[Deschler's Precedents, Volume 2, Chapters 7 - 9]
[Chapter 7.  The Members]
[A. The Speaker]
[Â§ 3. Status of Delegates and Resident Commissioner]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[Page 684-696]
 
                               CHAPTER 7
 
                              The Members
 
                            A. INTRODUCTORY
 
Sec. 3. Status of Delegates and Resident Commissioner

    Delegates and Resident Commissioners are those statutory officers 
who represent in the House the constituencies of territories and 
properties owned by the United States but not admitted to 
statehood.(9) Although the persons holding those offices 
have many of

[[Page 685]]

the attributes of House membership, they are not actual Members of the 
House, since the Constitution provides only for Members or 
representatives of states duly admitted into the Union. The 
Constitution is silent on representation of territories and other 
properties belonging to the United States, although article IV, section 
3, clause 2, grants exclusive sovereignty to the United States over 
such lands.(10)
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 9. For general discussion of the status of Delegates, see 1 Hinds' 
        Precedents Sec. Sec. 400, 421, 473; 6 Cannon's Precedents 
        Sec. Sec. 240, 243.
            In early Congresses, Delegates were construed only as 
        business agents of chattels belonging to the United States, 
        without policymaking power (1 Hinds' Precedents Sec. 473), and 
        the statutes providing for Delegates called for them to be 
        elected to ``serve'' (i.e., act of July 13, 1787, 1 Stat. 52, 
        Sec. 12), not to ``represent'', which is the language in later 
        statutes (48 USC Sec. 1711 [Guam and Virgin Islands]; Pub. L. 
        No. 91-405, 84 Stat. 852, Sec. 202(a), Sept. 22, 1970 [District 
        of Columbia]). The provision relating to the Resident 
        Commissioner from Puerto Rico, 48 USC Sec. 891, does not define 
        his function and does not explicitly provide for his 
        participation in the House of Representatives.
10. As to jurisdiction over the District of Columbia, U.S. Const. art. 
        I, Sec. 8, clause 17, grants exclusive legislation over the 
        seat of government to the Congress.
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    The offices of Delegate and Resident Commissioner are created, 
defined, and limited by statute.(11) The first such statute 
was adopted on July 13, 1787, authorizing the election of a Delegate to 
Congress from the territory northwest of the Ohio River.(12) 
The act allowed that Delegate to have a seat in Congress, with the 
right of debating, but not of voting, on the floor of the 
House.(13) The statute creating the office of Resident 
Commissioner did not provide for a seat in the House.(14) In 
succeeding Congresses, the Resident Commissioner was given debating and 
floor rights,(15) and now holds the same powers and 
privileges in committees as other Members.(16)
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11. See 1 Hinds' Precedents Sec. Sec. 400, 421, 473.
            A territory or district must be organized by law before the 
        House will admit a representative Delegate (1 Hinds' Precedents 
        Sec. Sec. 405, 407, 411, 412).
12. 1 Stat. 52, Sec. 12.
13. In the early history of Congress, Delegates were allowed to vote on 
        committees to which assigned (1 Hinds' Precedents Sec. 1300). 
        They lost the right in the latter half of the 1800's (1 Hinds' 
        Precedents Sec. 1301) but have regained the right under current 
        House rules. (See Sec. 3.10, infra.)
14. Act of Apr. 12, 1900, 31 Stat. 86, Ch. 191 (Puerto Rico), now 
        codified as 48 USC Sec. 891
15. 2 Cannon's Precedents Sec. Sec. 244-246.
16. Rule XII clause 1, House Rules and Manual Sec. 740 and note 
        thereto, Sec. 741 (1973).
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    Although the issue has been discussed, Congress has never provided 
for a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to represent his constituency 
in the Senate.(17)
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17. See 1 Hinds' Precedents Sec. 400. For a recent attempt to provide 
        for nonvoting Delegates in the Senate, see amendment offered to 
        H.R. 8787 (bill to create Delegate positions for Guam and the 
        Virgin Islands) at 118 Cong. Rec. 24, 92d Cong. 2d Sess., Jan. 
        18, 1972.
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    There is a long list of statutes dating from 1787 providing for 
Delegates to Congress from various regions and 
territories.(18)

[[Page 686]]

The granting to a territory of Delegate representation has up to the 
present preceded the admission of such territory as a state into the 
Union. On the other hand, those properties of the United States which 
have been granted representation by a Resident Commissioner have not 
become states.(19) The question has arisen whether a 
territory or other property is entitled to a Delegate or to a Resident 
Commissioner. It has been stated that an incorporated territory, 
prepared to meet the qualifications for statehood, was entitled to a 
Delegate in Congress, and that unincorporated property,(20) 
not generally contemplated for statehood, would be entitled to a 
Resident Commissioner.(1)
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18. Delegates have been authorized by the following laws: Act of July 
        13, 1787, 1 Stat. 52 (Northwest terri

