[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 5 Engrossed in House (EH)]

<DOC>
H. Res. 5

                In the House of Representatives, U. S.,

                                                       January 3, 2017.
    Resolved, That the Rules of the House of Representatives of the One Hundred 
Fourteenth Congress, including applicable provisions of law or concurrent 
resolution that constituted rules of the House at the end of the One Hundred 
Fourteenth Congress, are adopted as the Rules of the House of Representatives of 
the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, with amendments to the standing rules as 
provided in section 2, and with other orders as provided in sections 3, 4, and 
5.

SEC. 2. CHANGES TO THE STANDING RULES.

    (a) Decorum.--
            (1) In clause 3 of rule II, add the following new paragraph:
            ``(g)(1) The Sergeant-at-Arms is authorized and directed to impose a 
        fine against a Member, Delegate, or the Resident Commissioner for the 
        use of an electronic device for still photography or for audio or visual 
        recording or broadcasting in contravention of clause 5 of rule XVII and 
        any applicable Speaker's announced policy on electronic devices.
                    ``(2) A fine imposed pursuant to this paragraph shall be 
                $500 for a first offense and $2,500 for any subsequent offense.
                    ``(3)(A) The Sergeant-at-Arms shall promptly notify the 
                Member, Delegate, or the Resident Commissioner, the Speaker, the 
                Chief Administrative Officer, and the Committee on Ethics of any 
                such fine.
                            ``(B) Such Member, Delegate, or Resident 
                        Commissioner may appeal the fine in writing to the 
                        Committee on Ethics not later than 30 calendar days or 
                        five legislative days, whichever is later, after 
                        notification pursuant to subdivision (A).
                            ``(C) Upon receipt of an appeal pursuant to 
                        subdivision (B), the Committee on Ethics shall have 30 
                        calendar days or five legislative days, whichever is 
                        later, to either dismiss the fine or allow it to 
                        proceed. Upon a determination regarding the appeal or if 
                        no appeal has been filed at the expiration of the period 
                        specified in subdivision (B), the chair of the Committee 
                        on Ethics shall promptly notify the Member, Delegate, or 
                        the Resident Commissioner, the Speaker and the Chief 
                        Administrative Officer. The Speaker shall promptly lay 
                        such notification before the House.
                    ``(4) The Sergeant-at-Arms and the Committee on Ethics are 
                authorized to establish policies and procedures for the 
                implementation of this paragraph.''.
            (2) In clause 4 of rule II, add the following new paragraph:
            ``(d)(1) Upon notification from the chair of the Committee on Ethics 
        pursuant to clause 3(g)(3)(C), the Chief Administrative Officer shall 
        deduct the amount of any fine levied under clause 3(g) from the net 
        salary otherwise due the Member, Delegate, or the Resident Commissioner.
                    ``(2) The Chief Administrative Officer is authorized to 
                establish policies and procedures for such salary deductions.''.
            (3) Rule XVII is amended by redesignating clause 9 as clause 10, and 
        by inserting after clause 8 the following new clause:
``Legislative Proceedings
    ``9.(a) A Member, Delegate, the Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee 
of the House may not engage in disorderly or disruptive conduct in the Chamber, 
including--
            ``(1) intentionally obstructing or impeding the passage of others in 
        the Chamber;
            ``(2) the use of an exhibit to impede, disrupt, or disturb the 
        proceedings of the House; and
            ``(3) the denial of legislative instruments to others seeking to 
        engage in legislative proceedings.
    ``(b) This clause establishes a standard of conduct within the meaning of 
clause 3(a)(2) of rule XI.''.
    (b) Authorization and Oversight Plans.--
            (1) Clause 2(d) of rule X is amended to read as follows:
            ``(d)(1) Not later than February 15 of the first session of a 
        Congress, each standing committee (other than the Committee on 
        Appropriations, the Committee on Ethics, and the Committee on Rules) 
        shall, in a meeting that is open to the public, adopt its authorization 
        and oversight plan for that Congress. Such plan shall be submitted 
        simultaneously to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, the 
        Committee on House Administration, and the Committee on Appropriations.
