[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 110th Congress] [110th Congress] [House Document 109-157] [Rules of the House of Representatives] [Pages 885-912] [From the U.S. Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov] Rule XXII Senate amendments house and senate relations
1069. Motion for conference. | 1. A motion to disagree to Senate amendments to a House proposition and to request or agree to a conference with the Senate, or a motion to insist on House amendments to a Senate proposition and to request or agree to a conference with the Senate, shall be privileged in the discretion of the Speaker if offered by direction of the primary committee and of all reporting committees that had initial referral of the proposition. |
Sec. 1070. Motion for conference. | The motion to send a bill to conference under this clause is in order notwithstanding the fact that the stage of disagreement has not been reached (Aug. 1, 1972, p. 26153). On a bill that has been initially referred and reported in the House, the motion must be authorized by all committees reporting thereon (Sept. 26, 1978, p. 31623). However, a committee receiving sequential referral of a bill or not reporting thereon need not authorize the motion (Oct. 4, 1994, p. 27643). This clause was recodified in the 106th Congress to reflect this practice (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47). On a Senate bill with a House amendment consisting of the text of two corresponding House bills that were previously reported to the House, the motion must be authorized by the committees reporting those corresponding bills (Oct. 1, 1998, p. 22944). Where such a motion has been rejected by the House, it may be repeated if the committee having jurisdiction over the subject matter again authorizes its chairman to make the motion (Deschler-Brown, ch. 33, Sec. 2.13). The motion to send to conference is in order only if the Speaker in his discretion recognizes for that purpose, and the Speaker will not recognize for the motion where he has referred a nongermane Senate amendment in question to a House committee with jurisdiction and they have not yet had the opportunity to consider the amendment (June 28, 1984, p. 19770). Under clause 2(a)(3) of rule XI, a committee may adopt a rule providing that the chairman be directed to offer a motion under this clause whenever the chairman considers it appropriate (Sec. 791, supra). |
Sec. 1071. Privilege of certain Senate amendments. | 2. A motion to dispose of House bills with Senate amendments not requiring consideration in the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union shall be privileged. |
Sec. 1072. Consideration of Senate amendments in Committee of the Whole. | 3. Except as permitted by clause 1, before the stage of disagreement, a Senate amendment to a House bill or resolution shall be subject to the point of order that it must first be considered in the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union if, originating in the House, it would be subject to such a point under clause 3 of rule XVIII. |
Sec. 1073. Consideration of Senate amendments in Committee of the Whole. | While a Senate amendment that is merely a modification of a House proposition, such as the increase or decrease of the amount of an appropriation, and does not involve new and distinct expenditure, may not be required to be considered in Committee of the Whole (IV, 4797-4806; VIII, 2382-2385), where the question was raised against a Senate amendment that on its face apparently placed a charge upon the Treasury, the Speaker held it devolved upon those opposing the point of order to cite proof to the contrary (VIII, 2387). When an amendment is offered in the House to provide an appropriation for another purpose than that of the Senate amendment, the House resolves into Committee of the Whole to consider it (IV, 4795). When an amendment is referred, the entire bill goes to the Committee of the Whole (IV, 4808), but the Committee considers only the Senate amendment (V, 6192). It usually considers all the amendments, although they may not all be within the rule requiring such consideration (V, 6195). In Committee of the Whole a Senate amendment, even though it be very long, is considered as an entirety and not by paragraphs or sections (V, 6194). When reported from the Committee of the Whole, Senate amendments are voted on en bloc and only those amendments on which a separate vote is demanded are voted on severally (VIII, 3191). It has been held that each amendment is subject to general debate and amendment under the five- minute rule (V, 6193, 6196). The requirement of this clause that certain Senate amendments be considered in Committee of the Whole applies only before the stage of disagreement has been reached on the Senate amendment, and it is too late after the House has disagreed thereto and the amendments have been reported from conference in disagreement to raise a point of order that Senate amendments should have been considered in Committee |
Sec. 1074. Stage of disagreement between Houses. | When the stage of disagreement has been reached on a bill with amendments of the other House, motions to dispose of said amendments are privileged in the House (clause 4 of rule XXII; IV, 3149, 3150; VI, 756; VIII, 3185, 3194). The stage of disagreement between the two Houses is reached after the House in possession of the papers has either disagreed to the amendment(s) of the other House or has insisted on its own amendment to a measure of the other House (Sept. 16, 1976, p. 30868), and not merely where the other House has returned a bill with an amendment (Dec. 7, 1977, p. 38728). Thus, where the House concurred in a Senate amendment to a House bill with an amendment, insisted on the amendment and requested a conference, and the Senate then concurred in the House amendment with a further amendment, the matter was privileged in the House for further disposition since the House had communicated its insistence and request for a conference to the Senate (Speaker Albert, Sept. 16, 1976, p. 30868). |
Sec. 1075. Privilege when stage of disagreement reached. | 4. When the stage of disagreement has been reached on a bill or resolution with House or Senate amendments, a motion to dispose of any amendment shall be privileged. |
Sec. 1076. Conferees may not agree to certain Senate amendments. | 5. (a) Managers on the part of the House may not agree to a Senate amendment described in paragraph (b) unless specific authority to agree to the amendment first is given by the House by a separate vote with respect thereto. If specific authority is not granted, the Senate amendment shall be reported in disagreement by the con |
1077. High privilege of conference reports; and form of accompanying statement. | 7. (a) The presentation of a conference report shall be in order at any time except during a reading of the Journal or the conduct of a record vote, a vote by division, or a quorum call. |
