Montserrado County Senator Abraham Darius Dillon has flatly rejected accusations that the Senate is violating the Constitution by holding budget hearings, telling Rep. Musa Hassan Bility to "go to court" if he believes the upper chamber is acting illegally.
Dillon's blunt challenge comes as tensions mount between the House of Representatives and the Senate over which chamber holds the upper hand in the national budget process--a long-disputed constitutional grey area that has repeatedly strained relations within Liberia's bicameral Legislature.
Bility Accuses Senate of "Gross Overreach"
Rep. Bility, who represents Nimba County District 7 and leads the Citizens Movement for Change (CMC), argues that the Senate has no authority to review or scrutinize the draft national budget before the House completes its own hearings and passes the document.
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Citing Article 34(d)(i) of the Constitution, Bility maintains that revenue and financial bills must originate in the House and that the Senate's role is strictly limited to concurrence.
According to him, the Senate's move to conduct simultaneous hearings is unconstitutional and risks plunging the Legislature into "institutional conflict, legislative disorder, and constitutional uncertainty."
In a formal communication to Speaker Richard Nagbe Koon, Bility requested that the House demand the Senate immediately halt its hearings. "No budget can be properly before the Senate for concurrence or non-concurrence until it has first been originated and passed upon by the House," he wrote.
Dillon Fires Back: "We Will Not Stop"
Dillon, speaking at a Tuesday, December 2 press conference in his Capitol Hill office, dismissed Bility's claims as a misreading of the Constitution and a misunderstanding of legislative practice.
"The Senate cannot pass the budget and send it to the House for concurrence," Dillon acknowledged. "But the Senate can hold hearings, gather information, and prepare itself to concur or amend what the House eventually passes."
He stressed that the Constitution does not prohibit the Senate from conducting preparatory hearings.
"Note that the budget can never be a law without concurrence of the Senate," Dillon said. "It is left to the discretion of the Senate to simply concur on what the House passed or decide to include amendments."
He dared Bility to take his complaint to the judiciary. "If my colleague believes the Senate is acting illegally, he should go to court," Dillon said, noting that the Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the Senate in past disputes with the House.
Why the Senate Is Moving Ahead
Dillon explained that the Senate began hearings early to avoid delays in reviewing the national budget--delays he said often lead to rushed decisions, weakened oversight, and unnecessary bureaucratic bottlenecks.
"This is not the first time for the Senate to conduct budget hearings," he said. "I made the motion on the floor for us to begin hearings so we can properly look into some critical sectors while awaiting the House to pass."
He added that the Senate's hearings are not an attempt to usurp the House's constitutional authority but are part of a long-established practice intended to allow both chambers to review the budget thoroughly.
If the Senate and House pass different versions of the budget, a joint conference committee will reconcile the discrepancies before the final document is sent to the President.
Broader Rift Between the Chambers
The Dillon-Bility confrontation reflects deeper tensions brewing within the Legislature over interpretive control of Article 34(d)(i). The conflict intensified after several ministries and state-owned enterprises skipped the House's initial invitations and instead honored the Senate's summons--an act the House considered "gross disrespect."
House members argue that allowing the Senate to conduct simultaneous hearings undermines the House's constitutional primacy over revenue bills.
But the Senate counters that restricting its ability to scrutinize the budget undermines its concurrence authority and hampers legislative efficiency.
Legal Experts Support Senate's Position
Prominent Liberian lawyer Atty. Samwar Fallah has sided with the Senate, arguing that the Constitution does not prohibit the upper chamber from holding budget hearings.
"There is no constitutional provision that says the Senate shouldn't conduct budget hearings," Fallah said. "The Senate has to scrutinize the budget. It is not just there to agree with the House."
Fallah noted that joint budget hearings were once common practice and often ensured timely passage, especially when Liberia faced tight deadlines and risks of government shutdowns.
He argued that the Senate's decision to conduct separate hearings this year "does not make it illegal" and that parallel reviews merely provide both chambers with the necessary information to fulfill their legislative duties.
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A Recurring Institutional Power Struggle
This is not the first time the House and Senate have clashed over budget and revenue protocol. In 2021, the House rejected a concession agreement ratified by the Senate, prompting the upper chamber to seek Supreme Court interpretation.
The Court ruled that non-revenue agreements, such as concession and investment deals, may originate in either chamber. However, it reaffirmed that revenue bills must originate in the House and that the Senate may only propose or concur with amendments.
Calm briefly returned, and the two chambers resumed joint budget hearings through 2024. But after an internal impasse in the House that year, the Senate reverted to holding separate hearings, a decision that continues to frustrate House lawmakers.
Dillon: Senate Will Proceed "Elderly, Wise and Proactive"
Dillon, who chairs the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, remained unwavering in his stance.
"The budget process will proceed in the Senate," he said. "When the House passes it, the Senate will already be prepared to concur or make the necessary amendments as contemplated by Article 34(d). This is being elderly, wise, and proactive."
