[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 190 (Thursday, November 30, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H13844-H13845]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           MAKING TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS IN RULES OF THE HOUSE

  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that it be in order, 
without intervention of any point of order, to consider in the House 
the resolution (H. Res. 254), making technical corrections in the Rules 
of the House of Representatives; that the amendments recommended by the 
Committee on Rules now printed in the resolution be considered as 
adopted; and that the previous question be considered as ordered on the 
resolution, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to its 
adoption, without intervening motion or demand for division of the 
question, except a further amendment, if offered by the chairman of the 
Committee on Rules or his designee, and one hour of debate on the 
resolution, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, equally 
divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of 
the Committee on Rules.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.

                              {time}  1515

  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I call up the resolution (H. Res. 254) 
making technical corrections in the Rules of the House of 
Representatives, and ask for its immediate consideration.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Inglis of South Carolina). Pursuant to 
the order of the House of today, the amendments printed in House Report 
104-340 are adopted.
  The text of the resolution, as amended, is as follows:

                              H. Res. 254

       Resolved, That the Rules of the House of Representatives 
     are amended as follows:
       (1) In clause 3 of rule III, insert ``as may be requested 
     by such State officials'' after ``the legislature of every 
     State''.
       (2) In clause 3(d) of rule VI, insert ``the minority 
     leader,'' after ``the majority leader,''.
       (3) In clause 1(k)(8) of rule X, strike ``the Defense'' and 
     insert ``Defense''.
       (4) In clause 1(o)(2) of rule X, strike ``and (its'' and 
     insert ``(and its''.
       (5) In clause 3(e) of rule X, strike ``and nonmilitary 
     nuclear energy and research and development including the 
     disposal of nuclear waste''.
       (6) In clause 3(h) of rule X, strike ``energy'' and insert 
     ``energy, and nonmilitary nuclear energy and research and 
     development including the disposal of nuclear waste''.
       (7) In clause 2(l)(5) of rule XI, strike ``(excluding 
     Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays)'' and insert 
     ``(excluding Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays except 
     when the House is in session on such a day)''.
       (8) In clause 2(l)(6) of rule XI, strike ``the third 
     calendar day, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal 
     holidays'' and insert ``the third calendar day (excluding 
     Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays except when the House 
     is in session on such a day)''.
       (9) In the designation of clause 3 of rule XI, insert ``and 
     Meetings'' after ``Hearings''.
       (10) In clause 3(f) of rule XI, amend the matter before 
     subparagraph (1) to read as follows:
       ``(f) Each committee of the House shall adopt written rules 
     to govern its implementation of this clause. Such rules shall 
     include provisions of the following effect:''.
       (11) In clause 6(b)(2) of rule XI, strike ``This 
     paragraph'' and insert ``Subparagraph (1)''.
       (12) In clause 4(a) of rule XIII, place the period after 
     the designation of the ``Corrections Calendar'' inside the 
     closing quotation mark.
       (13) In clause 4(b) of rule XIII--
       (A) insert ``shall be'' before ``debatable'';
       (B) insert ``and'' before ``shall not be subject to 
     amendment''; and
       (C) strike ``committee, and the previous question'' and 
     insert ``committee or a designee. The previous question''.
       (14) In clause 4(c) of rule XIII, strike ``members'' and 
     insert ``Members''.
       (15) In clause 9 of rule XVI, strike ``bills raising 
     revenue, or''.
       (16) In clause 7 of rule XXI, strike ``(excluding 
     Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays)'' and insert 
     ``(excluding Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays except 
     when the House is in session on such a day)''.
       (17) In clause 5(c) of rule XXIII, strike ``section 
     424(a)(1) of the Unfunded Mandate Reform Act of 1995'' and 
     insert ``section 424(a)(1) of the Congressional Budget Act of 
     1974''.
       (18) In clause 2(a) of rule XXVIII, strike ``(excluding any 
     Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday)'' and insert ``(excluding 
     Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays except when the House 
     is in session on such a day)''.
       (19) In clause 2(b)(1) of rule XXVIII, strike ``(excluding 
     any Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday)'' and insert 
     ``(excluding Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays except 
     when the House is in session on such a day)''.
       (20) Clause 4 of rule XLIII is amended to read as follows:
       ``4. A Member, officer, or employee of the House of 
     Representatives shall not accept gifts excepted as provided 
     by the provisions of rule LII (Gift Rule).''.
       (21) The last undesignated paragraph of rule XLIII of the 
     Rules of the House of Representatives is repealed.