                    ``(2) Each such plan shall include, with respect to programs 
                and agencies within the committee's jurisdiction, and to the 
                maximum extent practicable--
                            ``(A) a list of such programs or agencies with 
                        lapsed authorizations that received funding in the prior 
                        fiscal year or, in the case of a program or agency with 
                        a permanent authorization, which has not been subject to 
                        a comprehensive review by the committee in the prior 
                        three Congresses;
                            ``(B) a description of each such program or agency 
                        to be authorized in the current Congress;
                            ``(C) a description of each such program or agency 
                        to be authorized in the next Congress, if applicable;
                            ``(D) a description of any oversight to support the 
                        authorization of each such program or agency in the 
                        current Congress; and
                            ``(E) recommendations for changes to existing law 
                        for moving such programs or agencies from mandatory 
                        funding to discretionary appropriations, where 
                        appropriate.
                    ``(3) Each such plan may include, with respect to the 
                programs and agencies within the committee's jurisdiction--
                            ``(A) recommendations for the consolidation or 
                        termination of such programs or agencies that are 
                        duplicative, unnecessary, or inconsistent with the 
                        appropriate roles and responsibilities of the Federal 
                        Government;
                            ``(B) recommendations for changes to existing law 
                        related to Federal rules, regulations, statutes, and 
                        court decisions affecting such programs and agencies 
                        that are inconsistent with the authorities of the 
                        Congress under Article I of the Constitution; and
                            ``(C) a description of such other oversight 
                        activities as the committee may consider necessary.
                    ``(4) In the development of such plan, the chair of each 
                committee shall coordinate with other committees of jurisdiction 
                to ensure that programs and agencies are subject to routine, 
                comprehensive authorization efforts.
                    ``(5) Not later than March 31 in the first session of a 
                Congress, after consultation with the Speaker, the Majority 
                Leader, and the Minority Leader, the Committee on Oversight and 
                Government Reform shall report to the House the authorization 
                and oversight plans submitted by committees together with any 
                recommendations that it, or the House leadership group described 
                above, may make to ensure the most effective coordination of 
                authorization and oversight plans and otherwise to achieve the 
                objectives of this clause.''.
            (2) In clause 1(d)(2)(B) of rule XI, insert ``authorization and'' 
        before ``oversight''.
            (3) In clause 1(d)(2)(C) of rule XI, insert ``authorization and'' 
        before ``oversight''.
    (c) Amendments to Appropriation Bills.--In clause 2 of rule XXI, add the 
following new paragraph:
            ``(g) An amendment to a general appropriation bill shall not be in 
        order if proposing a net increase in the level of budget authority in 
        the bill.''.
    (d) Duplication of Federal Programs.--In clause 3(c) of rule XIII, add the 
following new subparagraph:
                    ``(5) On a bill or joint resolution that establishes or 
                reauthorizes a Federal program, a statement indicating whether 
                any such program is known to be duplicative of another such 
                program, including at a minimum an explanation of whether any 
                such program was included in a report to Congress pursuant to 
                section 21 of Public Law 111-139 or whether the most recent 
                Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (published pursuant to 
                section 6104 of title 31, United States Code) identified other 
                programs related to the program established or reauthorized by 
                the measure.''.
    (e) Recognition of Members.--
            (1) In clause 6 of rule I, strike ``The Speaker shall rise to put a 
        question but may state it sitting.''.
            (2) In clause 6(d) of rule XIII, strike ``rises'' and insert ``seeks 
        recognition''.
            (3) In clause 1(a) of rule XVII, strike ``rise and''.
            (4) In clause 2 of rule XVII, strike ``rise at once'' and insert 
        ``seek recognition''.
            (5) In clause 5 of rule XVII, strike ``walk out of or across'' and 
        insert ``exit or cross''.
            (6) In clause 1(a) of rule XX, strike ``from their seats to'' and 
        insert ``or otherwise indicate from their seats and''.
    (f) Convening Outside the Hall of the House.--In clause 12(d) of rule I, 
strike ``whenever'' and insert ``if''.
    (g) Temporary Presiding Authority Clarification.--In clause 2(a) of rule II, 
insert ``and in the absence of a Member acting as Speaker pro tempore pursuant 
to clause 8(b)(3)(A) of rule I,'' after ``tempore,''.
    (h) Continuing Litigation Authorities.--In clause 8 of rule II, add the 
following new paragraph:
            ``(c) The House, the Speaker, a committee or the chair of a 
        committee authorized during a prior Congress to act in a litigation 
        matter is authorized to act as the successor in interest to the House, 
        the Speaker, such committee or the chair of such committee of a prior 
        Congress, respectively, with respect to such litigation matter, and to 
        take such steps as may be appropriate to ensure continuation of such 
        litigation matter.''.
    (i) Clarifying Staff Access to the House Floor.--In clause 5 of rule IV, 
strike ``shall remain at the desk and''.
