Speaker DeLeo: Several Bills Likely Won’t Pass This Year

BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo says House and Senate lawmakers likely won’t reach agreement on a number of bills before the end of the Legislature’s formal session.

The Democrat says the bills probably won’t reach Republican Gov. Charlie Baker’s desk before the session ends Sunday.

Among the bills that will require further debate next year is a proposal to ban the sale of tobacco products to those under 21 and a bill that would require Massachusetts drivers to put down their cellphones while behind the wheel. The Massachusetts Senate has approved both bills.

DeLeo says the typical last-minute crunch on Beacon Hill has been worse this year because of the Republican and Democratic national conventions, which have forced lawmakers to hold rare back-to-back weekend sessions.