Featured Search the People of the House. Majority Leaders. Bean Soup! Featured Black Americans in Congress. Featured Mace of the U. House of Represen- tatives. House Trivia Timeline. Featured Resources for National History Day In his announced policies for the th Congress, the Speaker deleted text from the Speaker's announcement for the rd Congress, which had stated: "the appointment by the chair of various groups of conferees in the context of the particular House and Senate provisions sent to the conference should not be construed as precedent binding the Speaker to subsequent joint referrals of all bills amending the work product of that particular conference.
Amended clause 2 of Rule XII. In the th Congress, the Speaker's announced policies included a provision that indicated that referral of measures to the Select Committee on Homeland Security in the th Congress "will not constitute precedent for referrals to the new committee," referring to the newly created standing Committee on Homeland Security.
The Speaker's announced policies for the th Congress also addressed the January 30, , "Memorandum of Understanding Between Energy and Commerce Committee and Financial Services Committee," regarding the jurisdictions of the two committees. The Speaker announced that the final two paragraphs dealing with electronic commerce, anti-fraud authorities under securities laws, and the setting of accounting standards by the Financial Accounting Standards Board would no longer provide jurisdictional guidance.
See also " Quorums " above. An underlying proposition would remain subject to further debate or amendment to the same extent as when the question was postponed. Committees did not previously have specific authority to postpone or cluster votes. See also " Hearings Procedures " and " Openness " above.
This rule, a new addition to requirements placed on witnesses, has been called the "truth-in-testimony" rule. See also various entries related to congressional staff and consultants under " Rules Changes Affecting Administration of the House " and " Rules Changes Affecting Ethics Standards ," below.
The th Congress, under the provisions of H. Committee chairs were also directed to ensure the minority was "fairly treated" in the apportionment of staff. See also " Number of Staff " below. In the th Congress, under new provisions of H. Explanatory information placed in the Congressional Record indicated that chairs could require certifications from supervising committee members.
The Committee on Appropriations was exempted from these new provisions on associate staff. Such staff were still to be subject to the general restrictions of House Rule X, clause 9. Further, H. Amended clause 9 of Rule X. Authorization of additional spending by any committee could still be obtained only through a supplemental expense resolution. The Budget Committee, which had been exempted from the committee funding process, was brought into the new process.
The Appropriations Committee continued to be exempt from this process. The rules resolution also provided committees with interim spending authority consistent with planned reductions, pending adoption of a committee expense resolution. The chair of the House Oversight Committee was authorized to sign vouchers for committees terminated through the rules resolution. A provision of the resolution also stated that, if a committee did not submit an oversight plan, it would not be in order to include its funding in a committee expense resolution.
Committee staff were to be reduced by at least one-third from the rd Congress level pursuant to H. Explanatory information inserted in the Congressional Record indicated that this reduction was to be achieved by the House Oversight Committee through the committee funding process.
The allocation for the minority was set at 10 rather than 6 professional and 4 clerical , or one-third of professional staff if a committee hired fewer than 30 staff. While in the minority, Republican complaints included being denied the opportunity to offer amendments to measures because of restrictive rules, an inability to routinely offer a motion to recommit with instructions, the increased volume of commemorative legislation, and a floor schedule that was neither family friendly nor conducive to deliberation.
On the opening day of the th Congress, the new majority rules package attempted to address some of these complaints, while renewing procedural rules that allowed them to control the schedule, agenda, and proceedings. Over the next several Congresses, some rules changes agreed to in were modified or even repealed as the majority party considered the competing demands of deliberation and decision making. In the th Congress, in response to the September 11, , and anthrax terrorist attacks, the majority's rules package addressed a previously unanticipated concern: How could a House with fewer Members conduct business?
The following section identifies changes made to operations on the House floor on the opening day of each Congress from the th through the th Congress with adoption of the resolution continuing but amending the rules of the House and establishing special orders, and pursuant to the Speaker's announcements.
