The new year won’t bring much action in the state House of Representatives.

A leaky roof in the state Capitol building leaves only a couple of short instances in which House members will meet in their Harrisburg offices. Gov. Josh Shapiro will give his budget address in the Main Capitol Rotunda instead of the House chamber. Budget hearings won’t be held for another six weeks.

The pace of work in Harrisburg can be painstakingly slow – but the next three months will make the typical biplane legislative pace look like a dogfight between two F-14s.

In our opinion, after accepting another pay raise, House members should find a way to make this break a quick mid-air refueling rather than a three-month layover.

Pennsylvania’s legislature works full-time – and how many full-time jobs come with a three-month break?

It was only three short-years ago that many state legislatures found ways to hold votes remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. The same lessons should apply here. This construction-related pause doesn’t have to bring legislative business to a halt. We can still have robust debate on the issues and the people’s business can still be done even though the people’s house is closed for renovations.

Three months is a lot of time. How will House members use it?