How Our Laws Are Made

X. Obtaining Consideration of Measures

Unanimous Consent - Special Resolution or "Rule" - Consideration of Measures Made in Order by Rule Reported from the Committee on Rules - Motion to Discharge Committee - Motion to Suspend the Rules - Calendar Wednesday - District of Columbia Business - Privileged Matters

Certain measures pending on the House and Union Calendars are more important and urgent than others and a system permitting their consideration ahead of those that do not require immediate action is necessary. If the calendar numbers alone were the determining factor, the bill reported most recently would be the last to be taken up as all measures are placed on the House and Union Calendars in the order reported.

Unanimous Consent

The House occasionally employs the practice of allowing measures to be considered by the unanimous agreement of all Members in the House Chamber. The power to recognize Members for a unanimous consent request is ultimately in the discretion of the Chair but recent Speakers have issued strict guidelines on when such a request is to be entertained. Most unanimous consent requests for consideration of measures may only be entertained by the Chair when assured that the majority and minority floor and committee leaderships have no objection.

Special Resolution or "Rule"

To avoid delays and to allow selectivity in the consideration of public measures, it is possible to have them taken up out of their order on their respective calendar by obtaining from the Committee on Rules a special resolution or "rule" for their consideration. The Committee on Rules, which is composed of majority and minority members but with a larger proportion of majority members than other committees, is specifically granted jurisdiction over resolutions relating to the order of business of the House. Usually the chairman of the committee that has favorably reported the bill requests the Committee on Rules to originate a resolution that will provide for its immediate or subsequent consideration. Under unusual circumstances, the Committee on Rules may originate a resolution providing for a measure that has not been reported by the legislative committee(s) of jurisdiction. If the Committee on Rules is satisfied that the measure should be taken up, it may report a resolution reading substantially as follows with respect to a bill on the Union Calendar or an unreported bill:

Resolved, That upon the adoption of this resolution the Speaker declares pursuant to rule XXIII that the House resolve itself into the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union for the consideration of the bill (H.R.__) entitled, etc., and the first reading of the bill shall be dispensed with. After general debate, which shall be confined to the bill and shall continue not to exceed __ hours, to be equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on __, the bill shall be read for amendment under the five-minute rule. At the conclusion of the consideration of the bill for amendment, the Committee shall rise and report the bill to the House with such amendments as may have been adopted, and the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and amendments thereto to final passage without intervening motion except one motion to recommit with or without instructions.

If the measure is on the House Calendar or the recommendation is to avoid consideration in the Committee of the Whole, the resolution reads substantially as follows:

Resolved, That upon the adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider the bill (H.R. __) entitled, etc., in the House.

The resolution may waive points of order against the bill. A point of order is an objection that a pending matter or proceeding is in violation of a rule of the House. The bill may be susceptible to various points of order that may be made against its consideration, including an assertion that the bill carries a retroactive federal income tax increase, contains a federal unfunded mandate, or has not been reported from committee properly. When a special resolution limits or prevents floor amendments, it is popularly known as a "closed rule" or "modified closed rule." However, a special resolution may not deny the minority party the right to offer a motion to recommit the bill with amendatory or general instructions. For a discussion of the motion to recommit, see Part XI.

Consideration of Measures Made in Order by Rule Reported from the Committee on Rules

When a rule has been reported to the House and is not considered immediately, it is referred to the calendar and, if not called up for consideration by the Member making the report within seven legislative days thereafter, any member of the Committee on Rules may call it up as a privileged matter, after having given one calendar day notice of the Member's intention to do so. The Speaker will recognize any member of the committee seeking recognition for that purpose.

If, within seven calendar days after a measure has, by resolution adopted by the House, been made in order for consideration, a motion has not been offered for its consideration, the Speaker may recognize a member of the committee that reported the measure to offer a motion that the House consider it, if the Member has been duly authorized by that committee to offer the motion.

There are several other methods of obtaining consideration of bills that either have not been reported by a committee or, if reported, for which a rule has not been granted. Two of those methods, a motion to discharge a committee and a motion to suspend the rules, are discussed below.

Motion to Discharge Committee

A Member may present to the Clerk a motion in writing to discharge a committee from the consideration of a public bill or resolution that has been referred to it 30 days prior thereto. A Member also may file a motion to discharge the Committee on Rules from further consideration of a resolution providing a special rule for the consideration of a public bill or resolution reported by a standing committee, or a special rule for the consideration of a public bill or resolution that has remained in a standing committee 30 legislative days or more without action. This motion to discharge the Committee on Rules may be made only when the resolution has been referred to that committee at least seven legislative days prior to the filing of the motion to discharge. The motion may not permit consideration of nongermane amendments. The motion is placed in the custody of the Journal Clerk, where Members may sign it at the House rostrum only when the House is in session. The names of Members who have signed a discharge motion are published in the Congressional Record on a weekly basis. When a majority of the total membership of the House have signed the motion, it is entered in the Journal, printed with all the signatures thereto in the Congressional Record, and referred to the Calendar of Motions to Discharge Committees.