    (j) Member Records.--In clause 6 of rule VII--
            (1) redesignate paragraphs (a) and (b) as subparagraphs (1) and (2);
            (2) designate the existing sentence as paragraph (a);
            (3) in paragraph (a) (as so designated), insert ``as described in 
        paragraph (b)'' after ``Resident Commissioner''; and
            (4) add at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(b) Records created, generated, or received by the congressional 
        office of a Member, Delegate, or the Resident Commissioner in the 
        performance of official duties are exclusively the personal property of 
        the individual Member, Delegate, or the Resident Commissioner and such 
        Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner has control over such 
        records.''.
    (k) Response to Subpoenas.--Amend rule VIII to read as follows--

                                   ``RULE VIII

                             ``Response to Subpoenas

    ``1.(a) When a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee 
of the House is properly served with a judicial subpoena or order, such Member, 
Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee shall comply, consistently 
with the privileges and rights of the House, with the judicial subpoena or order 
as hereinafter provided, unless otherwise determined under this rule.
            ``(b) For purposes of this rule, `judicial subpoena or order' means 
        a judicial subpoena or judicial order directing appearance as a witness 
        relating to the official functions of the House or for the production or 
        disclosure of any document relating to the official functions of the 
        House.
    ``2.(a) Upon receipt of a properly served judicial subpoena or order, a 
Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House shall 
promptly notify the Speaker in writing of its receipt together with either:
                    ``(1) a determination as to whether the issuance of the 
                judicial subpoena or order is a proper exercise of jurisdiction 
                by the court and is consistent with the privileges and rights of 
                the House; or
                    ``(2) a statement that such Member, Delegate, Resident 
                Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House intends to make 
                a determination with respect to the matters described in 
                subparagraph (1).
            ``(b) The notification required by paragraph (a) shall promptly be 
        laid before the House by the Speaker.
    ``3.(a) Except as specified in paragraph (b) or otherwise ordered by the 
House, upon notification to the House that a judicial subpoena or order is a 
proper exercise of jurisdiction by the court and is consistent with the 
privileges and rights of the House, the Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, 
officer, or employee of the House shall comply with the judicial subpoena or 
order by supplying copies.
            ``(b) Under no circumstances may minutes or transcripts of executive 
        sessions, or evidence of witnesses in respect thereto, be disclosed or 
        copied. During a period of recess or adjournment of longer than three 
        days, the Speaker may authorize compliance or take such other action as 
        the Speaker considers appropriate under the circumstances. Upon the 
        reconvening of the House, all matters that transpired under this clause 
        shall promptly be laid before the House by the Speaker.
    ``4. Nothing in this rule shall be construed to deprive, condition, or waive 
the constitutional or legal privileges or rights applicable or available at any 
time to a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the 
House, or of the House itself, or the right of such Member, Delegate, Resident 
Commissioner, officer, or employee, or of the House itself, to assert such 
privileges or rights before a court in the United States.''.
    (l) Requirements for Subcommittees.--Amend clause 5(d)(2) of rule X to read 
as follows:
                    ``(2)(A) A committee that maintains a subcommittee on 
                oversight may have not more than six subcommittees.
                            ``(B) The Committee on Appropriations may have not 
                        more than 13 subcommittees.
                            ``(C) The Committee on Armed Services may have not 
                        more than seven subcommittees.
                            ``(D) The Committee on Foreign Affairs may have not 
                        more than seven subcommittees.
                            ``(E) The Committee on Oversight and Government 
                        Reform may have not more than seven subcommittees.
                            ``(F) The Committee on Transportation and 
                        Infrastructure may have not more than six 
                        subcommittees.''.
    (m) Committee Hearings.--In clause 2(g)(2)(D) of rule XI, insert ``, the 
Committee on Homeland Security'' after ``Armed Services''.
    (n) Referrals to the Court of Claims.--
            (1) In clause 1(a)(1) of rule XIII--
                    (A) insert ``or'' before ``releasing''; and
                    (B) strike ``, or referring a claim to the Court of 
                Claims''; and
            (2) In clause 3 of rule XVIII--
                    (A) insert ``or'' before ``releasing''; and
                    (B) strike ``, or referring a claim to the Court of 
                Claims''.
