[106th Congress House Rules Manual -- House Document No. 106-320]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office Online Database]
[DOCID:hrulest-68]
[Page 518-571]
Rule XI
procedures of committees and unfinished business
In general
1. <> (a)(1)(A) Except as provided
in subdivision (B), the Rules of the House are the rules of its
committees and subcommittees so far as applicable.
(B) A motion to recess from day to day, and a motion to dispense with
the first reading (in full) of a bill or resolution, if printed copies
are available, each shall be privileged in committees and subcommittees
and shall be decided without debate.
[[Page 519]]
(2) Each subcommittee is a part of its committee and is subject to the
authority and direction of that committee and to its rules, so far as
applicable.
Paragraph (a)(1) was first adopted December 8, 1931 (VIII, 2215), and
amended March 23, 1955 (pp. 3569, 3585). In the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5,
Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144), paragraph (a)(2) was incorporated into the
rules, together with the reference to subcommittees contained in
paragraph (a)(1), having been contained in the Legislative
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140). This clause was amended in
the 99th Congress to allow a privileged motion in committee and
subcommittee to dispense with the first reading of a measure where
printed copies are available (H. Res. 7, Jan. 3, 1985, p. 393). Clerical
and stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified its rules
in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). See
Jefferson's Manual at Sec. 412, supra, for the requirement that a bill
or resolution be read in full upon demand, prior to being read by
paragraphs or sections for amendment.
Each committee may appoint subcommittees (VI, 532), which should
include majority and minority representation (IV, 4551), and confer on
them powers delegated to the committee itself (VI, 532) except such
powers as are reserved to the full committee by the Rules of the House;
but express authority has also been given subcommittees by the House
(III, 1754-1759, 1801, 2499, 2504, 2508, 2517; IV, 4548).
(b)(1) <> Each committee may
conduct at any time such investigations and studies as it considers
necessary or appropriate in the exercise of its responsibilities under
rule X. Subject to the adoption of expense resolutions as required by
clause 6 of rule X, each committee may incur expenses, including travel
expenses, in connection with such investigations and studies.
(2) A proposed investigative or oversight report shall be considered
as read in committee if it has been available to the members for at
least 24 hours (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays except
when the House is in session on such a day).
[[Page 520]]
(3) A report of an investigation or study conducted jointly by more
than one committee may be filed jointly, provided that each of the
committees complies independently with all requirements for approval and
filing of the report.
(4) After an adjournment sine die of the last regular session of a
Congress, an investigative or oversight report may be filed with the
Clerk at any time, provided that a member who gives timely notice of
intention to file supplemental, minority, or additional views shall be
entitled to not less than seven calendar days in which to submit such
views for inclusion in the report.
Paragraph (b)(1) was incorporated into the rules under the Committee
Reform Amendments of 1974, effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d
Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), and, together with clauses 2(m) and 2(n)
of rule XI, eliminated the necessity that each committee obtain such
authority each Congress by a separate resolution reported from the
Committee on Rules. Paragraphs (b)(2), (b)(3), and (b)(4) were added in
the 105th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). Clerical and
stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified its rules in
the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
(c) <> Each committee may have
printed and bound such testimony and other data as may be presented at
hearings held by the committee or its subcommittees. All costs of
stenographic services and transcripts in connection with a meeting or
hearing of a committee shall be paid from the applicable accounts of the
House described in clause 1(i)(1) of rule X.
Paragraph (c) was made part of the rules by the Committee Reform
Amendments of 1974, effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong.,
Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470). In the 105th and 106th Congresses, it was
amended to update a reference to the ``contingent fund'' (H. Res. 5,
Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Clerical and
stylistic changes
[[Page 521]]
were effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress
(H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
(d)(1) <> Each committee shall
submit to the House not later than January 2 of each odd-numbered year a
report on the activities of that committee under this rule and rule X
during the Congress ending at noon on January 3 of such year.
(2) Such report shall include separate sections summarizing the
legislative and oversight activities of that committee during that
Congress.
(3) The oversight section of such report shall include a summary of
the oversight plans submitted by the committee under clause 2(d) of rule
X, a summary of the actions taken and recommendations made with respect
to each such plan, a summary of any additional oversight activities
undertaken by that committee, and any recommendations made or actions
taken thereon.
(4) After an adjournment sine die of the last regular session of a
Congress, the chairman of a committee may file an activities report
under subparagraph (1) with the Clerk at any time and without approval
of the committee, provided that--
(A) a copy of the report has been available to each member of the
committee for at least seven calendar days; and
(B) the report includes any supplemental, minority, or additional
views submitted by a member of the committee.
[[Page 522]]
The provisions of paragraph (d)(1) were first made requirements of the
rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144,
incorporating the provisions of sec. 118(b) of the Legislative
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140)), and effective on January 3,
1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470) exemptions from
the reporting requirements for the Committees on Appropriations, the
Budget, House Administration, Rules, and Standards of Official Conduct
were removed, so the paragraph from that point applied to all
committees. The 104th Congress added paragraphs (d)(2) and (d)(3) to
require that activity reports include separate sections on legislative
and oversight activities, including a summary comparison of oversight
plans and eventual recommendations and actions (sec. 203(b), H. Res. 6,
Jan. 4, 1995, p. 467). Paragraph (d)(4) was added in the 105th Congress
(H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). Clerical and stylistic changes were
effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H.
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995, the Committee on Rules
is required to include in its activity report a separate item
identifying all waivers of points of order relating to Federal mandates,
listed by bill or joint resolution number and subject matter (sec.
107(b), P.L. 104-4; 109 Stat. 63).
Adoption of written rules
2. <> (a)(1) Each standing committee
shall adopt written rules governing its procedure. Such rules--
(A) shall be adopted in a meeting that is open to the public
unless the committee, in open session and with a quorum present,
determines by record vote that all or part of the meeting on that day
shall be closed to the public;
(B) may not be inconsistent with the Rules of the House or with
those provisions of law having the force and effect of Rules of the
House; and
(C) shall in any event incorporate all of the succeeding
provisions of this clause to the extent applicable.
[[Page 523]]
(2) Each committee shall submit its rules for publication in the
Congressional Record not later than 30 days after the committee is
elected in each odd-numbered year.
The requirement that standing committees adopt written rules was first
incorporated into the rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22,
1971, p. 144), having been included in the Legislative Reorganization
Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140). Under the Committee Reform Amendments of
1974, clause 2(a) became effective in essentially its present form on
January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470). In the
94th Congress it was amended to permit a record vote to close the
committee meeting at which committee rules are adopted only on the day
of the meeting (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20). In the 102d Congress
it was amended to allow a committee 30 days after the election of its
members, rather than after the convening of the Congress, to publish its
rules in the Congressional Record (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1991, p. 39). The
provision requiring publication of committee rules in the Congressional
Record derived from statute (2 U.S.C. 190a-2 (repealed 1979)). A court
interpreted that statute to be mandatory in a case where a Senate
committee failed to publish in the Record a rule regarding a quorum for
the purpose of taking sworn testimony. In overturning a perjury
conviction, the court held that the unpublished committee rule was not
valid. United States v. Reinecke, 524 F.2d 435 (D.C. Cir. 1975).
Clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified
its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
Committees have historically adopted rules under which they function
(I, 707; III, 1841, 1842; VIII, 2214). Committee rules are compiled by
the Committee on Rules each Congress as a committee print. It is the
responsibility of the committees, and not the House, to construe and
enforce additional committee rules on the calling of committee meetings
(Speaker Albert, July 22, 1974, pp. 24436-47). This provision requires a
select committee to publish its adopted rules in the Record (June 25,
1998, p. ----).
Failure <> to follow
certain procedural requirements imposed on committees by this rule may
invalidate committee actions. Violation of the requirements as to open
meetings and hearings and other hearing irregularities improperly
overruled (see clause 2(g)(5) of rule XI) or the prescribed committee
procedures for reporting bills and resolutions (clause 2(h) of rule XI)
may in some instances be the basis for a point of order in the House,
resulting in the recommitment of the bill. However, a point of order
does not ordinarily lie in the House against consideration of a bill by
reason of defective committee procedures occurring prior to the time the
bill is ordered reported to the House (Procedure, ch. 17, sec. 11.1).
[[Page 524]]
Many of the procedures applicable to committees derive from
Jefferson's Manual, which govern the House and its committees in all
cases to which they are applicable (clause 1 of rule XXVII). A committee
may act only when together, and not by separate consultation and
consent, nothing being the report (or recommendation) of the committee
except what has been agreed to in committee actually assembled (see
Jefferson's Manual at Sec. 407, supra). A measure before a committee for
consideration must be read for amendment by section as in the House (see
Jefferson's Manual at Sec. Sec. 412-414, supra), and reading of the
measure and of amendments thereto must be in full. The procedures
applicable in the House as in the Committee of the Whole (see
Sec. Sec. 424 and 427, supra) generally apply to proceedings in
committees of the House of Representatives, except that since a measure
considered in committee must be read for amendment, a motion to limit
debate under the five-minute rule in committee must be confined to the
portion of the bill then pending. The previous question may only be
moved on the measure in committee if the entire measure has been read,
or considered as read, for amendment.
Committees generally conduct their business under the five-minute rule
but may employ the ordinary motions which are in order in the House,
such as under clause 4 of rule XVI, and may also employ the motion to
limit debate under the five-minute rule on a proposition which has been
read.
Regular meeting days
(b) <> Each standing committee shall
establish regular meeting days for the conduct of its business, which
shall be not less frequent than monthly. Each such committee shall meet
for the consideration of a bill or resolution pending before the
committee or the transaction of other committee business on all regular
meeting days fixed by the committee unless otherwise provided by written
rule adopted by the committee.
Additional and special meetings
(c)(1) The chairman of each standing committee may call and convene,
as he considers necessary, additional and special meetings of the
committee for the consideration of a bill or reso
[[Page 525]]
lution pending before the committee or for the conduct of other
committee business, subject to such rules as the committee may adopt.
The committee shall meet for such purpose under that call of the
chairman.
(2) Three or more members of a standing committee may file in the
offices of the committee a written request that the chairman call a
special meeting of the committee. Such request shall specify the measure
or matter to be considered. Immediately upon the filing of the request,
the clerk of the committee shall notify the chairman of the filing of
the request. If the chairman does not call the requested special meeting
within three calendar days after the filing of the request (to be held
within seven calendar days after the filing of the request) a majority
of the members of the committee may file in the offices of the committee
their written notice that a special meeting of the committee will be
held. The written notice shall specify the date and hour of the special
meeting and the measure or matter to be considered. The committee shall
meet on that date and hour. Immediately upon the filing of the notice,
the clerk of the committee shall notify all members of the committee
that such special meeting will be held and inform them of its date and
hour and the measure or matter to be considered. Only the measure or
matter specified in that notice may be considered at that special
meeting.