On the second and fourth Mondays of each month, except during the last six days of a session, a Member who has signed a motion to discharge that has been on the calendar at least seven legislative days may seek recognition and be recognized for the purpose of calling up the motion. The motion to discharge is debated for 20 minutes, one-half in favor of the proposition and one-half in opposition.

If the motion to discharge the Committee on Rules from a resolution pending before that committee prevails, the House shall immediately consider such resolution. If the resolution is adopted, the House proceeds to its execution. This is the modern practice for utilization of the discharge rule.

If the motion to discharge one of the standing committees of the House from a public bill or resolution pending before the committee prevails, a Member who signed the motion may move that the House proceed to the immediate consideration of the bill or resolution. If the motion is agreed to, the bill or resolution is considered immediately under the general rules of the House. If the House votes against the motion for immediate consideration, the bill or resolution is referred to its proper calendar with the same rights and privileges it would have had if reported favorably by the standing committee.

Motion To Suspend the Rules

On Monday and Tuesday of each week and during the last six days of a session, the Speaker may entertain a motion to suspend the rules of the House and pass a public bill or resolution. Members need to make arrangements in advance with the Speaker to be recognized to offer such a motion. The motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill is debatable for 40 minutes, one-half of the time in favor of the proposition and one-half in opposition. The motion may not be separately amended but may be amended in the form of a manager's amendment included in the motion when it is offered. Because the rules may be suspended and the bill passed only by affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Members voting, a quorum being present, this procedure is usually used only for expedited consideration of relatively noncontroversial public measures.

The Speaker may postpone all recorded and yea-nay votes on certain questions before the House, including a motion to suspend the rules and the passage of bills and resolutions, until a specified time on that legislative day or the next two legislative days. At that time, the House disposes of the postponed votes consecutively without further debate. After the first postponed fifteen minute vote is taken, the Speaker may reduce to not less than five minutes the time period for subsequent postponed votes. If the House adjourns before completing action on postponed votes, the postponed votes must be the first order of business on the next legislative day. Eliminating intermittent recorded votes on suspensions reduces interruptions of committee meetings and allows more efficient scheduling of voting.

Calendar Wednesday

On Wednesday of each week, unless dispensed with by unanimous consent or by affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Members voting, a quorum being present, the standing committees are called in alphabetical order. A committee when named may call up for consideration any bill reported by it on a previous day and pending on either the House or Union Calendar. The bill's report must have been available for three days in accordance with House rules and must not be the subject of a special order of business providing for its consideration. Not more than two hours of general debate is permitted on any measure called up on Calendar Wednesday and all debate must be confined to the subject matter of the measure, the time being equally divided between those for and those against it. The affirmative vote of a simple majority of the Members present is sufficient to pass the measure. The general purpose of this procedure is to provide an alternative method of consideration when the Committee on Rules has not reported a rule for a specific bill.

District of Columbia Business

On the second and fourth Mondays of each month, after the disposition of motions to discharge committees and after the disposal of business on the Speaker's table requiring only referral to committee, the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight may call up for consideration any District of Columbia business.

Privileged Matters

Under the rules of the House, certain matters are regarded as privileged matters and may interrupt the order of business. Conference reports, veto messages from the President, and certain amendments to measures by the Senate after the stage of disagreement between the two Houses are examples of privileged matters. Certain reports from House committees are also privileged, including reports from the Committee on Rules, reports from the Committee on Appropriations on the general appropriation bills, printing and committee funding resolutions reported from the Committee on House Oversight, and reports on Member's conduct from the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. Bills, joint resolutions, and motions may also take on privileged status as a result of special procedures written into statute. The Member in charge of such a matter may call it up at practically any time for immediate consideration. Usually, this is done after consultation with both the majority and minority floor leaders so that the Members of both parties will have advance notice.

In addition, at any time after the reading of the Journal, a Member, by direction of the Committee on Appropriations, may move that the House resolve itself into the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union for the purpose of considering general appropriation bills. General appropriation bills may not be considered in the House until three calendar days (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays unless the House is in session on those days) after printed committee reports and hearings on them have been available to the Members. The limit on general debate on such a bill is generally fixed by a rule reported from the Committee on Rules.

Previous Section | Next Section

How Our Laws are Made | Educational Stuff Main | Home