[Deschler-Brown Precedents, Volume 17, Chapters 34 - 40]
[Ch. 38. Death]
[Â§ 1. In General]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[Page 569]
 
                               CHAPTER 38
 
                                 Death
 
Sec. 1. In General


    The death of a Member of the House, or of an officer or official of 
the House, invokes certain well-established procedures for according 
respect due to the memory of the deceased. Similar formalities, 
possibly more elaborate, are followed upon the death of a President, 
Senator, head of state, or other national or foreign dignitary. These 
procedures are almost always invoked by unanimous consent or privileged 
resolution. The procedures include the formal announcement of death, 
resolutions of sympathy, adjustment of the whole number of the House, 
appointment of Members to a funeral committee or committees, 
adjournment as a mark of respect, and lying-in-state ceremonies.
    When a Member dies, provision must be made for maintenance of a 
staff and offices until another Representative is elected to represent 
the district.(1) Arrangements are also made for disposition 
of the Member's papers.(2) The House attends to these 
contingencies by unanimous consent or resolution.
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 1. See Sec. 4, infra.
 2. See Sec. 3, infra.
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    The purpose of this chapter is to present both the procedures to 
which the House traditionally adheres following a death and those rare 
procedures that the House has undertaken on other occasions.
    The accounts of proceedings following upon the deaths of some 
individuals will be found to be more detailed than others in order to 
reflect infrequent or anomalous proceedings that the House has 
undertaken.
    The reader may wish to consult other chapters on such subjects as 
the assembly of Congress,(3) Members' oath of 
office,(4) party organizations,(5) 
recesses,(6) adjournments,(7) and House 
ceremonies.(8)
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 3. See Ch. 1, supra.
 4. See Ch. 2, supra.
 5. See Ch. 3, supra.
 6. See Ch. 39, infra.
 7. See Ch. 40, infra.
 8. See Ch. 36, supra.
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    On the subject of death, for precedents prior to 1936, the reader 
is referred to 5 Hinds' Precedents Sec. Sec. 7107-7223, and 8 Cannon's 
Precedents, Sec. Sec. 3560-3598.