[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 192 (Tuesday, December 5, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H13971-H13972]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE--REQUEST FOR REPORT FROM COMMITTEE ON STANDARDS 
        OF OFFICIAL CONDUCT REGARDING COMPLAINTS AGAINST SPEAKER

  Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to clause 2(a)(1) of 
rule IX, I hereby give notice of my intention to offer a resolution--on 
behalf of myself and the gentleman from Florida [Mr. Johnston]--which 
raises a question of the privileges of the House.
  The form of the resolution is as follows:

       Whereas the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct is 
     currently considering several ethics complaints against 
     Speaker Newt Gingrich;
       Whereas the Committee has traditionally handled such cases 
     by appointing an independent, non-partisan, outside counsel--
     a procedure which has been adopted in every major ethics case 
     since the Committee was established;
       Whereas--although complaints against Speaker Gingrich have 
     been under consideration for more than 14 months--the 
     Committee has failed to appoint an outside counsel;
       Whereas the Committee has also deviated from other long-
     standing precedents and rules of procedure; including its 
     failure to adopt a Resolution of Preliminary Inquiry before 
     calling third-party witnesses and receiving sworn testimony;
       Whereas these procedural irregularities--and the unusual 
     delay in the appointment of an independent, outside counsel--
     have led to widespread concern that the Committee is making 
     special exceptions for the Speaker of the House;
       Whereas a resolution calling for a status report on the 
     Gingrich investigation was tabled by the House without debate 
     on November 17, 1995;
       Whereas a second resolution calling for a status report on 
     the Gingrich investigation was tabled by the House without 
     debate on November 30, 1995;
       Whereas the integrity of the House depends on the 
     confidence of the American people in the fairness and 
     impartiality of the Committee on Standards of Official 
     Conduct.
       Therefore be it resolved that;
       The Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on 
     Standards of Official Conduct should report to the House, no 
     later than December 19, 1995, concerning:
       (1) the status of the Committee's investigation of the 
     complaints against Speaker Gingrich;
       (2) the Committee's disposition with regard to the 
     appointment of a non-partisan outside counsel and the scope 
     of the counsel's investigation;
       (3) a timetable for Committee action on the complaints.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under rule IX, a resolution offered from the 
floor by a Member other than the majority leader or the minority leader 
as a question of the privileges of the House has immediate precedence 
only at a time or place designated by the 

[[Page H 13972]]
chair in the legislative schedule within 2 legislative days its being 
properly noticed. The Chair will announce designation at a later time. 
In the meantime, the form of the resolution proffered by the gentleman 
from Florida will appear in the Record at this point.
  The Chair is not at this point making a determination as to whether 
the resolution constitutes a question of privilege. That determination 
will be made at the time designated by the Chair for consideration of 
the resolution.

                          ____________________