    (o) Contents of Committee Reports Showing Changes to Existing Law.--Clause 
3(e)(1) of rule XIII is amended by striking ``accompanying document--'' and all 
that follows and inserting ``accompanying document (showing by appropriate 
typographical devices the omissions and insertions proposed)--
                            ``(A) the entire text of each section of a statute 
                        that is proposed to be repealed; and
                            ``(B) a comparative print of each amendment to the 
                        entire text of a section of a statute that the bill or 
                        joint resolution proposes to make.''.
    (p) Authority to Postpone Record Votes on Certain Motions.--In clause 
8(a)(2) of rule XX--
            (1) Redesignate subdivisions (E) through (H) as subdivisions (G) 
        through (J), respectively;
            (2) Insert after subdivision (D) the following new subdivisions:
                            ``(E) The question of adopting a motion to recommit.
                            ``(F) The question of adopting a motion to concur in 
                        a Senate amendment, with or without amendment.''; and
            (3) In subdivision (G) (as redesignated), strike ``subdivision (A), 
        (B), (C), or (D)'' and insert ``subdivisions (A) through (F)''.
    (q) Conforming Guidelines for Five-Minute Voting.--In clause 9 of rule XX--
            (1) In paragraph (a), insert ``or'' after the semicolon; and
            (2) Strike paragraphs (b) and (c) and insert the following:
            ``(b) if in the discretion of the Speaker Members would be afforded 
        an adequate opportunity to vote--
                    ``(1) on any question arising after a report from the 
                Committee of the Whole without debate or intervening motion; or
                    ``(2) on the question of adoption of a motion to recommit 
                (or ordering the previous question thereon) arising without 
                intervening motion or debate other than debate on the motion.''.
    (r) Electronic Availability.--In clause 3 of rule XXIX, strike ``in 
electronic form at a location designated by the Committee on House 
Administration'' and insert ``at an electronic document repository operated by 
the Clerk''.
    (s) Comparative Prints for Bills or Joint Resolutions Considered on Floor.--
Effective December 31, 2017, in rule XXI, add at the end the following new 
clause:
    ``12.(a)(1) Before a bill or joint resolution proposing to repeal or amend a 
statute or part thereof may be considered, there shall be made available on a 
publicly available website of the House an easily searchable electronic 
comparative print that shows how the bill or joint resolution proposes to change 
current law, showing (to the greatest extent practicable) by appropriate 
typographical devices the omissions and insertions proposed.
                    ``(2) Before an amendment in the nature of a substitute may 
                be considered if the amendment proposes to repeal or amend a 
                statute or part thereof, there shall be made available on a 
                publicly available website of the House an easily searchable 
                electronic comparative print that shows (to the greatest extent 
                practicable) how the amendment proposes to change current law, 
                showing by appropriate typographical devices the omissions and 
                insertions proposed.
            ``(b) If a committee reports a bill or joint resolution, before the 
        bill or joint resolution may be considered with text different from the 
        text reported, there shall be made available on a publicly available 
        website of the House a document that shows, by appropriate typographical 
        devices, the differences between the text of the bill or joint 
        resolution as proposed to be considered and the text of the bill or 
        joint resolution as reported.''.
    (t) Appointment of Chair.--Clause 1 of rule XVIII is amended by inserting 
``, Delegate, or the Resident Commissioner'' after ``Member''.

SEC. 3. SEPARATE ORDERS.

    (a) Holman Rule.--During the first session of the One Hundred Fifteenth 
Congress, any reference in clause 2 of rule XXI to a provision or amendment that 
retrenches expenditures by a reduction of amounts of money covered by the bill 
shall be construed as applying to any provision or amendment (offered after the 
bill has been read for amendment) that retrenches expenditures by--
            (1) the reduction of amounts of money in the bill;
            (2) the reduction of the number and salary of the officers of the 
        United States; or
            (3) the reduction of the compensation of any person paid out of the 
        Treasury of the United States.
    (b) Staff Deposition Authority.--
            (1) During the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, the chair of a 
        standing committee (other than the Committee on House Administration or 
        the Committee on Rules), and the chair of the Permanent Select Committee 
        on Intelligence, upon consultation with the ranking minority member of 
        such committee, may order the taking of depositions, including pursuant 
        to subpoena, by a member or counsel of such committee.
            (2) Depositions taken under the authority prescribed in this 
        subsection shall be subject to regulations issued by the chair of the 
        Committee on Rules and printed in the Congressional Record.
            (3) At least one member of the committee shall be present at each 
        deposition taken under the authority prescribed in this subsection, 
        unless--
                    (A) the witness to be deposed agrees in writing to waive 
                this requirement; or
                    (B) the committee authorizes the taking of a specified 
                deposition without the presence of a member during a specified 
                period, provided that the House is not in session on the day of 
                the deposition.