[[Page 526]]
Temporary absence of chairman
(d) A member of the majority party on each standing committee or
subcommittee thereof shall be designated by the chairman of the full
committee as the vice chairman of the committee or subcommittee, as the
case may be, and shall preside during the absence of the chairman from
any meeting. If the chairman and vice chairman of a committee or
subcommittee are not present at any meeting of the committee or
subcommittee, the ranking majority member who is present shall preside
at that meeting.
Paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) were first adopted on December 8, 1931
(VIII, 2208), were amended on January 3, 1953 (p. 24), and were revised
both by the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and
in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). In the 102d
Congress paragraph (d) was amended to provide that the ranking majority
Member of each committee and subcommittee be designated as its vice
chairman (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1991, p. 39). In the 104th Congress
paragraph (d) was amended to permit the chairman of a full committee to
designate vice chairmen of the committee and its subcommittees (sec.
223(c), H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 477). Clerical and stylistic changes
were effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress
(H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
A committee scheduled to meet on stated days, when convened on such
day with a quorum present may proceed to the transaction of business
regardless of the absence of the chairman (VIII, 2213, 2214). A
committee meeting being adjourned for lack of a quorum, a majority of
the members of the committee may not, without the consent of the
chairman, call a meeting of the committee on the same day (VIII, 2213).
Committee records
(e)(1)(A) <> Each committee shall keep
a complete record of all committee action which shall include--
(i) in the case of a meeting or hearing transcript, a
substantially verbatim account of remarks actually made during the
proceedings, subject only to technical, grammatical, and ty
[[Page 527]]
pographical corrections authorized by the person making the remarks
involved; and
(ii) a record of the votes on any question on which a record vote
is demanded.
(B)(i) <> Except as provided in
subdivision (B)(ii) and subject to paragraph (k)(7), the result of each
such record vote shall be made available by the committee for inspection
by the public at reasonable times in its offices. Information so
available for public inspection shall include a description of the
amendment, motion, order, or other proposition, the name of each member
voting for and each member voting against such amendment, motion, order,
or proposition, and the names of those members of the committee present
but not voting.
(ii) The result of any record vote taken in executive session in the
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct may not be made available for
inspection by the public without an affirmative vote of a majority of
the members of the committee.
(2)(A) <> Except as provided in
subdivision (B), all committee hearings, records, data, charts, and
files shall be kept separate and distinct from the congressional office
records of the member serving as its chairman. Such records shall be the
property of the House, and each Member, Delegate, and the Resident
Commissioner shall have access thereto.
[[Page 528]]
(B) A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner, other than members
of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, may not have access
to the records of that committee respecting the conduct of a Member,
Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House
without the specific prior permission of that committee.
(3) Each committee shall include in its rules standards for
availability of records of the committee delivered to the Archivist of
the United States under rule VII. Such standards shall specify
procedures for orders of the committee under clause 3(b)(3) and clause
4(b) of rule VII, including a requirement that nonavailability of a
record for a period longer than the period otherwise applicable under
that rule shall be approved by vote of the committee.
(4) Each committee shall make its publications available in electronic
form to the maximum extent feasible.
The first sentence of paragraph (e)(1) was rewritten entirely in the
104th Congress (sec. 206, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 475). Its
predecessor, requiring a complete record of all committee actions,
including votes on any question on which a roll call was demanded, was
enacted as section 133(b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946
(60 Stat. 812) and made part of the standing rules on January 3, 1953
(p. 24). The requirement that committee roll calls be subject to public
inspection was added by section 104(b) of the Legislative Reorganization
Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and made a part of the rules in the 92d
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). The qualified exception for
the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct from the requirement of
public availability of record votes was added in the 105th Congress
(sec. 8, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. ----). Effective on January 3,
1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), the requirement
that proxy votes in committee be made available for public inspection
was eliminated from this paragraph since proxies were prohibited as of
that date, but in the 94th Congress clause 2(f) of rule
[[Page 529]]
XI was amended to permit proxies in committee, and this paragraph was
likewise amended to reinsert the requirement of availability for public
inspection (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20). When proxy voting was
again eliminated in the 104th Congress, the reference thereto in the
third sentence of paragraph (e)(1) was deleted (sec. 104(b), H. Res. 6,
Jan. 4, 1995, p. 463). Paragraph (e)(2) derives from section 202(d) of
the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (60 Stat. 812), was made a
part of the rules in the 83d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1953, p. 24),
and was amended in the 95th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-
70) to restrict the access of Members to certain records of the
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. Paragraph (e)(3) was added
in the 101st Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1989, p. 72). Paragraph (e)(4)
was added in the 105th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----).
Clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified
its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
A Member's right to access to committee records under this clause does
not entitle him to make photostatic copies of such records (Speaker
Rayburn, Aug. 14, 1957, pp. 14737-39), and such records may not be
brought into the well of the House if the committee has not authorized
such action (Speaker Rayburn, June 3, 1960, p. 11820). Furthermore, such
access allows a Member to examine executive session materials only in
committee rooms and does not permit a Member to copy or to take personal
notes from such materials, to keep such notes or copies in his personal
office files, or to release such materials to the public without the
consent of the committee or subcommittee under clause 2(k)(7) of rule XI
(Speaker O'Neill, Dec. 6, 1977, pp. 38470-73). This clause allowing all
Members access to committee records and materials which are the property
of the House does not necessarily apply to records within the possession
of the executive branch which the members of the committee have been
allowed to examine under limited conditions at the discretion of the
executive agency in possession of such materials (Speaker O'Neill, July
31, 1980, p. 20765). Also, this clause does not apply to records (an
executive communication not yet referred to committee) in the possession
of the House (Sept. 9, 1998, p. ----). In the 105th Congress the House
adopted a resolution restricting Members' access to documents received
from an independent counsel (said to relate to possible grounds for
impeachment of the President) and referred to the Committee on the
Judiciary (H. Res. 525, Sept. 11, 1998, p. ----). Compare this clause
with clause 11(g)(3) of rule X, which only permits access of nonmembers
of the Select Committee on Intelligence to classified information in the
possession of that committee when authorized by that committee.
While all Members have access to committee records under this clause,
testimony or evidence taken in executive sessions of a committee is
under the control and subject to the regulation of the committee and,
under clause 2(k)(7) of rule XI (Sec. 803, infra), cannot be released
without the consent of the committee (June 26, 1961, p. 11233; see also
Procedure, ch. 17, sec.
[[Page 530]]
15). A resolution directing a standing committee to release executive-
session material referred to it as such by special rule of the House was
held to propose a change in the rules and, therefore, not to constitute
a question of the privileges of the House under rule IX (Sept. 23, 1998,
p. ----).
In implementing clause 2(e), committees may prescribe regulations to
govern the manner of access to their records, such as requiring
examination only in committee rooms. See, for example, the rules of the
Committees on the Budget, International Relations, and Armed Services,
as compiled by the Committee on Rules.
Prohibition against proxy voting
(f) <> A vote by a member of a committee
or subcommittee with respect to any measure or matter may not be cast by
proxy.
The 104th Congress adopted paragraph (f) in this form (sec. 104, H.
Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 463). An earlier form of the provision was
enacted as section 106(b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970
(84 Stat. 1140) and made part of the standing rules in the 92d Congress
(H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). Clerical and stylistic changes were
effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H.
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
The original form of this paragraph permitted committees to adopt
written rules permitting proxies in writing, designating the persons to
execute them and specifying the measures or matters to which they
applied. Effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8,
1974, p. 34470), proxies in committee were prohibited, but in the 94th
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20), the rule was amended to
permit proxies in committees with additional restrictions requiring an
assertion that the grantor was absent on official business or otherwise
unable to attend, requiring the Member to sign and date the proxy, and
permitting general proxies for procedural matters.
Open meetings and hearings
(g)(1) <> Each meeting for
the transaction of business, including the markup of legislation, by a
standing committee or subcommittee thereof (other than the Committee on
Standards of Official Conduct or its subcommittees) shall be open to the
public, including to radio, television, and still photography
[[Page 531]]
coverage, except when the committee or subcommittee, in open session and
with a majority present, determines by record vote that all or part of
the remainder of the meeting on that day shall be in executive session
because disclosure of matters to be considered would endanger national
security, would compromise sensitive law enforcement information, would
tend to defame, degrade, or incriminate any person, or otherwise would
violate a law or rule of the House. Persons, other than members of the
committee and such noncommittee Members, Delegates, Resident
Commissioner, congressional staff, or departmental representatives as
the committee may authorize, may not be present at a business or markup
session that is held in executive session. This subparagraph does not
apply to open committee hearings, which are governed by clause 4(a)(1)
of rule X or by subparagraph (2).
(2)(A) Each hearing conducted by a committee or subcommittee (other
than the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct or its
subcommittees) shall be open to the public, including to radio,
television, and still photography coverage, except when the committee or
subcommittee, in open session and with a majority present, determines by
record vote that all or part of the remainder of that hearing on that
day shall be closed to the public because disclosure of testimony,
evidence, or other matters to be considered would endanger national
security, would compromise sensitive law enforcement information, or
would violate a law or rule of the House.
[[Page 532]]
(B) Notwithstanding the requirements of subdivision (A), in the
presence of the number of members required under the rules of the
committee for the purpose of taking testimony, a majority of those
present may--
(i) agree to close the hearing for the sole purpose of discussing
whether testimony or evidence to be received would endanger national
security, would compromise sensitive law enforcement information, or
would violate clause 2(k)(5); or
(ii) agree to close the hearing as provided in clause 2(k)(5).
(C) A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner may not be excluded
from non-
participatory attendance at a hearing of a committee or subcommittee
(other than the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct or its
subcommittees) unless the House by majority vote authorizes a particular
committee or subcommittee, for purposes of a particular series of
hearings on a particular article of legislation or on a particular
subject of investigation, to close its hearings to Members, Delegates,
and the Resident Commissioner by the same procedures specified in this
subparagraph for closing hearings to the public.
(D) The committee or subcommittee may vote by the same procedure
described in this subparagraph to close one subsequent day of hearing,
except that the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Armed
Services, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intel
[[Page 533]]
ligence, and the subcommittees thereof, may vote by the same procedure
to close up to five additional, consecutive days of hearings.
(3) The chairman of each committee (other than the Committee on Rules)
shall make public announcement of the date, place, and subject matter of
a committee hearing at least one week before the commencement of the
hearing. If the chairman of the committee, with the concurrence of the
ranking minority member, determines that there is good cause to begin a
hearing sooner, or if the committee so determines by majority vote in
the presence of the number of members required under the rules of the
committee for the transaction of business, the chairman shall make the
announcement at the earliest possible date. An announcement made under
this subparagraph shall be published promptly in the Daily Digest and
made available in electronic form.
