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Enactment of a Law
House Floor Action
The House rules designate special legislative days which have been
established to expedite certain types of unprivileged business. The special
legislative days are: Calendar Wednesday (every Wednesday), District of
Columbia (the second and fourth Mondays), suspension of the rules (every
Monday and Tuesday), and the Corrections Calendar (the first and third
Mondays). Private Calendar business, if any, is considered on the first
and third Tuesdays of each month, and discharge motions on the second and
fourth Mondays.
Generally speaking, after the regular routine business each morning,
including the approval of the Journal, the House proceeds to the consideration
of whatever bills or resolutions are to be acted on that day. The order
varies somewhat, as follows: (1) On days set aside for certain procedures,
such as suspension motions on Mondays and Tuesdays, bills and resolutions
are called up in pursuance of the procedure, as defined by House rules
in each instance; (2) under unanimous consent, bills are called up in pursuance
of such requests made and granted by the House, regardless of the regular
rules of procedure; and (3) privileged matters, such as general appropriation
bills and conference reports, may be called up by the Members in charge
of them at almost any time after they have lain over for three days, providing
the Representative in charge is recognized by the Speaker.
The House also can determine the order of its business and decide
what bill to take up by adopting a special rule (simple House resolution)
reported by the Rules Committee. The procedure for consideration of such
measures is defined in each instance in the special rule. A special rule
to call up a bill may be debated for an hour before it is voted on. Bills
called up under special rules are usually major or controversial pieces
of legislation.
Bills which are first considered in the Committee of the Whole House
on the State of the Union are considered for amendment under the 5-minute
rule, after which the Committee of the Whole reports them back to the House
for action on any amendments that may have been adopted, and then for the
vote on final passage.
In the House, as in the Senate, bills are read three times before
they are passed. After a Senate bill is passed by the House, with or without
amendment, it is returned to the Senate; if there are amendments, the amendments
are engrossed before being messaged to the Senate. All House engrossments
are printed on blue paper.
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