Rules of The House of Representatives of The United States
RULE XV: BUSINESS IN ORDER ON SPECIAL DAYS
Suspensions
1. (a) A rule may not be suspended except
by a vote of two-thirds of the
Members voting, a quorum being
present. The Speaker may not entertain
a motion that the House suspend
the rules except on Mondays, Tuesdays,
and Wednesdays and during the last six
days of a session of Congress.
(b) Pending a motion that the House
suspend the rules, the Speaker may entertain
one motion that the House adjourn
but may not entertain any other
motion until the vote is taken on the
suspension.
(c) A motion that the House suspend
the rules is debatable for 40 minutes,
one-half in favor of the motion and
one-half in opposition thereto.
Discharge motions, second and fourth Mondays
2. (a) Motions to discharge committees shall be in order on the second and fourth Mondays of a month.
(b)(1) A Member may present to the
Clerk a motion in writing to discharge—
(A) a committee from consideration
of a public bill or public resolution
that has been referred to it for
30 legislative days; or
(B) the Committee on Rules from
consideration of a resolution that has
been referred to it for seven legislative
days and that proposes a special
order of business for the consideration
of a public bill or public resolution
that has been reported by a
standing committee or has been referred
to a standing committee for 30
legislative days.
(2) Only one motion may be presented
for a bill or resolution. A Member may
not file a motion to discharge the Committee
on Rules from consideration of
a resolution providing for the consideration
of more than one public bill or
public resolution or admitting or effecting
a nongermane amendment to a
public bill or public resolution.
(c) A motion presented under paragraph
(b) shall be placed in the custody
of the Clerk, who shall arrange a convenient
place for the signatures of
Members. A signature may be withdrawn
by a Member in writing at any
time before a motion is entered on the
Journal. The Clerk shall make signatures
a matter of public record, causing
the names of the Members who have
signed a discharge motion during a
week to be published in a portion of the
Congressional Record designated for
that purpose on the last legislative day
of the week and making cumulative
lists of such names available each day
for public inspection in an appropriate
office of the House. The Clerk shall devise
a means for making such lists
available to offices of the House and to
the public in electronic form. When a
majority of the total membership of
the House shall have signed the motion,
it shall be entered on the Journal,
published with the signatures thereto
in the Record, and referred to the Calendar
of Motions to Discharge Committees.
(d)(1) On the second and fourth Mondays
of a month (except during the last
six days of a session of Congress), immediately
after the Pledge of Allegiance
to the Flag, a motion to discharge
that has been on the calendar
for at least seven legislative days shall
be privileged if called up by a Member
whose signature appears thereon. When
such a motion is called up, the House
shall proceed to its consideration under
this paragraph without intervening
motion except one motion to adjourn.
Privileged motions to discharge shall
have precedence in the order of their
entry on the Journal.
(2) WWhen a motion to discharge is
called up, the bill or resolution to
which it relates shall be read by title
only. The motion is debatable for 20
minutes, one-half in favor of the motion
and one-half in opposition thereto.
(e)(1) If a motion prevails to discharge
the Committee on Rules from
consideration of a resolution, the
House shall immediately consider the
resolution, pending which the Speaker
may entertain one motion that the
House adjourn but may not entertain
any other dilatory motion until the
resolution has been disposed of. If the
resolution is adopted, the House shall
immediately proceed to its execution.
(2) If a motion prevails to discharge a
standing committee from consideration
of a public bill or public resolution,
a motion that the House proceed
to the immediate consideration of such
bill or resolution shall be privileged if
offered by a Member whose signature
appeared on the motion to discharge.
The motion to proceed is not debatable.
If the motion to proceed is adopted,
the bill or resolution shall be considered
immediately under the general
rules of the House. If unfinished before
adjournment of the day on which it is called up, the bill or resolution shall
remain the unfinished business until it
is disposed of. If the motion to proceed
is rejected, the bill or resolution shall
be referred to the appropriate calendar,
where it shall have the same status as
if the committee from which it was discharged
had duly reported it to the
House.
(f)(1) When a motion to discharge
originated under this clause has once
been acted on by the House, it shall not
be in order to entertain during the
same session of Congress—
(A) a motion to discharge a committee
from consideration of that
bill or resolution or of any other bill
or resolution that, by relating in substance
to or dealing with the same
subject matter, is substantially the
same; or
(B) a motion to discharge the Committee
on Rules from consideration
of a resolution providing a special
order of business for the consideration
of that bill or resolution or of
any other bill or resolution that, by
relating in substance to or dealing
with the same subject matter, is substantially
the same.