    (c) Independent Payment Advisory Board.--Section 1899A(d) of the Social 
Security Act shall not apply in the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress.
    (d) Providing for Transparency With Respect to Memorials Submitted Pursuant 
to Article V of the Constitution of the United States.--With respect to any 
memorial presented under clause 3 of rule XII purporting to be an application of 
the legislature of a State calling for a convention for proposing amendments to 
the Constitution of the United States pursuant to Article V, or a rescission of 
any such prior application--
            (1) the chair of the Committee on the Judiciary shall, in the case 
        of such a memorial presented in the One Hundred Fourteenth Congress or 
        the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, and may, in the case of such a 
        memorial presented prior to the One Hundred Fourteenth Congress, 
        designate any such memorial for public availability by the Clerk; and
            (2) the Clerk shall make such memorials as are designated pursuant 
        to paragraph (1) publicly available in electronic form, organized by 
        State of origin and year of receipt, and shall indicate whether the 
        memorial was designated as an application or a rescission.
    (e) Spending Reduction Amendments in Appropriations Bills.--
            (1) During the reading of a general appropriation bill for amendment 
        in the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union, it shall 
        be in order to consider en bloc amendments proposing only to transfer 
        appropriations from an object or objects in the bill to a spending 
        reduction account. When considered en bloc under this paragraph, such 
        amendments may amend portions of the bill not yet read for amendment 
        (following disposition of any points of order against such portions) and 
        are not subject to a demand for division of the question in the House or 
        in the Committee of the Whole.
            (2) Except as provided in paragraph (1), it shall not be in order to 
        consider an amendment to a spending reduction account in the House or in 
        the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union.
            (3) A point of order under clause 2(b) of rule XXI shall not apply 
        to a spending reduction account.
            (4) A general appropriation bill may not be considered in the 
        Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union unless it 
        includes a spending reduction account as the last section of the bill. 
        An order to report a general appropriation bill to the House shall 
        constitute authority for the chair of the Committee on Appropriations to 
        add such a section to the bill or modify the figure contained therein.
            (5) For purposes of this subsection, the term ``spending reduction 
        account'' means an account in a general appropriation bill that bears 
        that caption and contains only--
                    (A) a recitation of the amount by which an applicable 
                allocation of new budget authority under section 302(b) of the 
                Congressional Budget Act of 1974 exceeds the amount of new 
                budget authority proposed by the bill; or
                    (B) if no such allocation is in effect, ``$0''.
    (f) Point of Order Against Motion to Rise and Report.--
            (1) During the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, except as provided in 
        paragraph (3), a motion that the Committee of the Whole rise and report 
        a bill to the House shall not be in order if the bill, as amended, 
        exceeds an applicable allocation of new budget authority under section 
        302(b) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, as estimated by the 
        Committee on the Budget.
            (2) If a point of order under paragraph (1) is sustained, the Chair 
        shall put the question: ``Shall the Committee of the Whole rise and 
        report the bill to the House with such amendments as may have been 
        adopted notwithstanding that the bill exceeds its allocation of new 
        budget authority under section 302(b) of the Congressional Budget Act of 
        1974?''. Such question shall be debatable for 10 minutes equally divided 
        and controlled by a proponent of the question and an opponent but shall 
        be decided without intervening motion.
            (3) Paragraph (1) shall not apply--
                    (A) to a motion offered under clause 2(d) of rule XXI; or
                    (B) after disposition of a question under paragraph (2) on a 
                given bill.
            (4) If a question under paragraph (2) is decided in the negative, no 
        further amendment shall be in order except--
                    (A) one proper amendment, which shall be debatable for 10 
                minutes equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an 
                opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall not be 
                subject to a demand for division of the question in the House or 
                in the Committee of the Whole; and
                    (B) pro forma amendments, if offered by the chair or ranking 
                minority member of the Committee on Appropriations or their 
                designees, for the purpose of debate.
    (g) Limitation on Advance Appropriations.--
            (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any general appropriation 
        bill or bill or joint resolution continuing appropriations, or amendment 
        thereto or conference report thereon, may not provide an advance 
        appropriation.