The Speaker added to his announced policies for the th Congress a policy that he and previous Speakers had stated at various times, but not since at the beginning of a Congress. The rule allowed former Members and other former officials access to the House floor unless they 1 had a personal interest in legislation pending before the House or reported from committee, or 2 were employed to lobby on legislation pending before the House, reported from committee, or under consideration by a committee or subcommittee.
The announcement reiterated these prohibitions against access by former Members, indicated they applied to former Members whose employer was lobbying legislation, and stated that former Members could be prohibited from the House floor and adjoining rooms. Serving Members were exhorted to report violations by former Members to the sergeant at arms. Amended clause 2 of Rule IV. The change codified what had been practice, but on which the rules had been silent.
In addition, in applying Rule 4 "Hall of the House" , the Speaker in his announced policies for the th Congress expressed his intent to grant approval only to leadership staff essential to floor activities. The Speaker then reiterated policies consistent with provisions of Rule IV limiting floor access to certain committee staff only when a measure reported from their committee was being considered, and allowing floor access for a Member's personal staff only when the Member had an amendment pending.
A committee or personal staff member wishing to be present on the floor required the approval of his or her supervisor, which was then subject to the approval of the Speaker. Noting the concurrence of the minority leader regarding this policy, the Speaker directed the sergeant-at-arms to assure enforcement of the rule and the Speaker's policy.
The Speaker expanded control over staff floor access in his policies for the th Congress. First, he clarified that individual Members' staff were not entitled to floor access during House consideration of a Member's bill or during a Member's special order speech. Second, he requested that committee chairs and ranking minority Members submit to the Speaker a list of staff to be allowed on the floor during consideration of a measure reported by their committee.
He stated that the sergeant at arms would keep these lists, and further stated that committee staff should exchange their IDs for committee staff badges. This change was intended to make it more convenient to identify such amendments. See additional changes to the amendment process immediately following under " Appropriations Process. The rules change also disallowed any Member from demanding that the question vote on the offsetting amendment be divided. The rules change allowed Members to offer amendments to parts of an appropriations bill not yet open for amendment, making in order amendments proposing this type of transfer of funds.
The majority leader was thereby allowed, if the motion was agreed to, to preclude consideration of limitation amendments. The precedence of the motion existed in prior House rules, but the change restricted the motion's precedence to its being offered by the majority leader. While the rule obviated the need to request such a vote, the purpose of the rule change was to ensure that a roll-call vote occurred on passage or adoption of this legislation. A roll-call vote does not occur unless it is requested and seconded, or requested and the absence of a quorum is noted.
This change was directed at so-called made-known provisions and amendments that could be used despite a ban on legislating on appropriations bills. Under existing House rules, tax and tariff measures could not be reported from a committee not having jurisdiction over such a measure, and an amendment with tax or tariff provisions was not in order to a bill reported by a committee not having jurisdiction.
The change dealt with an ambiguity of the rules related to limitation amendments offered to appropriations bills. The th Congress rules change provided that a tax or tariff measure "includes an amendment proposing a limitation on funds in a general appropriation bill for the administration of a tax or tariff.
In the th Congress, a separate order in H. A separate order in H. The new oath was added to the Code of Conduct. In the th Congress, the clerk was directed in H. The Speaker's announced policies for the th Congress deleted a policy statement by the preceding Speaker in the rd Congress. Speaker Thomas Foley had announced that appointment of conferees to reconcile provisions of a specific bill should not be construed as binding on subsequent joint referrals of measures to amend the "work product of that particular conference.
See " Referral " above. Previously, a chair would need prior authorization by his or her committee to make such a privileged motion. The recodification of the House rules in the th Congress included editorial changes to the rule on the privilege of motions to instruct conferees, but the editorial changes had unintended substantive consequences. The amendment in the th Congress restored the operation of the rule to its pre th Congress state to require one calendar day's notice of a Member's intent to make a motion to instruct conferees and to ensure the understanding that the elements of privilege—time elapsed, no report, and notice—operated together.
If notified of an "imminent impairment" of the meeting location during a recess of not more than three days, the Speaker, in consultation with the minority leader, could accelerate or postpone the reconvening of the House. Amended clause 5 of Rule XX. The content of a catastrophic quorum failure report was detailed in the new rule.