(4) Each committee shall, to the greatest extent practicable, require
witnesses who appear before it to submit in advance written statements
of proposed testimony and to limit their initial presentations to the
committee to brief summaries thereof. In the case of a witness appearing
in a nongovernmental capacity, a written statement of proposed testimony
shall include a curriculum vitae and a disclosure of the amount and
source (by agency and program) of each Federal grant (or subgrant
thereof) or contract (or subcontract thereof) received during the
current fiscal year or either of the two previous
[[Page 534]]
fiscal years by the witness or by an entity represented by the witness.
(5)(A) Except as provided in subdivision (B), a point of order does
not lie with respect to a measure reported by a committee on the ground
that hearings on such measure were not conducted in accordance with this
clause.
(B) A point of order on the ground described in subdivision (A) may be
made by a member of the committee that reported the measure if such
point of order was timely made and improperly disposed of in the
committee.
(6) This paragraph does not apply to hearings of the Committee on
Appropriations under clause 4(a)(1) of rule X.
Subparagraphs (1) and (2) relating to open committee meetings and
hearings, were first made part of the rules on March 7, 1973 (H. Res.
259, 93d Cong., pp. 6713-20). They were amended in the 94th Congress (H.
Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20), to limit to one day (in case of a
committee meeting) or to one day plus one subsequent day (in the case of
a hearing) the period during which a committee may close its session.
They were again amended in the 95th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977,
pp. 53-70), to require that a majority (rather than a quorum) be present
when a committee or subcommittee votes to close a meeting or hearing and
to provide that a noncommittee Member cannot be excluded from a hearing
except by a vote of the House. However, subparagraph (2) was amended in
the 96th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 15, 1979, p. 8) to permit a majority
of those present under the rules of the committee for the purpose of
taking testimony (not less than two members as provided in clause
2(h)(2) of rule XI) to vote to close a hearing either to discuss whether
the testimony would endanger national security or would violate clause
2(k)(5) of this rule, or to proceed to close the hearing as provided by
clause 2(k)(5). In the 98th Congress subparagraph (2) was amended
further to permit the Committees on Appropriations, Armed Services, and
Intelligence, and their subcommittees, when voting in open session with
a quorum present, to close a hearing on that particular day and for up
to five additional days, for a total of not to exceed six days (H. Res.
5, Jan. 3, 1983, p. 34). In the 104th Congress the paragraph was amended
to require that meetings and hearings open to the public also be open to
broadcast and photographic media; subparagraph (2) was further amended
to permit closed meetings only on specified
[[Page 535]]
conditions and to delete an exception for meetings relating to internal
budget or personnel matters and to specify a new condition (sensitive
law enforcement information) for closing hearings (sec. 105, H. Res. 6,
Jan. 4, 1995, p. 463). The paragraph was also amended to conform
references to renamed committees (sec. 202(b), H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995,
p. 467; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). In the 105th Congress
subparagraphs (1) and (2) were again amended to reflect an amendment to
former clause 4(e)(3) of rule X (currently clause 3 of rule XI)
requiring meetings of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct to
occur in executive session (except for adjudicatory subcommittee
meetings or full committee sanction hearings) unless opened by an
affirmative vote of a majority of members (sec. 5, H. Res. 168, Sept.
18, 1997, p. ----). Subparagraphs (3)-(6) derive from sections 111(b),
113(b), 115(b), and 242(c) respectively of the Legislative
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and became part of the rules
in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). Effective
January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), these
provisions were inadvertently omitted from the rules, and were therefore
reinserted in the 94th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20).
Subparagraph (3) was amended in the 97th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 5,
1981, pp. 98-113) to add the requirement of prompt entering of public
notice of committee meetings into the committee scheduling service of
the House Information Resources. Subparagraph (3) was again amended in
the 104th Congress to permit the calling of a hearing on less than seven
days' notice upon a determination of good cause either by vote of the
committee or subcommittee or by its chairman with the concurrence of its
ranking minority member (H. Res. 43, Jan. 31, 1995, p. 3028). In the
105th and 106th Congresses subparagraphs (3) and (2) (respectively) were
amended to effect a technical correction (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. --
--; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Subparagraph (4) was rewritten in
the 105th Congress to encourage committees to elicit curricula vitae and
disclosures of certain interests from nongovernmental witnesses (H. Res.
5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). Clerical and stylistic changes were effected
when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5,
Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
In the 105th Congress the House adopted a resolution restricting
access to meetings and hearings held by the Committee on the Judiciary
on a communication received from an independent counsel relating to
possible grounds for impeachment of the President (H. Res. 525, Sept.
11, 1998, p. ----).
Quorum requirements
(h)(1) <> A measure or
recommendation may not be reported by a committee unless a majority of
the committee is actually present.
[[Page 536]]
This subparagraph (former clause 2(l)(2)(A) is from section 133(d) of
the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (60 Stat. 812) and was made a
part of the rules on January 3, 1953 (p. 24). Before the House
recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, this provision was found in
former clause 2(l)(2)(A) of rule XI (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
The point of order that a bill was reported from a committee without a
formal meeting and a quorum present comes too late if debate has started
on a bill in the House (VIII, 2223; Feb. 24, 1947, p. 1374). No
committee report is valid unless authorized with a quorum of the
committee actually present at the time the vote is taken (IV, 4584;
VIII, 2211, 2212, 2221, 2222), and while Speakers have indicated that
committee members may come and go during the course of the vote if the
roll call indicates that a quorum was present (VIII, 2222), where it is
admitted that a quorum was not in the room at any time during the vote
and the committee transcript does not show a quorum acting as a quorum,
the Chair will sustain the point of order (VIII, 2212). In the 103d
Congress, this provision was amended to provide that responses to roll
calls in committee be deemed contemporaneous and to require that a point
of no quorum with respect to a committee report be timely asserted in
committee or considered waived (H. Res. 5, Jan. 5, 1993, p. 49), but in
the 104th Congress both of those features were deleted from the rule
(sec. 207, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 467).
Where the committee transcript was not conclusive and the manager of
the bill gave absolute assurance that a majority of the full committee
was actually present when the bill was ordered reported the Speaker
overruled a point of order made under this provision (Oct. 22, 1987, p.
28807). A point of no quorum pending a committee vote on ordering a
measure reported may provoke a quorum call requiring a majority of the
committee to be present in the committee room. A committee may act only
when together, nothing being the report of the committee except what has
been agreed to in committee actually assembled (see Jefferson's Manual
at Sec. 407, supra).
(2) <> Each committee may fix the
number of its members to constitute a quorum for taking testimony and
receiving evidence, which may not be less than two.
(3) Each committee (other than the Committee on Appropriations, the
Committee on the Budget, and the Committee on Ways and Means) may fix
the number of its members to constitute a quorum for taking any action
other than one for which the presence of a majority of the com
[[Page 537]]
mittee is otherwise required, which may not be less than one-third of
the members.
Subparagraphs (2) and (3) (former subparagraphs (1) and (2)) were
adopted in the 84th Congress and only related to the authority of a
committee to fix a quorum of not less than two for taking testimony (H.
Res. 151, Mar. 23, 1955, pp. 3569, 3585). In the 95th Congress (H. Res.
5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-70) subparagraph (3) (former subparagraph (2))
was added to authorize committees to fix a quorum less than a majority
for certain other action. Before the House recodified its rules in the
106th Congress, paragraph (h) consisted only of subparagraphs (2) and
(3) (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Subparagraph (3) was amended in
the 107th Congress to preserve all requirements for a majority quorum
found in House rules (sec. 2(i), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----).
Under clause 2(g) of this rule, a majority of a committee or
subcommittee must be present when a committee or subcommittee votes to
close a meeting or hearing. Under clause 2(m) of this rule a majority of
a committee or subcommittee must be present to authorize and issue a
subpoena. Under subparagraph (1) a majority of a committee or
subcommittee must be present to order a measure or recommendation
reported.
By unanimous consent the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct
was authorized to receive evidence and take testimony before a quorum of
one of its members for the remainder of the second session of the 100th
Congress (Oct. 13, 1988, p. 30467). Authority for a committee to conduct
depositions or interrogatories before one member or staff of the
committee must be specifically conferred by the House (see, e.g., H.
Res. 167, 105th Cong., June 20, 1997, p. ----).
Limitation on committee sittings
(i) <> A committee may not sit
during a joint session of the House and Senate or during a recess when a
joint meeting of the House and Senate is in progress.
A clause regulating when committees could sit had its origin in 1794.
It was omitted from rule XI in the adoption of rules for the 80th
Congress but remained effective as part of the Legislative
Reorganization Act of 1946, the applicable provisions of which were
continued as a part of the Rules of the House. While the rule formerly
prohibited committees from sitting at any time when the House was in
session, it was narrowed to proscribe sittings during the five-minute
rule by the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (sec. 117(b); 84
Stat. 1140) and this revision was made part of the standing rules in the
92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). Effective January 3,
1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), the committees
exempted from this clause were Appropriations,
[[Page 538]]
Budget, and Rules; and in the 95th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977,
pp. 53-70), the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct was also
exempted. The Committee on Ways and Means was traditionally permitted to
sit during proceedings under the five-minute rule by unanimous consent
granted each Congress (Jan. 29, 1975, p. 1677) until it was exempted
from the rule in the 97th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 5, 1981, pp. 98-
113). A provision that special leave to sit be granted if ten Members
did not object was added to the clause in the 95th Congress (H. Res. 5,
Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-70). An exemption for the Committee on House
Administration and the prohibition against committee meetings during
joint meetings or joint sessions were added in the 101st Congress (H.
Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1989, p. 72). In the 103d Congress the prohibition
against sitting during proceedings under the five-minute rule was
stricken altogether (H. Res. 5, Jan. 5, 1993, p. 49), but in the 104th
Congress the former rule was reinstated with exemptions for the
Committees on Appropriations, the Budget, Rules, Standards of Official
Conduct, and Ways and Means, and also with the provision for a
privileged motion by the Majority Leader (sec. 208, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4,
1995, p. 467), on which he controlled one hour of debate (Jan. 23, 1995,
p. 2209). In the 105th Congress so much of paragraph (i) as related to
proceedings under the five-minute rule was again stricken (H. Res. 5,
Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). Clerical and stylistic changes were effected
when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5,
Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
Calling and questioning of witnesses
(j)(1) <> Whenever a hearing is conducted by a
committee on a measure or matter, the minority members of the committee
shall be entitled, upon request to the chairman by a majority of them
before the completion of the hearing, to call witnesses selected by the
minority to testify with respect to that measure or matter during at
least one day of hearing thereon.
(2)(A) Subject to subdivisions (B) and (C), each committee shall apply
the five-minute rule during the questioning of witnesses in a hearing
until such time as each member of the committee who so desires has had
an opportunity to question each witness.