            (2) An advance appropriation may be provided for programs, projects, 
        activities, or accounts identified in a list submitted for printing in 
        the Congressional Record by the chair of the Committee on the Budget 
        (when elected) under the heading--
                    (A) ``Accounts Identified for Advance Appropriations'' in an 
                aggregate amount not to exceed $28,852,000,000 in new budget 
                authority; and
                    (B) ``Veterans Accounts Identified for Advance 
                Appropriations'' in an aggregate amount not to exceed 
                $66,385,032,000 in new budget authority.
            (3) Definition.--The term ``advance appropriation'' means any new 
        discretionary budget authority provided in a general appropriation bill 
        or bill or joint resolution continuing appropriations for fiscal year 
        2017, or any amendment thereto or conference report thereon, that first 
        becomes available for the fiscal year following fiscal year 2017.
    (h) Point of Order Against Increasing Direct Spending.--
            (1) Congressional budget office analysis of proposals.--The Director 
        of the Congressional Budget Office shall, to the extent practicable, 
        prepare an estimate of whether a bill or joint resolution reported by a 
        committee (other than the Committee on Appropriations), or amendment 
        thereto or conference report thereon, would cause, relative to current 
        law, a net increase in direct spending in excess of $5,000,000,000 in 
        any of the 4 consecutive 10-fiscal year periods beginning with the first 
        fiscal year that is 10 fiscal years after the current fiscal year.
            (2) Point of order.--It shall not be in order to consider any bill 
        or joint resolution reported by a committee, or amendment thereto or 
        conference report thereon, that would cause a net increase in direct 
        spending in excess of $5,000,000,000 in any of the 4 consecutive 10-
        fiscal year periods described in paragraph (1).
            (3) Determinations of budget levels.--For purposes of this 
        subsection, the levels of net increases in direct spending shall be 
        determined on the basis of estimates provided by the chair of the 
        Committee on the Budget.
            (4) Limitation.--This subsection shall not apply to any bill or 
        joint resolution, or amendment thereto or conference report thereon--
                    (A) repealing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 
                and title I and subtitle B of title II of the Health Care and 
                Education Affordability Reconciliation Act of 2010;
                    (B) reforming the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 
                and the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation 
                Act of 2010; or
                    (C) for which the chair of the Committee on the Budget has 
                made an adjustment to the allocations, levels, or limits 
                contained in the most recently adopted concurrent resolution on 
                the budget.
    (i) Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings.--
            (1) The report of a committee on a bill or joint resolution shall 
        include a list of directed rule makings required by the measure or a 
        statement that the proposition contains no directed rule makings.
            (2) For purposes of this subsection, the term ``directed rule 
        making'' means a specific rule making within the meaning of section 551 
        of title 5, United States Code, specifically directed to be completed by 
        a provision in the measure, but does not include a grant of 
        discretionary rule making authority.
    (j) Exercise Facilities for Former Members.--During the One Hundred 
Fifteenth Congress--
            (1) The House of Representatives may not provide access to any 
        exercise facility which is made available exclusively to Members and 
        former Members, officers and former officers of the House of 
        Representatives, and their spouses to any former Member, former officer, 
        or spouse who is a lobbyist registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act 
        of 1995 or any successor statute or agent of a foreign principal as 
        defined in clause 5 of rule XXV. For purposes of this subsection, the 
        term ``Member'' includes a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the 
        Congress.
            (2) The Committee on House Administration shall promulgate 
        regulations to carry out this subsection.
    (k) Numbering of Bills.--In the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, the first 10 
numbers for bills (H.R. 1 through H.R. 10) shall be reserved for assignment by 
the Speaker and the second 10 numbers for bills (H.R. 11 through H.R. 20) shall 
be reserved for assignment by the Minority Leader.
    (l) Inclusion of Citations for Proposed Repeals and Amendments.--To the 
maximum extent practicable and consistent with established drafting conventions, 
an instruction in a bill or joint resolution proposing to repeal or amend any 
law or part thereof not contained in a codified title of the United States Code 
shall include, in parentheses immediately following the designation of the 
matter proposed to be repealed or amended, the applicable United States Code 
citation (which may be a note in the United States Code), or, if no such 
citation is available, an appropriate alternative citation to the applicable law 
or part.
    (m) Broadening Availability of Legislative Documents in Machine-Readable 
Formats.--The Committee on House Administration, the Clerk, and other officers 
and officials of the House shall continue efforts to broaden the availability of 
legislative documents in machine readable formats in the One Hundred Fifteenth 
Congress in furtherance of the institutional priority of improving public 
availability and use of legislative information produced by the House and its 
committees.