A rule as adopted during the th Congress had placed consideration of measures on the Corrections Calendar immediately after the Pledge of Allegiance and required bills on it to be called up in the order of their placement on the calendar. Deleted clause 6 of Rule XV. See also " Admission to the Chamber " and " Congressional Record " above. The Speaker's announced policies for the th Congress stated that violations of the rule against reference to personality could result in the chair immediately interrupting the Member instead of waiting for the Member to conclude his or her remarks.
The Speaker's announced policies also admonished Members that it was not in order to speak disrespectfully of the Speaker and that, under House precedents, violations could be sanctioned even if a challenge was not timely. The Speaker's announced policies for the th Congress referenced a separate policy statement on decorum announced earlier the same day.
In light of the pending impeachment proceedings against President Bill Clinton, the Speaker announced that the House rule and precedents against avoiding personality in debate still applied. Only when the House was debating impeachment could Members make remarks that referred to misconduct on the President's part. In this same statement, the Speaker also reminded Members that House precedents did not permit them to characterize Senate action or inaction on a matter or allow them to call for specific action by the Senate.
In his announced policies for the th Congress, the Speaker added two items to the list of conduct items that Members should observe: Members should disable wireless phones when entering the chamber, and Members should wear appropriate business attire in the chamber. Under H. This change was coupled with a new rule stating that the Congressional Record is a verbatim account of remarks in the House, thus clarifying how unparliamentary remarks could still be expunged from the Record.
See " Congressional Record " above. The Speaker in the th Congress emphasized that time limits on debate would be strictly enforced and that, to facilitate compliance, the chair would give a second warning before a Member's time expired by lightly tapping the Speaker's gavel. The Speaker in the th Congress discontinued the policy introduced in the th Congress, whereby the chair would give a second warning by lightly tapping the gavel before a Member's debate time had expired.
The existing rule had allowed references to the Senate in House debate to refer only to matters of public record and factual descriptions involving the Senate, such as Senate committee action on a bill.
In the th Congress, the Speaker reiterated a policy announced on January 27, , which reminded all Members and staff that the use of any personal electronic office equipment, including cell phones and computers, was prohibited on the floor of the House at any time.
The policy requested that cell phone use be done outside the chamber and that audible cell phone rings be silenced. The sergeant-at-arms was instructed to enforce the policy. The Speaker also revised the language of the Speaker's policies regarding "personal electronic office equipment" to apply to a "wireless telephone or personal computer. The Speaker in the th Congress instituted a new policy requiring that all handouts distributed on or adjacent to the House floor by Members during House proceedings bear the name of the Member authorizing distribution, in light of a "misuse of handouts on the floor of the House" and a request from the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.
The content of a handout needed to comply with same standards of decorum applicable to debate. Staff were also not permitted to distribute handouts in or near the House chamber. The policy also stated that a failure to adhere to this guidance could give rise to a question of privilege.
The existing rule had implied that the issue must be submitted to the House for a vote. As explained above " rd Congress Rules " and " Republican Critique " , the House in the rd Congress had allowed the Delegates and the Resident Commissioner to vote in the Committee of the Whole, with the possibility of a revote in the House if their votes affected the outcome of a vote.
The language specified how public disclosure of names was to take place, and directed the clerk of the House to identify other means of publicizing signatories. Previously, the names of signatories were made public only after a majority of Members had signed a discharge petition. The resolution subject of a discharge petition could also make only germane amendments to the named measure in order.
The change to refer to the Government Reform and Oversight Committee was necessitated by the abolition of the District of Columbia Committee, whose legislation previously enjoyed privileged status on the second and fourth Mondays. See " th Congress " under " Jurisdiction " above. The automatic engrossment was triggered by House agreement to a concurrent resolution on the budget. The automatic engrossment allowed the House to avoid a separate vote on initial adoption of debt-limit legislation.