[[Page 539]]
(B) A committee may adopt a rule or motion permitting a specified
number of its members to question a witness for longer than five
minutes. The time for extended questioning of a witness under this
subdivision shall be equal for the majority party and the minority party
and may not exceed one hour in the aggregate.
(C) A committee may adopt a rule or motion permitting committee staff
for its majority and minority party members to question a witness for
equal specified periods. The time for extended questioning of a witness
under this subdivision shall be equal for the majority party and the
minority party and may not exceed one hour in the aggregate.
Paragraph (j)(1) was contained in section 114(b) of the Legislative
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and was made a part of the
rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). Paragraph
(j)(2) was added to the rules on that latter date. While a majority of
the minority members of a committee are entitled to call witnesses
selected by the minority for at least one day of hearings, no rule of
the House requires the calling of witnesses on opposing sides of an
issue (Oct. 14, 1987, p. 27921). In the 105th Congress paragraph (j)(2)
was redesignated as (2)(A) and two new subparagraphs were added as
(2)(B) and (2)(C) to enable committees to permit extended examinations
of witnesses (for 30 additional minutes) by designated members or by
staff (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). A technical correction was
effected in the 106th Congress to clarify the procedure to extend
questioning, and clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the
House recodified its rules in the same Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6,
1999, p. ----).
Hearing procedures
(k)(1) <> The chairman at a hearing
shall announce in an opening statement the subject of the hearing.
[[Page 540]]
(2) A copy of the committee rules and of this clause shall be made
available to each witness on request.
(3) Witnesses at hearings may be accompanied by their own counsel for
the purpose of advising them concerning their constitutional rights.
(4) The chairman may punish breaches of order and decorum, and of
professional ethics on the part of counsel, by censure and exclusion
from the hearings; and the committee may cite the offender to the House
for contempt.
(5) Whenever it is asserted by a member of the committee that the
evidence or testimony at a hearing may tend to defame, degrade, or
incriminate any person, or it is asserted by a witness that the evidence
or testimony that the witness would give at a hearing may tend to
defame, degrade, or incriminate the witness--
(A) notwithstanding paragraph (g)(2), such testimony or evidence
shall be presented in executive session if, in the presence of the
number of members required under the rules of the committee for the
purpose of taking testimony, the committee determines by vote of a
majority of those present that such evidence or testimony may tend to
defame, degrade, or incriminate any person; and
(B) the committee shall proceed to receive such testimony in open
session only if the committee, a majority being present, determines that
such evidence or testimony will not tend to defame, degrade, or
incriminate any person.
[[Page 541]]
In either case the committee shall afford such person an opportunity
voluntarily to appear as a witness, and receive and dispose of requests
from such person to subpoena additional witnesses.
(6) Except as provided in subparagraph (5), the chairman shall receive
and the committee shall dispose of requests to subpoena additional
witnesses.
(7) Evidence or testimony taken in executive session, and proceedings
conducted in executive session, may be released or used in public
sessions only when authorized by the committee, a majority being
present.
(8) In the discretion of the committee, witnesses may submit brief and
pertinent sworn statements in writing for inclusion in the record. The
committee is the sole judge of the pertinence of testimony and evidence
adduced at its hearing.
(9) A witness may obtain a transcript copy of his testimony given at a
public session or, if given at an executive session, when authorized by
the committee.
The provisions of paragraph (k) were first incorporated into the rules
in the 84th Congress (H. Res. 151, Mar. 23, 1955, pp. 3569, 3585). The
requirement of paragraph (k)(2) that a copy of committee rules be
furnished to each witness was added in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan.
22, 1971, p. 144) and was amended in the 107th Congress to require the
committee to furnish such rules only when the witness so requests (sec.
2(j), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----). The former requirement of
paragraph (k)(9) that a witness must pay the cost of a transcript copy
of his testimony was eliminated under the Committee Reform Amendments of
1974, effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974,
p. 34470). Paragraph (k)(5) was amended in the 96th Congress (H. Res. 5,
Jan. 15, 1979, pp. 7-16) to permit a committee or subcommittee to hear
testimony asserted
[[Page 542]]
to be defamatory in executive session upon a determination by a majority
of those present that such testimony is indeed defamatory, degrading, or
incriminating. It was amended in the 107th Congress to permit such an
assertion to be made by the witness (with respect to himself) or a
member of the Committee (with respect to any person) (sec. 2(j), H. Res.
5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----). In the 105th Congress subparagraph (5) was
amended to clarify a majority of those voting (a full quorum being
present) may decide to proceed in open session (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997,
p. ----). Clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the House
recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p.
----). ``Investigative'' was removed from the heading and subparagraphs
(1), (3), and (5) of paragraph (k) in the 107th Congress to indicate
past practice, which applied this paragraph to all committee
investigative, oversight, or legislative hearings (sec. 2(j), H. Res. 5,
Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----).
The requirements of clause 2(g)(1) and (2), and of 2(m)(2)(A), of this
rule that a majority of the committee or subcommittee shall constitute a
quorum for the purposes of closing meetings or hearings or issuing
subpoenas have been construed to require, under clause 2(k)(7) of this
rule, that a majority shall likewise constitute a quorum to release or
make public any evidence or testimony received in any closed meeting or
hearing and any other executive session record of the committee or
subcommittee. See also clauses 11(c) and 11(g) of rule X, which provide
that executive session material transmitted by the Permanent Select
Committee on Intelligence to another committee of the House becomes the
executive session material of the recipient committee by virtue of the
nature of the material and the injunction of clause 11(g) of rule X
which prohibit disclosure of information provided to committees or
Members of the House except in a secret session. A resolution directing
a standing committee to release executive-session material referred to
it as such by special rule of the House was held to propose a change in
the rules and, therefore, not to constitute a question of the privileges
of the House under rule IX (Sept. 23, 1998, p. ----).
Supplemental, minority, or additional views
(l) <> If at the time of approval of a
measure or matter by a committee (other than the Committee on Rules) a
member of the committee gives notice of intention to file supplemental,
minority, or additional views for inclusion in the report to the House
thereon, that member shall be entitled to not less than two additional
calendar days after the day of
[[Page 543]]
such notice (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays except
when the House is in session on such a day) to file such views, in
writing and signed by that member, with the clerk of the committee.
This provision was originally included in section 107 of the
Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and was
incorporated into the rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22,
1971, p. 144). In the 104th Congress it was amended to count as a
``calendar day'' any day on which the House is in session (H. Res. 254,
Nov. 30, 1995, p. 35077). In the 105th Congress it was further amended
to reduce the guaranteed time for composing separate views from three
full days to two full days after the day of notice (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7,
1997, p. ----). Before the House recodified its rules in the 106th
Congress, paragraph (l) consisted of this paragraph and current clause
2(c) of rule XIII (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
Power to sit and act; subpoena power
(m)(1) <> For
the purpose of carrying out any of its functions and duties under this
rule and rule X (including any matters referred to it under clause 2 of
rule XII), a committee or subcommittee is authorized (subject to
subparagraph (3)(A))--
(A) to sit and act at such times and places within the United
States, whether the House is in session, has recessed, or has adjourned,
and to hold such hearings as it considers necessary; and
(B) to require, by subpoena or otherwise, the attendance and
testimony of such witnesses and the production of such books, records,
correspondence, memoranda, papers, and documents as it considers
necessary.
(2) The chairman of the committee, or a member designated by the
chairman, may administer oaths to witnesses.
[[Page 544]]
(3)(A)(i) Except as provided in subdivision (A)(ii), a subpoena may be
authorized and issued by a committee or subcommittee under subparagraph
(1)(B) in the conduct of an investigation or series of investigations or
activities only when authorized by the committee or subcommittee, a
majority being present. The power to authorize and issue subpoenas under
subparagraph (1)(B) may be delegated to the chairman of the committee
under such rules and under such limitations as the committee may
prescribe. Authorized subpoenas shall be signed by the chairman of the
committee or by a member designated by the committee.
(ii) In the case of a subcommittee of the Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct, a subpoena may be authorized and issued only by an
affirmative vote of a majority of its members.
(B) A subpoena duces tecum may specify terms of return other than at a
meeting or hearing of the committee or subcommittee authorizing the
subpoena.
(C) Compliance with a subpoena issued by a committee or subcommittee
under subparagraph (1)(B) may be enforced only as authorized or directed
by the House.
Prior to the adoption of clause 2(m) under the Committee Reform
Amendments of 1974, effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong.,
Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), only the Committees on Appropriations, the
Budget, Government Operations, Internal Security, and Standards of
Official Conduct were permitted by the standing rules to perform the
functions as specified in subparagraphs (1)(A) and (1)(B), and other
standing and select committees were given those authorities by separate
resolutions reported from the Committee on Rules each Congress. In the
94th Congress the paragraph was amended to require authorized subpoenas
to be signed by
[[Page 545]]
the chairman of the full committee or any member designated by the
committee (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20); and in the 95th Congress
the paragraph was altered to permit subcommittees, as well as full
committees, to authorize subpoenas and to allow the delegation of such
authority to the chairman of the full committee (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4,
1977, pp. 53-70). The special rule for authorizing and issuing a
subpoena of a subcommittee of the Committee on Standards of Official
Conduct was adopted in the 105th Congress (sec. 15, H. Res. 168, Sept.
18, 1997, p. ----). In the 106th Congress subparagraph (3)(B) was added,
and clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the House
recodified its rules in the same Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p.
----). A clerical correction was effected to paragraph (m)(1) in the
107th Congress to correct a cross reference (sec. 2(x), H. Res. 5, Jan.
3, 2001, p. ----).
A subpoena issued under this clause need only be signed by the
chairman of the committee or by any member designated by the committee,
whereas when the House issues an order or warrant the Speaker must under
clause 4 of rule I issue the summons under his hand and seal, and it
must be attested by the Clerk pursuant to clause 2(c) of rule II (former
clause 3 of rule III) (III, 1668; see H. Rept. 96-1078, p. 22). Pursuant
to 2 U.S.C. 191, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House
of Representatives, or a chairman of any joint committee established by
a joint or concurrent resolution of the two Houses of Congress, or of a
committee of the whole, or of any committee of either House of Congress,
is empowered to administer oaths to witnesses in any case under their
examination, and any Member of either House of Congress may administer
oaths to witnesses in any matter depending in either House of Congress
of which he is a Member, or any committee thereof.