Sec. 1078. Time for debate on motions to instruct. | (b)(1) Subject to subparagraph (2) the time allotted for debate on a motion to instruct managers on the part of the House shall be equally divided between the majority and minority parties. |
Sec. 1079. Motions privileged after 20 calendar days and 10 legislative days of conference. | (c)(1) A motion to instruct managers on the part of the House, or a motion to discharge all managers on the part of the House and to appoint new conferees, shall be privileged after a conference committee has been appointed for 20 calendar days and 10 legislative days without making a report, but only on the day after the calendar day on which the Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner offering the motion announces to the House his intention to do so and the form of the motion. |
Sec. 1080. The statement accompanying a conference report. | (e) Each conference report to the House shall be printed as a report of the House. Each such report shall be accompanied by a joint explanatory statement prepared jointly by the managers on the part of the House and the managers on the part of the Senate. The joint explanatory statement shall be sufficiently detailed and explicit to inform the House of the effects of the report on the matters committed to conference. |
Sec. 1081. Unfunded mandates. | The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (P.L. 104-4; 109 Stat. 48) added a new part B to title IV of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 658-658g) that requires a committee of conference to ensure that the Director of the Congressional Budget Office prepares a statement with respect to unfunded costs of any additional Federal mandate contained in the conference agreement. See Sec. 1127, infra. |
Sec. 1082. Layover requirements. | 8. (a)(1) Except as specified in subparagraph (2), it shall not be in order to consider a conference report until-- |
Sec. 1083. Consideration of amendments in disagreement. | (b)(1) Except as specified in subparagraph (2), it shall not be in order to consider a motion to dispose of a Senate amendment reported in disagreement by a conference committee until-- |
Sec. 1084. Certain motions to insist as preferential. | (3) During consideration of a Senate amendment reported in disagreement by a conference committee on a general appropriation bill, a motion to insist on disagreement to the Senate amendment shall be preferential to any other motion to dispose of |
Sec. 1085. Certain conference reports considered as read. | (c) A conference report or a Senate amendment reported in disagreement by a conference committee that has been available as provided in paragraph (a) or (b) shall be considered as read when called up. |
Sec. 1086. Debate. | (d)(1) Subject to subparagraph (2), the time allotted for debate on a conference report or on a motion to dispose of a Senate amendment reported in disagreement by a conference committee shall be equally divided between the majority and minority parties. |
Sec. 1087. Waiver. | (e) Under clause 6(a)(2) of rule XIII, a resolution proposing only to waive a requirement of this clause concerning the availability of reports to Members, Delegates, and the Resident Commissioner may be considered by the House on the same day it is reported by the Committee on Rules. |
Sec. 1088. Conferees may report germane modification of amendment in nature of substitute within scope of differences. | 9. Whenever a disagreement to an amendment has been committed to a conference committee, the managers on the part of the House may propose a substitute that is a germane modification of the matter in disagreement. The introduction of any language presenting specific additional matter not committed to the conference committee by either House does not constitute a germane modification of the matter in disagreement. Moreover, a conference report may not include matter not committed to the conference committee by either House and may not include a modification of specific matter committed to the conference committee by either or both Houses if that modification is beyond the scope of that specific matter as committed to the conference committee. |
Sec. 1089. Nongermane matter in conference agreements and amendments in disagreement. | 10. (a)(1) A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner may raise a point of order against nongermane matter, as specified in subparagraph (2), before the commencement of debate on-- |
Sec. 1090. Nongermane matter in conference agreements. | The procedure provided in this clause for addressing nongermane matter in conference reports was first utilized on September 11, 1973 (pp. 29243-46), when the Chair sustained two points of order against portions of a conference report that were modifications of portions of a Senate amendment in the nature of a substitute not germane to a House bill. If any motion to reject is adopted under this clause and the matter then pending before the House consists of numbered Senate amendments in disagreement, the pending question is whether to dispose of each Senate amendment not rejected as recommended in the conference report and to insist on disagreement to those amendments that have been rejected. |
Sec. 1091. Nongermane matter in amendments in disagreement. | The provisions of this clause addressing nongermane matter in amendments in disagreement was first utilized on July 31, 1974 (p. 26083), when the Chair sustained a point of order against a portion of a motion to recede and concur in a Senate amendment (reported from conference in disagreement) with a further amendment, on the ground that that portion of the Senate amendment contained in the motion was not germane to the House-passed measure, and a motion rejecting that portion of the motion to recede and concur with an amendment was offered and defeated. This clause is not applicable to a provision contained in a motion to recede and concur with an amendment that was not contained in any form in the Senate version and that is not therefore a modification of the Senate provision, the only requirement in such circumstances being that the motion as a whole be germane to the Senate amendment as a whole under clause 7 of rule XVI (Oct. 4, 1978, p. 33502; June 30, 1987, p. 18294). A point of order under clause 4 (formerly clause 5(a)) of rule XXI (appropriations on a legislative bill) against a motion to dispose of a Senate amendment in disagreement (as by concurring therein with a House amendment carrying an appropriation) which, if sustained, would vitiate the entire motion, must be disposed of before a point of order against a nongermane amendment in disagreement under this clause which, if sustained, would merely permit a separate vote on rejection of that portion of the motion (Oct. 1, 1980, pp. 28638-42). |
Sec. 1092. Tax complexity analysis. | 11. It shall not be in order to consider a conference report to accompany a bill or joint resolution that proposes to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 unless-- |
Sec. 1093. Open conference meetings. | 12. (a)(1) Subject to subparagraph (2), a meeting of each conference committee shall be open to the public. |