Amended clause 3 of Rule XXI. This prohibition was a new rule. Added clause 6 to Rule XXI. Amended clause 2 of Rule IX. A motion with instructions is normally an attempt to immediately amend a measure, although it can be used to instruct a committee to take other actions such as consider an amendment or hold hearings. A motion to recommit without instructions is normally interpreted to be an attempt to kill a measure by sending it back to committee without any instructions on how the committee should proceed.
The motion is in order prior to the question on passage. The rules change proscribed the Rules Committee from reporting a special rule preventing the minority leader or a designee from offering a motion to recommit with instructions, specifically listing a motion with amendatory instructions. The availability of the "minority's motion" had changed over many years, and special rules sometimes restricted the ability of the minority to offer a motion to recommit with instructions.
Service for less than a "full session in any Congress" would not count toward this limit. See also, above, " Speaker Succession ," under " Continuity of Congress. Deleted clause 9 of Rule I. While the Speaker in his announced policies for the th Congress continued previous Speakers' policies on special order speeches, he implemented some changes.
First, Members would not be able to request permission to reserve time for a special order speech more than one week in advance. Second, on Tuesdays, following legislative business, Members could be recognized for special order speeches until midnight, with five-minute special orders preceding longer special orders. Third, on other days, following legislative business and following five-minute special orders, up to four hours would be available for other or longer special order speeches, with two hours available to each party.
The leadership of either party could reserve the first hour of its party's time. Fourth, special order speeches on these other days would still not be allowed to continue past midnight. The time for each party's special order speeches would be equally reduced if less than four hours was available before midnight.
Fifth, television cameras covering special order speeches would not be allowed to "pan" the chamber. A "crawl" on viewers' screens would indicate that legislative business had ended and the House was proceeding with special order speeches. The Speaker's policy implemented the same restriction on television coverage for morning hour debate as for special order speeches: cameras could not "pan" the chamber and a "crawl" would indicate the House was proceeding in morning hour.
In the th Congress, the Speaker amended the policy applicable to special order speeches to require the leadership of each party to submit a list to the chair showing the allocation of time within each party's two-hour time period.
Amended clause 1 of Rule XV. The changes were meant to clarify that the requirement of a three-fifths vote to approve an income tax rate increase did not apply to provisions that merely increased revenues or effective tax rates.
In his policies for the th Congress, the Speaker reiterated previous Speaker's policies on recognition for unanimous consent requests for the consideration of bills and resolutions, but he clarified that this policy encompassed the wider instances of precedents listed in the parliamentarian's notes to Rule XIV, which at that time addressed decorum and debate.
The clarification was that the motion was solely for unfunded intergovernmental mandates, not for private sector mandates. The rules resolution also authorized the Speaker to reduce to five minutes the time for voting on questions after a vote had been ordered on the motion for the previous question.
The rule had previously allowed five-minute voting only after the motion for the previous question was ordered on a special rule. Additional changes to the duration of voting are described immediately below with " Postponed Votes. Regarding the conduct of votes by electronic device, the Speaker reiterated a policy in the th Congress that Members would be granted at least 15 minutes to answer an ordinary roll call or quorum call. The Speaker, however, added a new statement to the policy: that the chair would have the full support of the Speaker in attempting to close a vote at the "earliest opportunity.
Pairing was a procedural mechanism for absent Members to show their position on a vote and indicate that their absence would not have affected the vote's outcome. A live pair, however, is a courtesy extended by a Member who is present for a vote to a Member who is absent for that vote. The Member present votes, announces he or she has a live pair with the absent Member, and withdraws his or her vote. The rules change preserved live pairs, but seemingly only when the House votes by a call of the roll.
Members who are absent for a vote may insert a statement of their position in the Congressional Record. The resolution also added to the Speaker's authority to reduce voting time to 5 minutes on all postponed questions and all questions incidental to these questions so long as the first vote in a series was a minute vote. Amended clause 10 of Rule XX. Amended clause 9 of Rule XX.
