[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 43 (Sunday, March 21, 2010)]
[House]
[Page H1824]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. On September 27, 1995, after a misuse of 
handouts on the floor of the House, and at the bipartisan request of 
the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, the Chair announced 
that any handout distributed in or around the Chamber during 
proceedings of the House must bear the name of the Member authorizing 
its distribution; that the content of a handout must comport with the 
standards of propriety that apply to words spoken in debate or inserted 
in the Record; and, that failure to comply with these requirements may 
constitute a breach of decorum and could give rise to a question of 
privilege.
  On January 7, 1997, the Speaker reiterated these standards as 
guidelines for the 105th Congress, and they have been so reiterated by 
the successive Speakers in each successive Congress. The Chair takes 
this opportunity to remind all Members of the need to maintain a level 
of decorum that properly dignifies the proceedings of the House.

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