While under this clause the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct
may issue subpoenas in investigating the conduct of a Member, officer,
or employee of the House (the extent of the committee's jurisdiction
under rule X and functions under clause 3 of rule XI), where the House
mandates a possible investigation by that committee of other persons not
directly associated with the House, the committee's jurisdiction is
thereby enlarged and a broader subpoena authority must be conferred on
the committee (Mar. 3, 1976, p. 5165). Subparagraph (3)(B) (former
subparagraph (2)(B)) has been interpreted to require authorization by
the full House before a subcommittee chairman could intervene in a law
suit in order to gain access to documents subpoenaed by the
subcommittee. In re Beef Industry Antitrust Litigation, 589 F.2d 786
(5th Cir. 1979). The authority conferred in clause 2(m)(1)(B) to require
information ``by subpoena or otherwise'' has not been interpreted to
authorize depositions and interrogatories. That authority must be
conferred by separate action of the House (see Sec. 800, supra).
[[Page 546]]
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct
3. (a) The <> Committee on Standards of Official Conduct has the following
functions:
(1) The committee may recommend to the House from time to time
such administrative actions as it may consider appropriate to establish
or enforce standards of official conduct for Members, Delegates, the
Resident Commissioner, officers, and employees of the House. A letter of
reproval or other administrative action of the committee pursuant to an
investigation under subparagraph (2) shall only be issued or implemented
as a part of a report required by such subparagraph.
(2) The committee may investigate, subject to paragraph (b), an
alleged violation by a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer,
or employee of the House of the Code of Official Conduct or of a law,
rule, regulation, or other standard of conduct applicable to the conduct
of such Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee in
the performance of his duties or the discharge of his responsibilities.
After notice and hearing (unless the right to a hearing is waived by the
Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee), the
committee shall report to the House its findings of fact and
recommendations, if any, for the final disposition of any such
investigation and such action as
[[Page 547]]
the committee may consider appropriate in the circumstances.
(3) The committee may report to the appropriate Federal or State
authorities, either with the approval of the House or by an affirmative
vote of two-thirds of the members of the committee, any substantial
evidence of a violation by a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner,
officer, or employee of the House, of a law applicable to the
performance of his duties or the discharge of his responsibilities that
may have been disclosed in a committee investigation.
(4) The committee may consider the request of a Member, Delegate,
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House for an advisory
opinion with respect to the general propriety of any current or proposed
conduct of such Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or
employee. With appropriate deletions to ensure the privacy of the person
concerned, the committee may publish such opinion for the guidance of
other Members, Delegates, the Resident Commissioner, officers, and
employees of the House.
(5) The committee may consider the request of a Member, Delegate,
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House for a written
waiver in exceptional circumstances with respect to clause 4 of rule
XXIII.
(b)(1)(A) Unless approved by an affirmative vote of a majority of its
members, the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct may not report
[[Page 548]]
a resolution, report, recommendation, or advisory opinion relating to
the official conduct of a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner,
officer, or employee of the House, or, except as provided in
subparagraph (2), undertake an investigation of such conduct.
(B)(i) Upon the receipt of information offered as a complaint that is
in compliance with this rule and the rules of the committee, the
chairman and ranking minority member jointly may appoint members to
serve as an investigative subcommittee.
(ii) The chairman and ranking minority member of the committee jointly
may gather additional information concerning alleged conduct that is the
basis of a complaint or of information offered as a complaint until they
have established an investigative subcommittee or either of them has
placed on the agenda of the committee the issue of whether to establish
an investigative subcommittee.
(2) Except in the case of an investigation undertaken by the committee
on its own initiative, the committee may undertake an investigation
relating to the official conduct of an individual Member, Delegate,
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House only--
(A) upon receipt of information offered as a complaint, in writing
and under oath, from a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner and
transmitted to the committee by such Member, Delegate, or Resident
Commissioner; or
[[Page 549]]
(B) upon receipt of information offered as a complaint, in writing
and under oath, from a person not a Member, Delegate, or Resident
Commissioner provided that a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner
certifies in writing to the committee that he believes the information
is submitted in good faith and warrants the review and consideration of
the committee.
If a complaint is not disposed of within the applicable periods set
forth in the rules of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct,
the chairman and ranking minority member shall establish jointly an
investigative subcommittee and forward the complaint, or any portion
thereof, to that subcommittee for its consideration. However, if at any
time during those periods either the chairman or ranking minority member
places on the agenda the issue of whether to establish an investigative
subcommittee, then an investigative subcommittee may be established only
by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.
(3) The committee may not undertake an investigation of an alleged
violation of a law, rule, regulation, or standard of conduct that was
not in effect at the time of the alleged violation. The committee may
not undertake an investigation of such an alleged violation that
occurred before the third previous Congress unless the committee
determines that the alleged violation is directly related to an alleged
violation that occurred in a more recent Congress.
[[Page 550]]
(4) A member of the committee shall be ineligible to participate as a
member of the committee in a committee proceeding relating to the
member's official conduct. Whenever a member of the committee is
ineligible to act as a member of the committee under the preceding
sentence, the Speaker shall designate a Member, Delegate, or Resident
Commissioner from the same political party as the ineligible member to
act in any proceeding of the committee relating to that conduct.
(5) A member of the committee may disqualify himself from
participating in an investigation of the conduct of a Member, Delegate,
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House upon the
submission in writing and under oath of an affidavit of disqualification
stating that the member cannot render an impartial and unbiased decision
in the case in which the member seeks to be disqualified. If the
committee approves and accepts such affidavit of disqualification, the
chairman shall so notify the Speaker and request the Speaker to
designate a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner from the same
political party as the disqualifying member to act in any proceeding of
the committee relating to that case.
(6) Information or testimony received, or the contents of a complaint
or the fact of its filing, may not be publicly disclosed by any
committee or staff member unless specifically authorized in each
instance by a vote of the full committee.
[[Page 551]]
(7) The committee shall have the functions designated in titles I and
V of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, in sections 7342, 7351, and
7353 of title 5, United States Code, and in clause 11(g)(4) of rule X.
(c)(1) Notwithstanding clause 2(g)(1) of rule XI, each meeting of the
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct or a subcommittee thereof
shall occur in executive session unless the committee or subcommittee,
by an affirmative vote of a majority of its members, opens the meeting
to the public.
(2) Notwithstanding clause 2(g)(2) of rule XI, each hearing of an
adjudicatory subcommittee or sanction hearing of the Committee on
Standards of Official Conduct shall be held in open session unless the
committee or subcommittee, in open session by an affirmative vote of a
majority of its members, closes all or part of the remainder of the
hearing on that day to the public.
(d) Before a member, officer, or employee of the Committee on
Standards of Official Conduct, including members of a subcommittee of
the committee selected under clause 5(a)(4) of rule X and shared staff,
may have access to information that is confidential under the rules of
the committee, the following oath (or affirmation) shall be executed:
``I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will not disclose, to any
person or entity outside the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct,
any information received in the course of my service with the committee,
except as au
[[Page 552]]
thorized by the committee or in accordance with its rules.''
Copies of the executed oath shall be retained by the Clerk as part of
the records of the House. This paragraph establishes a standard of
conduct within the meaning of paragraph (a)(2). Breaches of
confidentiality shall be investigated by the Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct and appropriate action shall be taken.
(e)(1) If a complaint or information offered as a complaint is deemed
frivolous by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, the committee may take such
action as it, by an affirmative vote of a majority of its members,
considers appropriate in the circumstances.
(2) Complaints filed before the One Hundred Fifth Congress may not be
deemed frivolous by the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.
The investigative authority contained in this clause (former clause
4(e) of rule X) was first conferred upon the commitee in the 90th
Congress (H. Res. 1099, Apr. 3, 1968, p. 8802). Effective January 3,
1975, the former requirement in paragraph (b)(1)(A) (former clause
4(e)(2)(A) of rule X) that seven committee members must authorize an
investigation was changed to permit a majority of the commitee to
provide that authorization (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p.
34470). That provision was further amended in the 105th Congress to
permit the chairman and ranking minority member, with respect to a
properly filed complaint, to gather additional information or to
establish an investigative subcommittee (sec. 11, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18,
1997, p. ----). Paragraph (b)(5) (former clause 4(e)(2)(E) of rule X)
was added in the 95th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-70), to
provide a mechanism for a committee member to disqualify himself from
participating in an investigation, and paragraph (b)(6) (former clause
4(e)(2)(F) of rule X) was added in the 96th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan.
15, 1979, p. 8).
This provision was amended in several particulars by the Ethics Reform
Act of 1989 (P.L. 101-194): (1) paragraph (a)(1) (former clause
4(e)(1)(A) of rule X) was amended to enable a letter of reproval or
other administra
[[Page 553]]
tive action of the commitee to be implemented as part of a report to the
House, with no action required of the House; (2) paragraph (a)(2)
(former clause 4(e)(1)(B) of rule X) was amended to require the commitee
to report to the House its findings of fact and any recommendations
respecting the final disposition of a matter in which it votes to
undertake an investigation; (3) a new paragraph (a)(4) (former clause
4(e)(1)(E) of rule X) was added to empower the commitee to consider
requests that the rule restricting the acceptance of gifts be waived in
exceptional circumstances; and (4) paragraph (b)(3) (former clause
4(e)(2)(C) of rule X) was amended to set a general limitation on actions
for committee consideration of ethics matters.
In the beginning of the 105th Congress a subparagraph (3) was added at
the end of former clause 4(e) of rule X to establish a Select Committee
on Ethics only to resolve a specific inquiry originally undertaken by
the standing Committee on Standards of Official Conduct in the 104th
Congress but not concluded (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). The
select commitee filed one report to the House (H. Rept. 105-1, H. Res.
31, Jan. 21, 1997, p. ----). The current form of paragraph (c) (former
clause 4(e)(3) of rule X) was adopted later in the 105th Congress (sec.
5, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. ----).
Additional amendments to this provision were adopted in the 105th
Congress as follows: (1) paragraphs (d) and (3) (former clauses 4(e)(4)
and 4(e)(5)) were adopted (sec. 6 and sec. 19, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18,
1997, p. ----); (2) paragraph (b)(2) (former clause 4(e)(2)(B) of rule
X) was amended to address the disposition of a complaint after
expiration of periods set forth in the commitee rules and to specify
parameters for the filing of complaints by non-Members (sec. 11, H. Res.
168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. ----); and (3) paragraph (a)(3) (former clause
4(e)(1)(C) of rule X) was amended to permit the commitee to report to
the appropriate authorities substantial evidence of a violation of law
by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members of the commitee
without the approval of the House (sec. 18, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997,
p. ----). Before the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress,
this provision was found in former clause 4(e) of rule X and paragraph
(b)(7) was found in former clause 1(p) of rule X (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6,
1999, p. ----). Clause 3(a)(5) was amended in the 107th Congress to
reflect the redesignation of a rule (sec. 2(s), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001,
p. ----).