Another change provided the Speaker with flexibility by eliminating the requirement that postponed votes be taken in the order in which propositions were considered. Amended clause 8 of Rule XX. This section of the report explains or lists rules and separate orders related to budgetary legislation that were included in each House's rules resolution in the th through the th Congresses. Other sources of change to the consideration of budgetary legislation, such as the annual concurrent resolution on the budget that is often a source of permanent or temporary changes in the budget process, have not been analyzed.
Two of the eight goals of the institutional reforms of the Contract with America dealt with budgetary legislation: a three-fifths vote "to pass a tax increase" and an "honest accounting of our Federal Budget by implementing zero baseline budgeting. Changes related to budgetary legislation also appear in " Rules Changes Affecting Committees ," including. Changes related to budgetary legislation also appear in " Rules Changes Affecting the Chamber and Floor ," including.
Since H. Changes made by H. In the absence of a concurrent resolution agreed to by Congress on the budget for FY, a separate order included in the rules package authorized the chair of the Budget Committee to publish budget allocations under Section a of the Congressional Budget Act in the Congressional Record, and stated that "those budget levels shall be effective in the House as though established by passage" of a budget resolution. Two technical changes were also included in separate orders.
First, service limits on the Budget Committee were waived for the th Congress see " Budget Committee " above, under " Assignments and Size ". Second, when a bill or joint resolution was considered pursuant to a special rule, a point of order under Section of the Congressional Budget Act generally, first requiring adoption of a concurrent resolution on the budget before consideration of legislation with budgetary impact would lie against text made in order as original text for the purpose of amendment or against text on which the previous question was ordered directly to passage, not just against the text of the measure named in the special rule.
Several minor, technical changes conformed House rules to the Budget Enforcement Act of The rules mechanism providing for automatic engrossment and transmittal to the Senate of a joint resolution to increase the debt limit, known as the Gephardt rule after former Representative Richard Gephardt, was repealed. See " Public Debt Ceiling " above. As described in the section " Rules Changes Affecting Committees ," rules changes required the Appropriations Committee to include in reports on general appropriations bills additional information on unauthorized appropriations—a statement of the last year for which expenditures were authorized, the level authorized for that year, the actual level of spending for that year, and the level of appropriations in the current bill.
See " Appropriations Committee " under " Committee Reports. A separate order related to a point of order under Section of the Congressional Budget Act was repeated see " th Congress ," immediately above.
Two additional technical changes were included in separate orders. First, the word "resolution" in Section of the Congressional Budget Act was interpreted to mean "joint resolution," and not a simple or concurrent resolution. Second, the separate order stated that a provision of or amendment to legislation prospectively establishing compensation for a federal office, to be appropriated annually, does not create entitlement authority under the Congressional Budget Act.
In the absence of a concurrent resolution agreed to by Congress on the budget for FY, a separate order in H. The chair of the Budget Committee was also directed to submit allocations under Section a of the Congressional Budget Act, "Accounts Identified for Advance Appropriations," and an estimated unified surplus for printing in the Congressional Record.
A separate order related to a point of order under Section of the Congressional Budget Act was repeated see " th Congress " immediately above. Two additional separate orders were also repeated: The word "resolution" in Section of the Congressional Budget Act was interpreted to mean "joint resolution," and a provision of or amendment to legislation prospectively establishing compensation for a federal office, to be appropriated annually, was not to be considered to be entitlement authority under the Congressional Budget Act.
See " th Congress " immediately above. Three provisions were described earlier in the section " Rules Changes Affecting Committees ":. Two rules changes were discussed earlier in the section " Rules Changes Affecting the Chamber and Floor ":. In the absence of a concurrent resolution on the budget for FY agreed to by Congress, a separate order in H. The separate order related to a point of order under Section of the Congressional Budget Act was repeated see " th Congress ," just above.
See " th Congress ," just above. See " Budget Committee " under " Assignments and Size. Rules changes beginning in the th Congress affected the structure of the House's administration and the relationships within it. Some offices were abolished, while others were created. Responsibilities were shifted, and accountability was increased. Modern practices, such as financial audits, were put in place, and traditional practices, such as requirements for distribution of printed materials, were reformed in light of changed conditions, such as the proliferation of versatile desktop information technology.