    (n) Congressional Member Organization Transparency Reform.--
            (1) Payment of salaries and expenses through account of 
        organization.--A Member of the House of Representatives and an eligible 
        Congressional Member Organization may enter into an agreement under 
        which--
                    (A) an employee of the Member's office may carry out 
                official and representational duties of the Member by assignment 
                to the Organization; and
                    (B) to the extent that the employee carries out such duties 
                under the agreement, the Member shall transfer the portion of 
                the Members' Representation Allowance of the Member which would 
                otherwise be used for the salary and related expenses of the 
                employee to a dedicated account in the House of Representatives 
                which is administered by the Organization, in accordance with 
                the regulations promulgated by the Committee on House 
                Administration under paragraph (2).
            (2) Regulations.--The Committee on House Administration (hereafter 
        referred to in this subsection as the ``Committee'') shall promulgate 
        regulations as follows:
                    (A) Use of mra.--Pursuant to the authority of section 101(d) 
                of the House of Representatives Administrative Reform Technical 
                Corrections Act (2 U.S.C. 5341(d)), the Committee shall 
                prescribe regulations to provide that an eligible Congressional 
                Member Organization may use the amounts transferred to the 
                Organization's dedicated account under paragraph (1)(B) for the 
                same purposes for which a Member of the House of Representatives 
                may use the Members' Representational Allowance, except that the 
                Organization may not use such amounts for franked mail, official 
                travel, or leases of space or vehicles.
                    (B) Maintenance of limitations on number of shared 
                employees.--Pursuant to the authority of section 104(d) of the 
                House of Representatives Administrative Reform Technical 
                Corrections Act (2 U.S.C. 5321(d)), the Committee shall 
                prescribe regulations to provide that an employee of the office 
                of a Member of the House of Representatives who is covered by an 
                agreement entered into under paragraph (1) between the Member 
                and an eligible Congressional Member Organization shall be 
                considered a shared employee of the Member's office and the 
                Organization for purposes of such section, and shall include in 
                such regulations appropriate accounting standards to ensure that 
                a Member of the House of Representatives who enters into an 
                agreement with such an Organization under paragraph (1) does not 
                employ more employees than the Member is authorized to employ 
                under such section.
                    (C) Participation in student loan repayment program.--
                Pursuant to the authority of section 105(b) of the Legislative 
                Branch Appropriations Act, 2003 (2 U.S.C. 4536(b)), relating to 
                the student loan repayment program for employees of the House, 
                the Committee shall promulgate regulations to provide that, in 
                the case of an employee who is covered by an agreement entered 
                into under paragraph (1) between a Member of the House of 
                Representatives and an eligible Congressional Member 
                Organization and who participates in such program while carrying 
                out duties under the agreement--
                            (i) any funds made available for making payments 
                        under the program with respect to the employee shall be 
                        transferred to the Organization's dedicated account 
                        under paragraph (1)(B); and
                            (ii) the Organization shall use the funds to repay a 
                        student loan taken out by the employee, under the same 
                        terms and conditions which would apply under the program 
                        if the Organization were the employing office of the 
                        employee.
                    (D) Access to house services.--The Committee shall prescribe 
                regulations to ensure that an eligible Congressional Member 
                Organization has appropriate access to services of the House.
                    (E) Other regulations.--The Committee shall promulgate such 
                other regulations as may be appropriate to carry out this 
                subsection.
            (3) Eligible congressional member organization defined.--In this 
        subsection, the term ``eligible Congressional Member Organization'' 
        means, with respect to the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, an 
        organization meeting each of the following requirements:
                    (A) The organization is registered as a Congressional Member 
                Organization with the Committee on House Administration.
                    (B) The organization designates a single Member of the House 
                of Representatives to be responsible for the administration of 
                the organization, including the administration of the account 
                administered under paragraph (1)(B), and includes the 
                identification of such Member with the statement of organization 
                that the organization files and maintains with the Committee on 
                House Administration.
                    (C) At least 3 employees of the House are assigned to work 
                for the organization.
                    (D) During the One Hundred Fourteenth Congress, at least 30 
                Members of the House of Representatives used a portion of the 
                Members' Representational Allowance of the Member for the salary 
                and related expenses of an employee who was a shared employee of 
                the Member's office and the organization.
                    (E) The organization files a statement with the Committee on 
                House Administration and the Chief Administrative Officer of the 
                House of Representatives certifying that it will administer an 
                account in accordance with paragraph (1)(B).