The Ethics Reform Act of 1989 (P.L. 101-194) contains free-standing
provisions requiring: (1) that the respective party caucuses nominate
seven majority and seven minority members, although in the 104th
Congress only five returning majority and five returning minority
members were initially elected (H. Res. 41, H. Res. 42, Jan. 20, 1995,
p. 1909), and in the 105th Congress only the chairman and ranking
minority member were elected initially pending recommendations by a 12-
member bipartisan task force informally appointed by the Majority and
Minority Leaders to conduct a comprehensive review of the House ethics
process (H. Res. 12, Jan. 7,
[[Page 554]]
1997, p. ----; H. Res. 44, Feb. 10, 1997, p. ----); (2) that the
commitee adopt rules establishing investigative and adjudicative
subcommittees; and (3) that the commitee adopt rules establishing an
Office on Advice and Education (see sec. 803(b), (c), (d), and (i), P.L.
101-194, 2 U.S.C. 29d). The texts of those provisions are set forth
below. Section 803(b), (c), and (d) should be read in light of H. Res.
168, adopted in the 105th Congress, and reaffirmed in the 106th Congress
and 107th Congress with one amendment (sec. 2(c), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6,
1999, p. ----; sec. 3(a), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----), and
described later in this annotation.
__________
``Sec. 803. Reforms Respecting the Committee on Standards of Official
Conduct.--
* * *
``(b) committee composition.--The respective party caucus or
conference of the House of Representatives shall each nominate to the
House of Representatives at the beginning of each Congress 7 members to
serve on the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.
``(c) investigative subcommittees.--The Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct shall adopt rules providing--
``(1) for the establishment of a 4 or 6-member investigative
subcommittee (with equal representation from the majority and
minority parties) whenever the committee votes to undertake any
investigation;
``(2) that the senior majority and minority members on an
investigative subcommittee shall serve as the chairman and
ranking minority member of the subcommittee; and
``(3) that the chairman and ranking minority member of the
full committee may only serve as non-voting, ex officio members
on an investigative subcommittee.
``Clause 5(d) of rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives
shall not apply to any investigative subcommittee.
``(d) adjudicatory subcommittees.--The Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct shall adopt rules providing--
``(1) that upon the completion of an investigation, an
investigative subcommittee shall report its findings and
recommendations to the committee;
``(2) that, if an investigative subcommittee by majority vote
of its membership adopts a statement of alleged violation, the
remaining members of the committee shall comprise an
adjudicatory subcommittee to hold a disciplinary hearing on the
violation alleged in the statement;
``(3) that any statement of alleged violation and any written
response thereto shall be made public at the first meeting or
hearing on the matter which is open to the public after the
respondent has
[[Page 555]]
been given full opportunity to respond to the statement in
accordance with committee rules, but, if no public hearing or
meeting is held on the matter, the statement of alleged
violation and any written response thereto shall be included in
the committee's final report to the House of Representatives as
required by clause 4(e)(1)(B) of rule X of the Rules of the
House of Representatives;
``(4) that a quorum for an adjudicatory subcommittee for the
purpose of taking testimony and conducting any business shall
consist of a majority of the membership of the subcommittee plus
one; and
``(5) that an adjudicatory subcommittee shall determine, after
receiving evidence, whether the counts in the statement have
been proved and shall report its findings to the committee.
``Clause 5(d) of rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives
shall not apply to any adjudicatory subcommittee.
* * *
``(i) advice and education.--(1) The Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct shall establish within the Committee an Office on
Advice and Education (hereinafter in this subsection referred to as the
`Office') under the supervision of the chairman.
``(2) The Office shall be headed by a director who shall be
appointed by the chairman, in consultation with the ranking
minority member, and shall be comprised of such staff as the
chairman determines is necessary to carry out the
responsibilities of the Office.
``(3) The primary responsibilities of the Office shall
include:
``(A) Providing information and guidance to Members,
officers and employees of the House regarding any laws,
rules, regulations, and other standards of conduct
applicable to such individuals in their official
capacities, and any interpretations and advisory
opinions of the committee.
``(B) Submitting to the chairman and ranking minority
member of the committee any written request from any
such Member, officer or employee for an interpretation
of applicable laws, rules, regulations, or other
standards of conduct, together with any recommendations
thereon.
``(C) Recommending to the committee for its
consideration formal advisory opinions of general
applicability.
``(D) Developing and carrying out, subject to the
approval of the chairman, periodic educational briefings
for Members, officers and employees of the House on
those laws, rules, regulations, or other standards of
conduct applicable to them.
``(4) No information provided to the Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct by a Member, officer or employee of the House
of Representatives when seeking advice regarding prospective
conduct of such Member, officer or employee may be used as the
basis for initiating an investigation under clause 4(e)(1)(B) of
rule X of the Rules
[[Page 556]]
of the House of Representatives, if such Member, officer or
employee acts in accordance with the written advice of the
committee.''.
__________
In the 105th Congress a 12-member bipartisan task force was informally
appointed by the Majority and Minority Leaders to conduct a
comprehensive review of the House ethics process. At the same time an
order of the House was adopted imposing a moratorium on filing or
processing ethics complaints and on raising certain questions of
privilege under rule IX with respect to official conduct. The moratorium
was imposed in the expectation that the recommendations of the task
force would include changes relating to the Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct and the process by which the House enforces standards
of official conduct (Feb. 12, 1997, p. ----). The moratorium was
extended through September 10, 1997 (July 30, 1997, p. ----). On
September 18, 1997, the House adopted the recommendations of the task
force with certain amendments (H. Res. 168, 105th Cong., p. ----), which
included not only changes to the standing Rules of the House but also
free-standing directives to the Committee on Standards of Official
Conduct, which were reaffirmed for the 106th Congress (sec. 2(c), H.
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Those directives were again reaffirmed
in the 107th Congress with an exception to section 13 (sec. 3(a), H.
Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----). The texts of those free-standing
provisions are set forth below.
__________
``H. Res. 168
* * *
``SEC. 3. COMMITTEE AGENDAS.
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules
providing that the chairman shall establish the agenda for meetings of
the committee, but shall not preclude the ranking minority member from
placing any item on the agenda.
``SEC. 4. COMMITTEE STAFF.
``(a) Committee Rules.--The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct
shall adopt rules providing that:
``(1)(A) The staff is to be assembled and retained as a
professional, nonpartisan staff.
``(B) Each member of the staff shall be professional and
demonstrably qualified for the position for which he is hired.
``(C) The staff as a whole and each member of the staff shall
perform all official duties in a nonpartisan manner.
``(D) No member of the staff shall engage in any partisan
political activity directly affecting any congressional or
presidential election.
``(E) No member of the staff or outside counsel may accept
public speaking engagements or write for publication on any
subject that
[[Page 557]]
is in any way related to his or her employment or duties with
the committee without specific prior approval from the chairman
and ranking minority member.
``(F) No member of the staff or outside counsel may make
public, unless approved by an affirmative vote of a majority of
the members of the committee, any information, document, or
other material that is confidential, derived from executive
session, or classified and that is obtained during the course of
employment with the committee.
``(2)(A) All staff members shall be appointed by an
affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.
Such vote shall occur at the first meeting of the membership of
the committee during each Congress and as necessary during the
Congress.
``(B) Subject to the approval of Committee on House
Administration, the committee may retain counsel not employed by
the House of Representatives whenever the committee determines,
by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the
committee, that the retention of outside counsel is necessary
and appropriate.
``(C) If the committee determines that it is necessary to
retain staff members for the purpose of a particular
investigation or other proceeding, then such staff shall be
retained only for the duration of that particular investigation
or proceeding.
``(3) Outside counsel may be dismissed prior to the end of a
contract between the committee and such counsel only by an
affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.
``(4) Only subparagraphs (C), (E), and (F) of paragraph (1)
shall apply to shared staff.
``(b) Additional Committee Staff.--In addition to any other staff
provided for by law, rule, or other authority, with respect to the
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, the chairman and ranking
minority member each may appoint one individual as a shared staff member
from his or her personal staff to perform service for the committee.
Such shared staff may assist the chairman or ranking minority member on
any subcommittee on which he serves.
``SEC. 5. MEETINGS AND HEARINGS.
* * *
``(b) Committee Rules.--The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct
shall adopt rules providing that--
``(1) all meetings of the committee or any subcommittee
thereof shall occur in executive session unless the committee or
subcommittee by an affirmative vote of a majority of its members
opens the meeting or hearing to the public; and
``(2) any hearing held by an adjudicatory subcommittee or any
sanction hearing held by the committee shall be open to the
public unless the committee or subcommittee by an affirmative
vote of a majority of its members closes the hearing to the
public.
[[Page 558]]
* * *
``SEC. 7. PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules
providing that, unless otherwise determined by a vote of the committee,
only the chairman or ranking minority member, after consultation with
each other, may make public statements regarding matters before the
committee or any subcommittee thereof.
* * *
``SEC. 10. REQUIREMENTS TO CONSTITUTE A COMPLAINT.
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall amend its rules
regarding complaints to provide that whenever information offered as a
complaint is submitted to the committee, the chairman and ranking
minority member shall have 14 calendar days or 5 legislative days,
whichever occurs first, to determine whether the information meets the
requirements of the committee's rules for what constitutes a complaint.
``SEC. 11. DUTIES OF CHAIRMAN AND RANKING MINORITY MEMBER REGARDING
PROPERLY FILED COMPLAINTS.
``(a) Committee Rules.--The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct
shall adopt rules providing that whenever the chairman and ranking
minority member jointly determine that information submitted to the
committee meets the requirements of the committee's rules for what
constitutes a complaint, they shall have 45 calendar days or 5
legislative days, whichever is later, after the date that the chairman
and ranking minority member determine that information filed meets the
requirements of the committee's rules for what constitutes a complaint,
unless the committee by an affirmative vote of a majority of its members
votes otherwise, to--
``(1) recommend to the committee that it dispose of the
complaint, or any portion thereof, in any manner that does not
require action by the House, which may include dismissal of the
complaint or resolution of the complaint by a letter to the
Member, officer, or employee of the House against whom the
complaint is made;
``(2) establish an investigative subcommittee; or
``(3) request that the committee extend the applicable 45-
calendar day or 5-legislative day period by one additional 45-
calendar day period when they determine more time is necessary
in order to make a recommendation under paragraph (1).
* * *
``(c) Disposition of Properly Filed Complaints by Chairman and Ranking
Minority Member if no Action Taken by Them Within Prescribed Time
Limit.--The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules
providing that if the chairman and ranking minority member jointly
determine that information submitted to the committee meets the
requirements of the committee rules for what constitutes a complaint,
and the complaint is not disposed of within the applicable time
[[Page 559]]
periods under subsection (a), then they shall establish an investigative
subcommittee and forward the complaint, or any portion thereof, to that
subcommittee for its consideration. However, if, at any time during
those periods, either the chairman or ranking minority member places on
the agenda the issue of whether to establish an investigative
subcommittee, then an investigative subcommittee may be established only
by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.
