Reading a "Rule" for Floor Consideration

The Rules Committee routinely establishes the terms and conditions of legislatie debates on the floor, including the length of that debate and the amendments—if any—made in order. The mechanism used to perform this function is a special order of business, commonly referred to as a "rule". In order to determine the terms of each rule, three documents need to be consulted: (1) the simple resolution providing for consideration of the bill, (2) the report to accompany the resolution, and (3) the "roadmap" document produced by the Rules Committee for its own consideration of the rule.