State Rep. Jerry Knowles, R-Schuylkill, is looking for silver linings after his proposal to shrink the Pennsylvania House of Representatives was dealt a slight setback in the state House this week.

Knowles wants voters to choose whether to add a constitutional amendment that would reduce the size of the state Legislature to 151 members from 203. The process is lengthy. The state House has to vote on an identical bill during two different sessions (which are two years long) before voters can have a referendum.

Knowles’ bill was already passed once, in 2016. When it came up on the House floor this week, lawmakers passed it again, but added an amendment to the bill that would also reduce the size of the Senate.

If the bill is passed in its amended form, the process goes back to the beginning. But Knowles was happy that it was passed at all.

“Had the bill (been voted) down, it would be dead. And there are a lot of things that the Senate can do,” he said.

The amendment that lawmakers tacked on to the bill Monday would reduce the senate from 50 members to 38. It was proposed by state Rep. Gene Digirolamo, and passed by a 114-81 vote on Monday.

The amended bill passed 101-84, with mostly Republican support.

Rep. Jack Rader, R-Monroe, was one of a handful of Republicans who voted against the bill. He said he is concerned that it would disproportionately impact rural districts and give more power to the cities.

“My concern is what it means to my type of a district, a rural district, and I think it harms us,” he said.

He also said residents could end up having less access to their elected officials, specifically mentioning small towns like Kunkletown.

Knowles said he’s heard from representatives with rural, suburban and urban districts who believe it will hurt them disproportionately, so self-preservation may be playing a role in some representatives’ votes.

“We make a lot of easy votes. It takes courage to make this vote,” Knowles said.

The bill now goes to the Senate for their consideration. Knowles said he doesn’t see the Senate voting to downsize itself. He said he was concerned the full bill wouldn’t even pass the House with the amendment.

“My concern was when they amended it in the Senate that it would kill the bill,” Knowles said.

While he does feel there are too many representatives in the House, Knowles doesn’t feel that way about the Senate, and he said that few in Harrisburg do. He said a smaller House would lead to better discussion, better consensus.

“This is a good, reasonable number,” he said.

Most importantly, he believes in putting the decision in the hands of voters, which he in the past has called the legislators’ “bosses.”

“I said in my remarks on the House floor, ‘If you don’t vote for this bill, you’re denying the people of Pennsylvania the right to make this decision,’ ” he said. “The main gist of the bill is that the people make the decision.”