Changes to the administration of the House have also been implemented in all Congresses since the th Congress through other legislation, not covered here, including the annual legislative branch appropriations bills, and freestanding legislation, such as the House Administrative Reform Technical Corrections Act. Many changes in the administration of the House were taken at the initiative of the House leadership, the House Administration Committee or House Oversight Committee, the House Appropriations Committee, House officials, the House and Senate together, or legislative branch agencies.
The World Wide Web was in its infancy, and use of e-mail was still somewhat novel. The commitment to using information technology in the House was not generally effected through changes to House rules or specific provisions in legislation, but through initiatives exercised in various fora, including committee reports on legislation, joint explanatory statements accompanying conference reports, and actions of the House Administration Committee not requiring House consideration.
Again, this report analyzes the rules, special orders, and Speaker's announcements at the convening of a Congress and not all of the actions taken during a Congress. Some of the most wide-ranging changes implemented with the convening of the th Congress affected the administration of the House. In adopting its rules, the House abolished the position of the director of non-legislative and financial services and created the chief administrative officer, who would be elected by the House.
The chief administrative officer CAO took over the duties of the abolished position and other duties as assigned by the Speaker or House Oversight Committee formerly the House Administration Committee , and was made subject to the policy direction and oversight of the Speaker and House Oversight Committee.
The rules resolution also abolished the Office of the Doorkeeper, and folded the doorkeeper's duties into the Office of the Sergeant at Arms. The rules resolution strengthened the accountability of House officers to the House Oversight Committee. All House officers were required to report semiannually to the committee with financial statements and an explanation of their office's operations, implementation of new policies and procedures, and future plans.
In addition, officers were required to provide, within 45 days of the close of each semiannual period ending on June 30 or December 31, a report of the financial and operational status of each function under their jurisdictions.
They were also instructed to cooperate with reviews and audits of financial records and administrative operations. The House inspector general was directed to conduct during the th Congress, in consultation with the Speaker and the Committee on House Oversight, a "comprehensive audit of House financial records and administrative operations," and was authorized to contract with independent auditing firms to conduct the audit.
The audit was to be reported, in accordance with then-House Rule VI, to the Speaker, the majority leader, the minority leader, and the chairman and ranking minority Member of the Committee on House Oversight. The inspector general's authority was broadened to cover audits of the financial and administrative functions of the House and joint entities, not just those under the former director of non-legislative and financial services. The inspector general was also required to report to the Standards of Official Conduct Committee any violations of House rules or laws by Members, officers, or employees of the House committed in the performance of their official duties.
With the abolition by the rules of the Post Office and Civil Service Committee, that committee's jurisdiction over franking and congressional mail regulations was transferred to the House Oversight Committee see " th Congress " under " Jurisdiction " above.
Legislative service organizations LSOs were prohibited, and the House Oversight Committee was authorized to "take such steps as are necessary to ensure an orderly termination and accounting for funds" of LSOs then in existence. The rules package consolidated separate authorizations for statutory and investigative staff and for committee expenses into committee salary and expense accounts funded by a single, two-year rather than annual committee expense resolution.
The rules package also contained a special rule making in order the consideration of the Congressional Accountability Act H. The Speaker, in consultation with the minority leader, was directed to develop "through an appropriate entity of the House" a system of drug testing that could provide for testing of Members, officers, or employees. The chief administrative officer was made subject to the policy direction and oversight of only the House Oversight Committee.
The Speaker was no longer also designated in the rule. The House authorized the inclusion of a committee reserve fund for unanticipated expenses in a primary expense resolution, to be allocated on the approval of the House Oversight Committee. The chair and ranking minority Member of the House Oversight Committee must jointly approve the amount of a proposed settlement between an employee complainant under the Congressional Accountability Act and the employing House office.
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Sign In. Advanced Search. Search Menu. Article Navigation. Close mobile search navigation Article Navigation. Volume Deficits and Devolution in the th Congress.
Kent Weaver R. Kent Weaver. The Brookings Institution.
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