[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 30 (Friday, February 13, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H1536]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1115
                         PARLIAMENTARY INQUIRY

  Ms. FOXX. Madam Speaker, I have a parliamentary inquiry.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman from North Carolina will 
state her parliamentary inquiry.
  Ms. FOXX. Madam Speaker, on February 10, 2009, the House adopted a 
motion to instruct conferees on H.R. 1 by a vote of 403 yeas and no 
nays. That motion directed the managers on the part of the House to 
withhold their signatures on the final conference agreement until that 
agreement had been available electronically for at least 48 hours.
  Madam Speaker, it is a matter of public record that the three 
majority House conferees affixed their signatures to the conference 
agreement while the hard copy had been available for less than 1 hour 
and the electronic copy was as yet unavailable. In fact, a correct 
electronic copy was not made available until after midnight last night. 
So it is uncontroverted that the majority House conferees acted in 
direct opposition to the unanimous instructions of the House.
  Madam Speaker, my inquiry is this: Given that the majority managers 
on the part of the House ignored the instructions given them by 403 of 
their colleagues, without a single dissenting vote, what remedy do we 
have against the managers who disregarded the instruction to make the 
conference report available for 48 hours?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Members may illuminate such questions by 
their remarks in debate.
  Ms. FOXX. Madam Speaker, further parliamentary inquiry.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentlewoman will state her inquiry.
  Ms. FOXX. Just to clarify then, there is no point of order or other 
remedy available to address this flagrant violation of the instructions 
of the House?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. It is not the province of the Chair to 
render advisory opinions or rule on questions of order not actually 
presented.

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