    (o) Social Security Solvency.--
            (1) Point of order.--During the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, it 
        shall not be in order to consider a bill or joint resolution, or an 
        amendment thereto or conference report thereon, that reduces the 
        actuarial balance by at least .01 percent of the present value of future 
        taxable payroll of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust 
        Fund established under section 201(a) of the Social Security Act for the 
        75-year period utilized in the most recent annual report of the Board of 
        Trustees provided pursuant to section 201(c)(2) of the Social Security 
        Act.
            (2) Exception.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a measure that 
        would improve the actuarial balance of the combined balance in the 
        Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal 
        Disability Insurance Trust Fund for the 75-year period utilized in the 
        most recent annual report of the Board of Trustees provided pursuant to 
        section 201(c)(2) of the Social Security Act.
    (p) Subcommittees.--Notwithstanding clause 5(d) of rule X, during the One 
Hundred Fifteenth Congress the Committee on Agriculture may have not more than 
six subcommittees.
    (q) Treatment of Conveyances of Federal Land.--
            (1) In general.--In the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress, for all 
        purposes in the House, a provision in a bill or joint resolution, or in 
        an amendment thereto or a conference report thereon, requiring or 
        authorizing a conveyance of Federal land to a State, local government, 
        or tribal entity shall not be considered as providing new budget 
        authority, decreasing revenues, increasing mandatory spending, or 
        increasing outlays.
            (2) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                    (A) The term ``conveyance'' means any method, including 
                sale, donation, or exchange, by which all or any portion of the 
                right, title, and interest of the United States in and to 
                Federal land is transferred to another entity.
                    (B) The term ``Federal land'' means any land owned by the 
                United States, including the surface estate, the subsurface 
                estate, or any improvements thereon.
                    (C) The term ``State'' means any of the several States, the 
                District of Columbia, or a territory (including a possession) of 
                the United States.

SEC. 4. COMMITTEES, COMMISSIONS, AND HOUSE OFFICES.

    (a) House Democracy Partnership.--House Resolution 24, One Hundred Tenth 
Congress, shall apply in the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress in the same manner 
as such resolution applied in the One Hundred Tenth Congress except that the 
commission concerned shall be known as the House Democracy Partnership.
    (b) Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission.--Sections 1 through 7 of House 
Resolution 1451, One Hundred Tenth Congress, shall apply in the One Hundred 
Fifteenth Congress in the same manner as such provisions applied in the One 
Hundred Tenth Congress, except that--
            (1) the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission may, in addition to 
        collaborating closely with other professional staff members of the 
        Committee on Foreign Affairs, collaborate closely with professional 
        staff members of other relevant committees; and
            (2) the resources of the Committee on Foreign Affairs which the 
        Commission may use shall include all resources which the Committee is 
        authorized to obtain from other offices of the House of Representatives.
    (c) Office of Congressional Ethics.--Section 1 of House Resolution 895, One 
Hundred Tenth Congress, shall apply in the One Hundred Fifteenth Congress in the 
same manner as such provision applied in the One Hundred Tenth Congress, except 
that--
            (1) the Office of Congressional Ethics shall be treated as a 
        standing committee of the House for purposes of section 202(i) of the 
        Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (2 U.S.C. 4301(i));
            (2) references to the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct 
        shall be construed as references to the Committee on Ethics;
            (3) any requirement for concurrence in section 1(b)(1) shall be 
        construed as a requirement for consultation;
            (4) the second sentence of section 1(b)(6)(A) shall not apply;
            (5) members subject to section 1(b)(6)(B) may be reappointed for a 
        third additional term;
            (6) any individual who is the subject of a preliminary review or 
        second-phase review by the board shall be informed of the right to be 
        represented by counsel and invoking that right should not be held 
        negatively against them; and
            (7) the Office may not take any action that would deny any person 
        any right or protection provided under the Constitution of the United 
        States.

SEC. 5. ORDERS OF BUSINESS.

    (a) The Speaker may recognize a Member for the reading of the Constitution 
on any legislative day through January 13, 2017.
    (b) Upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the 
House the bill (H.R. 21) to amend chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, to 
provide for en bloc consideration in resolutions of disapproval for ``midnight 
rules'', and for other purposes. All points of order against consideration of 
the bill are waived. The bill shall be considered as read. All points of order 
against provisions in the bill are waived. The previous question shall be 
considered as ordered on the bill and on any amendment thereto to final passage 
without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and 
controlled by the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader or their respective 
designees; and (2) one motion to recommit.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.