     SEC. 2. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       The amendments made by the first section of this resolution 
     shall be effective on the date of the adoption of this 
     resolution except that paragraphs (20) and (21) of that 
     section shall be effective on January 1, 1996.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from California [Mr. Dreier] 
will be recognized for 30 minutes and the gentleman from Massachusetts 
[Mr. Moakley] will be recognized for 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California [Mr. Dreier].
  (Mr. DREIER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, debate on House Resolution 254 should not take more than 
a few minutes, because the resolution makes technical and conforming 
changes to reflect the intent of the amendments adopted in the 104th 
Congress.
  January 4, 1995, ushered in the era of the reform Congress when the 
House of Representatives approved sweeping changes to the rules under 
which the House previously operated. That legacy of reform continued 
this month with adoption of a gift ban resolution and lobbying 
disclosure reform.
  Also this year, the House approved changes in House rules to 
discourage the imposition of unfunded Federal mandates on State and 
local governments, and to establish a Corrections Calendar.
  As a result of these changes, a number of duplicative provisions and 
grammatical and typographical errors need to be corrected to ensure 
that the rules of the House reflect their true intent. In addition, the 
resolution clarifies a number of longstanding parliamentary 
interpretations to ensure consistency of parliamentary practice in the 
House.
  House Resolution 254 is not intended to address any of the 
controversial aspects of House rules. I understand the minority's 
concerns regarding the three-fifths vote requirement on tax rate 
increase, subcommittee assignment limits, and committee meetings while 
the House is considering amendments under the 5-minute rule. Chairman 
Solomon and I will be undertaking a comprehensive review of all of the 
House rules in a continuing effort to improve deliberation and 
accountability, and I look forward to working with my colleagues in the 
minority on the effort.
  In the meantime, Mr. Speaker, it is important that we make these 
technical and conforming corrections to the rules of the House to 
reflect the intent of changes adopted this year.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.


                    amendment offered by mr. dreier

  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I offer an amendment.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Amendment offered by Mr. Dreier: Page 4, insert after line 
     25 the following:
       (22) Clause 1(c) of rule LII, as in effect January 1, 1996, 
     is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(22) Donations of products from the State that the Member 
     represents that are intended primarily for promotional 
     purposes, such as display or free distribution, and are of 
     minimal value to any individual recipient.
       ``(23) An item of nominal value such as a greeting card, 
     baseball cap, or a T-shirt.''.

[[Page H13845]]

       Page 5, line 4, strike ``and (21)'' and insert ``, (21), 
     and (22)''.

  Mr. DREIER (during the reading). Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous 
consent that the amendment be considered as read and printed in the 
Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, the amendment makes two technical changes to 
the gift ban rule that was adopted by the House on November 16. These 
changes were inadvertently left out of the Gingrich-Solomon amendment 
to institute a tougher gift ban than the one contained in House 
Resolution 250. This amendment simply reinstates the exemptions for 
donations of home State products intended primarily for promotional 
purposes, and items of nominal value, such as greeting cards and 
baseball caps. The Gingrich-Solomon amendment was not intended to force 
Members to return Christmas cards to our constituents.
  Mr. Speaker, I am informed that the gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. 
Moakley] has been detained, but has no objections to the resolution or 
the amendment.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of today, 
the previous question is ordered on the resolution and the amendment.
  The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from 
California [Mr. Dreier].
  The amendment was agreed to.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the resolution, as 
amended.
  The resolution, as amended, was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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