least two business days before the hearing. The language must be formal statutory text, not bullet points. If the sponsor fails to meet this deadline, the bill is automatically withdrawn and killed. These reforms came after widespread bipartisan criticism.
MN Minnesota — "Delete-All Amendments" / "Carrier Bills"
Terminology: Minnesota's mechanism operates under several names: delete-all amendment (the formal term), delete-everything amendment, gut and go (slang), and carrier bill (for the small bill used as a vehicle). A related term, woodchuck bill, refers to a bill whose true effect is not apparent on the surface — often described by its sponsor as "simple, non-controversial."
What they look like: Unlike states that introduce blank placeholder bills, Minnesota typically starts with a small bill proposing a minor change in law. This "carrier bill" is then transformed mid-session when a delete-all amendment removes everything after the title and inserts entirely new content — often a large omnibus bill. The Minnesota House Session Daily glossary openly describes the tactic.
Process: Under Minnesota Constitution Article 4, Section 17, only single-subject laws may be passed, and amendments must be germane to the measure. The committee chair rules on germaneness during committee consideration; the Speaker rules on the House floor and the Senate President rules on the Senate floor. Courts have occasionally been asked to rule on germaneness disputes. Once a delete-all amendment is adopted in committee, it becomes part of the committee report on the bill. Minnesota Senate rules note that "in rare cases, particularly where the chief author has a long delete-everything amendment to a bill of substantial public interest," the author may release the amendment text publicly before the meeting.
Scale: Delete-all amendments are standard practice for omnibus bills, particularly at session's end. A "garbage bill" — slang for a bill perceived to contain unrelated subjects — is one common result. In the 2026 session, the House Human Services Finance and Policy Committee approved an omnibus bill via a delete-all amendment alongside nine other amendments. Because single-subject challenges can be raised in court, the practice operates within real constitutional limits, though enforcement is inconsistent.
NM New Mexico — "Dummy Bills" / "Generic Bills"
Terminology: New Mexico uses dummy bill and generic bill informally. They are not officially designated as such in legislative rules.
What they look like: Dummy bills are empty bill templates filed with generic titles, most commonly "PUBLIC PEACE, HEALTH, SAFETY & WELFARE." Even after amendment, they retain these generic titles, making them difficult to track by subject.
Process: Each session, a set number of empty bill templates are filed. They can later be amended in committee with entirely new language via committee substitute. This mechanism is commonly used to resurrect vetoed legislation or to introduce last-minute proposals. In one notable case in 2013, a bill vetoed by the Governor on a Thursday was effectively reintroduced via a dummy bill, passed the House on Friday morning, went through the Senate, and returned for a concurrence vote — all within approximately 24 hours.
Scale: In the 2024 session, approximately 80 dummy bills were introduced. The League of Women Voters of New Mexico has formally objected to the practice. New Mexico's legislature operates on very short session timelines (60 days in odd years, 30 days in even years), which intensifies the pressure to use placeholder mechanisms.
OK Oklahoma — "Shell Bills"
Terminology: Oklahoma uses the term shell bill.
Process: Oklahoma has a structured deadline system for shell bills. The bill request deadline occurs in late November/December. A separate deadline in January requires the actual language to be submitted to drafting staff. There is then a further deadline (typically in February) specifically for filing shell bill language — replacing the placeholder text with the substantive provisions. When a shell bill undergoes a complete language replacement via committee substitute, this is sometimes called a "zombie bill" if the substitute revives legislation that previously failed to advance. Oklahoma Senate rules state that no bill "shall be filed which fails to effectuate a substantive change in policy," though shell bills persist in practice.
UT Utah — "Substitute Bills"
Terminology: Utah uses the substitute bill mechanism, with numbered substitute versions designated formally as S01 (first substitute), S02 (second substitute), and so on. Some high-profile bills have reached S04 or higher through multiple rounds of substitution during the state's compressed 45-day general session.
What they look like: Unlike states that introduce blank or vague placeholder bills, Utah bills typically start with substantive text that is then transformed — sometimes radically — through the substitute process. Each substitute version replaces the previous version entirely and may reshape the bill's scope, target, or policy direction. Bill trackers and advocacy groups frequently note when a new substitute has "changed significantly" from prior versions.
Process: Substitutes are filed during committee consideration and can be introduced late in the session. Utah's 45-day session creates intense deadline pressure, meaning substitutes often emerge in the final two weeks with limited public review. A related Utah tactic is striking the enacting clause, which effectively kills a bill procedurally — language from a struck bill can then be incorporated into a substitute of a different vehicle. In 2025, for example, HB 215 did not pass due to striking the enacting clause, but its language was later incorporated into a substitute of SB 154.
Scale: The substitute process is used extensively. In the 2025 general session, over 500 bills passed, with many transformed through multiple substitutes. HB 300 (Amendments to Election Law) reached S04 after "many substitutes," phasing out automatic vote-by-mail among other changes. SB 132 (Electricity Supply) reached S02, and numerous other bills tracked by advocacy groups showed substantial scope changes between substitute versions.
Related Practice: "Gut and Amend" / "Gut and Replace"
Several states that do not have formal shell bill procedures nonetheless achieve similar results through the "gut and amend" or "gut and replace" technique. This involves taking a bill that has already passed through some stages of the legislative process, stripping out its entire contents, and inserting completely new (often unrelated) language. This is distinct from shell bills because the original bill typically contained real substantive provisions rather than being introduced as a placeholder.
States where this practice is particularly noted include California (where it coexists alongside the spot bill process), Ohio, and various others. The practice is controversial because it can circumvent germaneness requirements and public notice provisions.
Key Themes and Observations
Deadline circumvention is the primary driver. In every state, the core purpose of shell/placeholder bills is to work around bill introduction deadlines while satisfying constitutional requirements for multiple readings.
Transparency concerns are universal. Critics across all states raise similar objections: the public cannot meaningfully follow or comment on legislation whose content has not yet been determined. The speed advantage of shell bills — where substantive legislation can be introduced and passed in hours rather than weeks — compounds this problem.
Safeguards vary significantly. Hawaii's requirement for a fresh public hearing after substantive content is inserted represents the strongest transparency safeguard. Maine's 2025 reforms (mandatory drafting and posting timelines) represent a middle ground. Illinois's one-hour amendment posting requirement represents the weakest safeguard among states studied.
Scale varies enormously. Illinois and California see hundreds of shell/spot bills per session. Oklahoma and New Mexico see dozens. The numbers tend to correlate with session length and the strictness of introduction deadlines.
Constitutional challenges are a real risk. Kentucky's Supreme Court ruling that pension reform legislation inserted into an unrelated bill was unconstitutional demonstrates that there are limits to how far the practice can be pushed, particularly regarding three-readings requirements and single-subject rules.
Identification varies by state. Illinois shell bills are identifiable via the "TECH" marker. Indiana explicitly titles them "Vehicle Bill." California's are flagged by Legislative Counsel as making nonsubstantive changes. New Mexico's dummy bills share the same generic title ("PUBLIC PEACE, HEALTH, SAFETY & WELFARE"), making them especially hard to track programmatically.
Prepared by Claude for BillTrack50 research purposes, April 2026. Version 2.