(2) A motion to discharge on the Calendar of Motions to Discharge Committees that is rendered out of order under subparagraph (1) shall be stricken from that calendar.
Adverse report by the Committee on Rules, second and fourth Mondays
3. An adverse report by the Committee
on Rules on a resolution proposing
a special order of business for
the consideration of a public bill or
public joint resolution may be called
up under clause 6(e) of rule XIII as a
privileged question by a Member, Delegate,
or Resident Commissioner on a
day when it is in order to consider a
motion to discharge committees under
clause 2.
District of Columbia business, second and fourth Mondays
4. The second and fourth Mondays of
a month shall be set apart for the consideration
of such District of Columbia
business as may be called up by the
Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform after the disposition of
motions to discharge committees and
after the disposal of such business on
the Speaker’s table as requires reference
only.
Private Calendar, first and third Tuesdays
5. (a) On the first Tuesday of a
month, the Speaker shall direct the
Clerk to call the bills and resolutions
on the Private Calendar after disposal
of such business on the Speaker’s table
as requires reference only. If two or
more Members, Delegates, or the Resident
Commissioner object to the consideration
of a bill or resolution so
called, it shall be recommitted to the
committee that reported it. No other
business shall be in order before completion
of the call of the Private Calendar
on this day unless two-thirds of
the Members voting, a quorum being
present, agree to a motion that the
House dispense with the call.
(b)(1) On the third Tuesday of a
month, after the disposal of such business
on the Speaker’s table as requires
reference only, the Speaker may direct
the Clerk to call the bills and resolutions
on the Private Calendar. Preference
shall be given to omnibus bills
containing the texts of bills or resolutions
that have previously been objected
to on a call of the Private Calendar.
If two or more Members, Delegates,
or the Resident Commissioner
object to the consideration of a bill or
resolution so called (other than an omnibus
bill), it shall be recommitted to
the committee that reported it. Two-thirds
of the Members voting, a
quorum being present, may adopt a
motion that the House dispense with
the call on this day.
(2) Omnibus bills shall be read for
amendment by paragraph. No amendment
shall be in order except to strike
or to reduce amounts of money or to
provide limitations. An item or matter
stricken from an omnibus bill may not
thereafter during the same session of
Congress be included in an omnibus
bill. Upon passage such an omnibus bill
shall be resolved into the several bills
and resolutions of which it is composed.
The several bills and resolutions,
with any amendments adopted
by the House, shall be engrossed, when
necessary, and otherwise considered as
passed severally by the House as distinct
bills and resolutions.
(c) The Speaker may not entertain a
reservation of the right to object to the
consideration of a bill or resolution
under this clause. A bill or resolution
considered under this clause shall be
considered in the House as in the Committee
of the Whole. A motion to dispense
with the call of the Private Calendar
under this clause shall be privileged.
Debate on such a motion shall be
limited to five minutes in support and
five minutes in opposition.
Calendar Call of Committees, Wednesdays
6. (a) On Wednesday of each week,
business shall not be in order before
completion of the call of the committees
(except as provided by clause 4 of
rule XIV) unless two-thirds of the
Members voting, a quorum being
present, agree to a motion that the
House dispense with the call. Such a
motion shall be privileged. Debate on
such a motion shall be limited to five
minutes in support and five minutes in
opposition.
(b) A bill or resolution on either the
House or the Union Calendar, except
bills or resolutions that are privileged
under the Rules of the House, may be
called under this clause. A bill or resolution
called up from the Union Calendar
shall be considered in the Committee
of the Whole House on the state
of the Union without motion, subject
to clause 3 of rule XVI. General debate
on a measure considered under this
clause shall be confined to the measure
and may not exceed two hours equally
divided between a proponent and an opponent.
(c) When a committee has occupied
the call under this clause on one
Wednesday, it shall not be in order on
a succeeding Wednesday to consider
unfinished business previously called
up by that committee until the other
committees have been called in their
turn unless—
(1) the previous question has been
ordered on such unfinished business;
or
(2) the House adopts a motion to
dispense with the call under paragraph
(a).
(d) If any committee has not been
called under this clause during a session
of a Congress, then at the next
session of that Congress the call shall
resume where it left off at the end of
the preceding session.
(e) This clause does not apply during the last two weeks of a session of Congress.
(f) The Speaker may not entertain a motion that the Speaker be authorized to declare a recess on a Wednesday except during the last two weeks of a session of Congress
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