* * *
``SEC. 12. DUTIES OF CHAIRMAN AND RANKING MINORITY MEMBER REGARDING
INFORMATION NOT CONSTITUTING A COMPLAINT.
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules
providing that whenever the chairman and ranking minority member jointly
determine that information submitted to the committee does not meet the
requirements for what constitutes a complaint set forth in the committee
rules, they may--
``(1) return the information to the complainant with a
statement that it fails to meet the requirements for what
constitutes a complaint set forth in the committee's rules; or
``(2) recommend to the committee that it authorize the
establishment of an investigative subcommittee.
``SEC. 13. INVESTIGATIVE AND ADJUDICATORY SUBCOMMITTEES.\1\
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules
providing that--
``(1)(A) investigative subcommittees shall be comprised of 4
Members (with equal representation from the majority and
minority parties) whenever such subcommittee is established
pursuant to the rules of the committee; and
``(B) adjudicatory subcommittees shall be comprised of the
members of the committee who did not serve on the investigative
subcommittee (with equal representation from the majority and
minority parties) whenever such subcommittee is established
pursuant to the rules of the committee;
``(2) at the time of appointment, the chairman shall designate
one member of the subcommittee to serve as chairman and the
ranking
[[Page 560]]
minority member shall designate one member of the subcommittee
to serve as the ranking minority member of the investigative
subcommittee or adjudicatory subcommittee; and
``(3) the chairman and ranking minority member of the
committee may serve as members of an investigative subcommittee,
but may not serve as non-voting, ex officio members.
\1\ Section 13 was reaffirmed in the 107th Congress with
the following exception: ``except that, notwithstanding section 13 [of
H. Res. 168], the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee
on Standards of Official Conduct may consult with an investigative
subcommittee either on their own initiative or on the initiative of the
subcommittee, shall have access to information before a subcommittee
with which they so consult, and shall not thereby be precluded from
serving as full, voting members of any adjudicatory subcommittee'' (sec.
3(a), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. ----).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
``SEC. 14. STANDARD OF PROOF FOR ADOPTION OF STATEMENT OF ALLEGED
VIOLATION.
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall amend its rules
to provide that an investigative subcommittee may adopt a statement of
alleged violation only if it determines by an affirmative vote of a
majority of the members of the committee that there is substantial
reason to believe that a violation of the Code of Official Conduct, or
of a law, rule, regulation, or other standard of conduct applicable to
the performance of official duties or the discharge of official
responsibilities by a Member, officer, or employee of the House of
Representatives has occurred.
``SEC. 15. SUBCOMMITTEE POWERS.
``(a) Subpoena Power.--
* * *
``(2) Committee rules.--The Committee on Standards of Official
Conduct shall adopt rules providing that an investigative
subcommittee or an adjudicatory subcommittee may authorize and
issue subpoenas only when authorized by an affirmative vote of a
majority of the members of the subcommittee.
``(b) Expansion of Scope of Investigations.--The Committee on
Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules providing that an
investigative subcommittee may, upon an affirmative vote of a majority
of its members, expand the scope of its investigation approved by an
affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.
``(c) Amendments of Statements of Alleged Violation.--The Committee on
Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules to provide that--
``(1) an investigative subcommittee may, upon an affirmative
vote of a majority of its members, amend its statement of
alleged violation anytime before the statement of alleged
violation is transmitted to the committee; and
``(2) if an investigative subcommittee amends its statement of
alleged violation, the respondent shall be notified in writing
and shall have 30 calendar days from the date of that
notification to file an answer to the amended statement of
alleged violation.
``SEC. 16. DUE PROCESS RIGHTS OF RESPONDENTS.
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall amend its rules
to provide that--
``(1) not less than 10 calendar days before a scheduled vote
by an investigative subcommittee on a statement of alleged
violation, the subcommittee shall provide the respondent with a
copy of the state
[[Page 561]]
ment of alleged violation it intends to adopt together with all
evidence it intends to use to prove those charges which it
intends to adopt, including documentary evidence, witness
testimony, memoranda of witness interviews, and physical
evidence, unless the subcommittee by an affirmative vote of a
majority of its members decides to withhold certain evidence in
order to protect a witness, but if such evidence is withheld,
the subcommittee shall inform the respondent that evidence is
being withheld and of the count to which such evidence relates;
``(2) neither the respondent nor his counsel shall, directly
or indirectly, contact the subcommittee or any member thereof
during the period of time set forth in paragraph (1) except for
the sole purpose of settlement discussions where counsels for
the respondent and the subcommittee are present;
``(3) if, at any time after the issuance of a statement of
alleged violation, the committee or any subcommittee thereof
determines that it intends to use evidence not provided to a
respondent under paragraph (1) to prove the charges contained in
the statement of alleged violation (or any amendment thereof),
such evidence shall be made immediately available to the
respondent, and it may be used in any further proceeding under
the committee's rules;
``(4) evidence provided pursuant to paragraph (1) or (3) shall
be made available to the respondent and his or her counsel only
after each agrees, in writing, that no document, information, or
other materials obtained pursuant to that paragraph shall be
made public until--
``(A) such time as a statement of alleged violation is
made public by the committee if the respondent has
waived the adjudicatory hearing; or
``(B) the commencement of an adjudicatory hearing if
the respondent has not waived an adjudicatory hearing;
``but the failure of respondent and his counsel to so agree in
writing, and therefore not receive the evidence, shall not
preclude the issuance of a statement of alleged violation at the
end of the period referred to in paragraph (1);
``(5) a respondent shall receive written notice whenever--
``(A) the chairman and ranking minority member
determine that information the committee has received
constitutes a complaint;
``(B) a complaint or allegation is transmitted to an
investigative subcommittee;
``(C) that subcommittee votes to authorize its first
subpoena or to take testimony under oath, whichever
occurs first; and
``(D) an investigative subcommittee votes to expand
the scope of its investigation;
[[Page 562]]
``(6) whenever an investigative subcommittee adopts a
statement of alleged violation and a respondent enters into an
agreement with that subcommittee to settle a complaint on which
that statement is based, that agreement, unless the respondent
requests otherwise, shall be in writing and signed by the
respondent and respondent's counsel, the chairman and ranking
minority member of the subcommittee, and the outside counsel, if
any;
``(7) statements or information derived solely from a
respondent or his counsel during any settlement discussions
between the committee or a subcommittee thereof and the
respondent shall not be included in any report of the
subcommittee or the committee or otherwise publicly disclosed
without the consent of the respondent; and
``(8) whenever a motion to establish an investigative
subcommittee does not prevail, the committee shall promptly send
a letter to the respondent informing him of such vote.
``SEC. 17. COMMITTEE REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall amend its rules
to provide that--
``(1) whenever an investigative subcommittee does not adopt a
statement of alleged violation and transmits a report to that
effect to the committee, the committee may by an affirmative
vote of a majority of its members transmit such report to the
House of Representatives; and
``(2) whenever an investigative subcommittee adopts a
statement of alleged violation, the respondent admits to the
violations set forth in such statement, the respondent waives
his or her right to an adjudicatory hearing, and the
respondent's waiver is approved by the committee--
``(A) the subcommittee shall prepare a report for
transmittal to the committee, a final draft of which
shall be provided to the respondent not less than 15
calendar days before the subcommittee votes on whether
to adopt the report;
``(B) the respondent may submit views in writing
regarding the final draft to the subcommittee within 7
calendar days of receipt of that draft;
``(C) the subcommittee shall transmit a report to the
committee regarding the statement of alleged violation
together with any views submitted by the respondent
pursuant to subparagraph (B), and the committee shall
make the report together with the respondent's views
available to the public before the commencement of any
sanction hearing; and
``(D) the committee shall by an affirmative vote of a
majority of its members issue a report and transmit such
report to the House of Representatives, together with
the respondent's views previously submitted pursuant to
subparagraph (B) and any ad
[[Page 563]]
ditional views respondent may submit for attachment to
the final report; and
``(3) members of the committee shall have not less than 72
hours to review any report transmitted to the committee by an
investigative subcommittee before both the commencement of a
sanction hearing and the committee vote on whether to adopt the
report.
* * *
``SEC. 20. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.
``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall--
``(1) clarify its rules to provide that whenever the committee
votes to authorize an investigation on its own initiative, the
chairman and ranking minority member shall establish an
investigative subcommittee to undertake such investigation;
``(2) revise its rules to refer to hearings held by an
adjudicatory subcommittee as adjudicatory hearings; and
``(3) make such other amendments to its rules as necessary to
conform such rules to this resolution.
``SEC. 21. EFFECTIVE DATE.
``This resolution and the amendments made by it apply with respect to
any complaint or information offered as a complaint that is or has been
filed during this Congress.''
__________
On occasions where the House has directed the committee to conduct
specific investigations by separate resolution, it has authorized the
committee to take depositions with one Member present, notwithstanding
clause 2(h) of rule XI, to serve subpoenas within or without the United
States, and to participate by special counsel in relevant judicial
proceedings (see H. Res. 252, 95th Cong., Feb. 9, 1977, pp. 3966-75; H.
Res. 608, Mar. 27, 1980, pp. 6995-98; H. Res. 254, June 30, 1983, p.
18279), and to investigate persons other than Members, officers and
employees with expanded subpoena authority (see H. Res. 1054, 94th
Cong., Mar. 3, 1976, pp. 5165-68). By unanimous consent the committee
was authorized to receive evidence and take testimony before a quorum of
one of its Members for the remainder of the second session of the 100th
Congress (Oct. 13, 1988, p. 30467). By resolutions considered as
questions of the privileges of the House, the committee has been
directed to investigate illegal solicitation of political contributions
in the House Office Building by unnamed sitting Members (July 10, 1985,
p. 18397); to review GAO audits of the operations of the ``bank'' in the
Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms (Oct. 3, 1991, p. 25435), to disclose the
names and pertinent account information of Members and former Members
found to have abused the privileges of that entity (Mar. 12, 1992, p.
5519), and to disclose further account information respecting Members
and former Members having checks held by that entity (Mar. 12, 1992, p.
5534); and to investigate violations of confidentiality by staff
[[Page 564]]
engaged in the investigation of the operation and management of the
Office of the Postmaster (July 22, 1992, p. 18786). In compliance with
one such direction of the House, the Acting Chairman of the Committee on
Standards of Official Conduct inserted in the Record names and pertinent
account information of Members and former Members found to have abused
the privileges of the ``bank'' in the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms (H.
Res. 393, Apr. 1, 1992, p. 7888). In the 106th Congress the chairman of
the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct inserted in the Record an
explanation of the committee's amendment to committee rule 20(f) to
reflect that the full committee retains discretion whether to report to
the House that an investigative subcommittee has not adopted a statement
of alleged violation (Apr. 13, 2000, p. ----). In the 106th Congress the
committee filed a report issuing a letter of reproval regarding the
conduct of a Member (Oct. 16, 2000, p. ----).
Under clause 3(b)(4) (former clause 4(e)(2)(D) of rule X), a member of
the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct is ineligible to
participate in a committee proceeding relating to that member's official
conduct. Upon notification to the Speaker of such ineligibility, the
Speaker designates another Member of the same political party as the
ineligible member to serve on the committee during proceedings relating
to that conduct (Speaker O'Neill, Feb. 5, 1980, p. 1908; July 23, 1996,
p. 18596). Under clause 3(b)(5) (former clause 4(e)(2)(E) of rule X), a
member of the committee may be recused from serving on the committee
during proceedings relating to a pending investigation by submitting an
affidavit of disqualification to the committee stating that the member
cannot render an impartial and unbiased decision relating to that
investigation. If the committee accepts the affidavit, the chairman
notifies the Speaker and requests the Speaker to designate another
Member from the same political party as the disqualified member to serve
on the committee during proceedings relating to that investigation
(Speaker O'Neill, Mar. 18, 1980).
The committee has compiled statutory and rule-based ethical standards
in the House Ethics Manual (102d Cong., 2d Sess.). In the Manual, the
committee incorporates its advisory opinions issued under clause 3(a)(4)
(former clause 4(e)(1)(D) of rule X), together with advisory opinions
issued by the former Select Committee on Ethics, in its discussions of
various ethical issues, including gifts, outside income, financial
disclosure, staff rights and duties, official allowances and franking,
casework considerations, campaign financing and practices, and
involvement with official and unofficial organizations. The committee
has also compiled a complete statement of the rules on gifts and travel,
which supersedes Chapter 2 of the 1992 House Ethics Manual (Gifts and
Travel, 106th Cong., 2d Sess.).
[[Page 565]]
Audio and visual coverage of committee proceedings
4. <> (a) The purpose
of this clause is to provide a means, in conformity with acceptable
standards of dignity, propriety, and decorum, by which committee
hearings or committee meetings that are open to the public may be
covered by audio and visual means--
(1) for the education, enlightenment, and information of the
general public, on the basis of accurate and impartial news coverage,
regarding the operations, procedures, and practices of the House as a
legislative and representative body, and regarding the measures, public
issues, and other matters before the House and its committees, the
consideration thereof, and the action taken thereon; and
(2) for the development of the perspective and understanding of
the general public with respect to the role and function of the House
under the Constitution as an institution of the Federal Government.
(b) In addition, it is the intent of this clause that radio and
television tapes and television film of any coverage under this clause
may not be used, or made available for use, as partisan political
campaign material to promote or oppose the candidacy of any person for
elective public office.
(c) It is, <> further, the intent of
this clause that the general conduct of each meeting (whether of a
hearing or otherwise)
[[Page 566]]
covered under authority of this clause by audio or visual means, and the
personal behavior of the committee members and staff, other Government
officials and personnel, witnesses, television, radio, and press media
personnel, and the general public at the hearing or other meeting, shall
be in strict conformity with and observance of the acceptable standards
of dignity, propriety, courtesy, and decorum traditionally observed by
the House in its operations, and may not be such as to--
(1) distort the objects and purposes of the hearing or other
meeting or the activities of committee members in connection with that
hearing or meeting or in connection with the general work of the
committee or of the House; or
(2) cast discredit or dishonor on the House, the committee, or a
Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner or bring the House, the
committee, or a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner into
disrepute.
(d) The coverage of committee hearings and meetings by audio and
visual means shall be permitted and conducted only in strict conformity
with the purposes, provisions, and requirements of this clause.
(e) Whenever <> a hearing or meeting
conducted by a committee or subcommittee is open to the public, those
proceedings shall be open to coverage by audio and visual means. A
committee or subcommittee chairman may not limit the number of
television
[[Page 567]]
or still cameras to fewer than two representatives from each medium
(except for legitimate space or safety considerations, in which case
pool coverage shall be authorized).
(f) Each <> committee shall adopt
written rules to govern its implementation of this clause. Such rules
shall contain provisions to the following effect:
(1) If audio or visual coverage of the hearing or meeting is to be
presented to the public as live coverage, that coverage shall be
conducted and presented without commercial sponsorship.
(2) The allocation among the television media of the positions or
the number of television cameras permitted by a committee or
subcommittee chairman in a hearing or meeting room shall be in
accordance with fair and equitable procedures devised by the Executive
Committee of the Radio and Television Correspondents' Galleries.
(3) Television cameras shall be placed so as not to obstruct in
any way the space between a witness giving evidence or testimony and any
member of the committee or the visibility of that witness and that
member to each other.
(4) Television cameras shall operate from fixed positions but may
not be placed in positions that obstruct unnecessarily the coverage of
the hearing or meeting by the other media.
(5) Equipment necessary for coverage by the television and radio
media may not be in
[[Page 568]]
stalled in, or removed from, the hearing or meeting room while the
committee is in session.
(6)(A) Except as provided in subdivision (B), floodlights,
spotlights, strobelights, and flash-
guns may not be used in providing any method of coverage of the hearing
or meeting.
(B) The television media may install additional lighting in a
hearing or meeting room, without cost to the Government, in order to
raise the ambient lighting level in a hearing or meeting room to the
lowest level necessary to provide adequate television coverage of a
hearing or meeting at the current state of the art of television
coverage.
(7) In the allocation of the number of still photographers
permitted by a committee or subcommittee chairman in a hearing or
meeting room, preference shall be given to photographers from Associated
Press Photos and United Press International Newspictures. If requests
are made by more of the media than will be permitted by a committee or
subcommittee chairman for coverage of a hearing or meeting by still
photography, that coverage shall be permitted on the basis of a fair and
equitable pool arrangement devised by the Standing Committee of Press
Photographers.
(8) <> Photographers may not
position themselves between the witness table and the members of the
committee at any time during the course of a hearing or meeting.
[[Page 569]]
(9) Photographers may not place themselves in positions that
obstruct unnecessarily the coverage of the hearing by the other media.
(10) Personnel providing coverage by the television and radio
media shall be currently accredited to the Radio and Television
Correspondents' Galleries.
(11) <> Personnel providing
coverage by still photography shall be currently accredited to the Press
Photographers' Gallery.
(12) Personnel providing coverage by the television and radio
media and by still photography shall conduct themselves and their
coverage activities in an orderly and unobtrusive manner.
The rule permitting broadcasting of committee hearings was contained
in section 116(b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (84
Stat. 1140) and became part of the rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5,
Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). In the 93d Congress (H. Res. 1107, July 22,
1974, p. 24447), the rule was amended to permit committees to adopt
rules allowing coverage of committee meetings as well as hearings.
Paragraphs (e), (f)(3), (f)(5), and (f)(8) of this clause were amended
in the 99th Congress to remove the limit on the number of television
cameras (previously four) and press photographers (previously five)
covering committee proceedings, and to provide the committee or
subcommittee chairman with the discretion to determine the appropriate
number (H. Res. 7, Jan. 3, 1985, p. 393). At the beginning of the 104th
Congress paragraph (d) was amended to delete the former characterization
of broadcast and photographic coverage of committee meetings and
hearings as ``a privilege made available by the House,'' and paragraph
(e) was amended to eliminate the requirement that a committee vote to
permit broadcast and photographic coverage of open hearings and meetings
and to prohibit chairmen from limiting coverage to less than two
representatives from each medium, except where space or safety
considerations warrant pool coverage (sec. 105, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995,
p. 463). Later in the 104th Congress this clause was again amended to
make conforming changes in its heading and in paragraph (f) (H. Res.
254, Nov. 30, 1995, p. 35077). Former clause 4(f)(2), permitting a
witness to terminate audio and visual (including photographic) coverage,
was eliminated in the
[[Page 570]]
105th Congress (H. Res. 301, Nov. 12, 1997, p. ----). Before the House
recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, this provision was found in
former clause 3 of rule XI (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
Pay of witnesses
5. <> Witnesses appearing before the House or any of its
committees shall be paid the same per diem rate as established,
authorized, and regulated by the Committee on House Administration for
Members, Delegates, the Resident Commissioner, and employees of the
House, plus actual expenses of travel to or from the place of
examination. Such per diem may not be paid when a witness has been
summoned at the place of examination.
This clause (former rule XXXV) was adopted in 1872, with amendments in
1880 (III, 1825), 1930 (VI, 393), April 19, 1955 (p. 4722), August 12,
1969 (H. Res. 495, 91st Cong., p. 23355), and July 28, 1975 (H. Res.
517, 94th Cong. p. 25258). The last amendment eliminated the specific
per diem and travel rate of reimbursement and allowed actual travel
costs and per diem for witnesses requested or subpoenaed to appear at
the same rate as established by the Committee on House Administration
for Members and employees. In the 104th and 106th Congresses it was
amended to conform references to a renamed committee (sec. 202(b), H.
Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 467; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Before
the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, this provision was
found in former rule XXXV (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). For
further provisions relating to witnesses, see clauses 2(j) and (k) of
rule XI (Sec. Sec. 802-803, supra).
Regulations of the Committee on House Administration do not permit per
diem reimbursement for witnesses. Regulations for reimbursement of
actual travel costs may be found in the Committees' Congressional
Handbook, Committee on House Administration, under the section entitled
``Hearings and Meetings.''
[[Page 571]]
Unfinished business of the session
6. All business <> of the House at the end of one session shall be resumed at
the commencement of the next session of the same Congress in the same
manner as if no adjournment had taken place.
At first the Congress attempted to follow the rule of the English
Parliament that business unfinished in one session should begin anew at
the next; but in 1818, after an investigation of a joint committee in
1816, a rule was adopted that House bills remaining undetermined in the
House should be continued at the next session after six days. This rule
did not reach House bills sent to the Senate; but in 1848 the two Houses
remedied this omission by a joint rule. Business referred to committees
of the House was still subject to the old rule of Parliament; but in
1860 the present rule was adopted as a supplement to the rule of 1818.
In 1890, desiring to do away with the limitation of the six days and
apparently overlooking the main purpose of the rule of 1818, the House
rescinded that portion of this provision which dated from 1818. Also, in
1876 the joint rules were abrogated, leaving no provision, except the
headline of the rule, for the continuance of business not before
committees. The practice, however, had become so well established that
no question has ever been raised (V, 6727). Before the House recodified
its rules in the 106th Congress, this provision was found in former rule
XXVI (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
The business of conferences between the two Houses is not interrupted
by an adjournment of a session which does not terminate the Congress (V,
6260-6262), and even where one House asks a conference at one session
the other may agree to it in the next session (V, 6286). Where bills
were enrolled and signed by the presiding officers of the two Houses at
the close of one session they were sent to the President and approved at
the beginning of the next session (IV, 3486-3488).