[[Page 687]]

        tory); Act of May 26, 1790, 1 Stat. 123, Ch. 14 (territory 
        south of Ohio); Act of Jan. 9, 1808, 2 Stat. 455, Sec. 3 
        (Mississippi territory); Act of Feb. 27, 1809, 2 Stat. 525, Ch. 
        19 (Indiana territory); Act of June 4, 1812, 2 Stat. 745, 
        Sec. 9 (Missouri territory); Act of Mar. 3, 1817, 3 Stat. 363, 
        Ch. 42 (Delegates in all the territories); Act of Mar. 3, 1817, 
        3 Stat. 373, Sec. 4 (Alabama territory); Act of Feb. 16, 1819, 
        3 Stat. 482, Ch. 22 (Michigan territory); Act of Mar. 2, 1819, 
        3 Stat. 495, Sec. 12 (Arkansas territory); Acts of Mar. 30, 
        1822, 3 Stat. 659, Sec. 14, and Mar. 3, 1823, 3 Stat. 754, 
        Sec. 15 (Florida territory); Act of Apr. 20, 1836, 5 Stat. 15, 
        Sec. 14 (Wisconsin territory); Act of June 12, 1838, 5 Stat. 
        240, Sec. 14 (Iowa territory); Act of Aug. 14, 1848, 9 Stat. 
        329, Sec. 16 (Oregon territory); Act of Mar. 3, 1849, 9 Stat. 
        408, Sec. 14 (Minnesota territory); Act of Sept. 9, 1850, 9 
        Stat. 451, Sec. 14 (New Mexico territory); Act of Sept. 9, 
        1850, 9 Stat. 457, Sec. 13 (Utah territory); Act of Mar. 2, 
        1853, 10 Stat. 178, Sec. 14 (Washington territory); Act of May 
        30, 1854, 10 Stat. 282, Sec. 14 and 10 Stat. 289, Sec. 32 
        (Nebraska and Kansas territories); Act of Feb. 28, 1861, 12 
        Stat. 176, Sec. 13 (Colorado territory); Act of Mar. 2, 1861, 
        12 Stat. 214, Sec. 13 (Nevada territory); Act of Mar. 2, 1861, 
        12 Stat. 243, Sec. 13 (Dakota territory); Act of Mar. 3, 1863, 
        12 Stat. 813, Sec. 13 (Idaho territory); Act of May 26, 1864, 
        13 Stat. 91, Sec. 13 (Montana territory); Act of July 25, 1868, 
        15 Stat. 182, Sec. 13 (Wyoming territory); Act of Feb. 21, 
        1871, 16 Stat. 426, Sec. 34 (District of Columbia--repealed in 
        1874); Act of May 2, 1890, 26 Stat. 89, Sec. 16 (Oklahoma 
        territory); Act of Apr. 30, 1900, 31 Stat. 158, Sec. 85 
        (Hawaii); Act of May 7, 1906, 34 Stat. 169-175 (Alaska); Act of 
        Sept. 22, 1970, Pub. L. No. 91-405, 84 Stat. 852 (District of 
        Columbia); Act of Apr. 10, 1972, Pub. L. No. 92-271, 86 Stat. 
        118 (Guam and Virgin Islands).
            Resident Commissioners have been created by the following 
        laws: Act of Apr. 12, 1900, 31 Stat. 86, Ch. 191 (Puerto Rico); 
        Act of Aug. 29, 1916, 39 Stat. 552, Ch. 416 (Philippine 
        Islands).
19. Puerto Rico remains represented by a Resident Commissioner (48 USC 
        Sec. 891). The office of Resident Commissioner from the 
        Philippines was eliminated upon a grant of independence from 
        the United States (see Sec. 3.3, infra).
20. The insular possessions of Puerto Rico, Guam, and the Virgin 
        Islands, have been held to be unincorporated territories (Smith 
        v Government of the Virgin Islands, 375 F2d 714 [3d Cir. 1967]) 
        to which the basic ``fundamental principles'' of the 
        Constitution are applicable. Soto v U.S., 273 F 628 (3d Cir. 
        1921); Government of the Virgin Islands v Rijos, 285 F Supp 126 
        (D. Virgin Islands 1968).
 1. See the remarks of Mr. John C. Spooner (Wisc.), Apr. 2, 1900, 33 
        Cong. Rec. 3632, 56th Cong. 1st Sess., maintaining that Puerto 
        Rico was granted only a Resident Commissioner because of 
        resistance to its becoming a state.
            See also the more recent remarks of John L. McMillan 
        (S.C.), Chairman of the District of Columbia Committee, on Aug. 
        10, 1970, 116 Cong. Rec. 28061, 91st Cong. 2d Sess., objecting 
        to the granting of a Delegate to the District of Columbia on 
        the grounds that the grant was without legal precedent, since: 
        1. Delegates were intended to be interim representatives from 
        territories which were to become states; 2. Representation from 
        lands under the exclusive jurisdiction of the United States and 
        not intended for statehood were granted Resident Commissioners; 
        3. The District is under the sole jurisdiction of the United 
        States, was never intended to be a state, and should have been 
        granted only a Resident Commissioner.
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    There is no practical distinction between the rights, privileges, 
and entitlements of the Delegate and the Resident 
Commissioner.(2) In 1972, Congress granted to Guam and the 
Virgin Islands, considered unincorporated property of the United 
States,(3) the right to Delegates. Congress provided in the 
91st Congress for a nonvoting Delegate to Congress from the District of 
Columbia,(4) which was characterized not as a territory or 
property belonging to the United States, but as the seat of government. 
The special status of the seat of government is indicated by article I, 
section 8, clause 17, of the Constitution, granting ``exclusive 
legislation'' in the Congress over the seat of government, and by the 
fact that the ratification of the 23d amendment to the Constitution was 
necessary in order to grant representation in the electoral college to 
the District of Columbia.
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 2. See Rule XII, House Rules and Manual Sec. 740 and note thereto, 
        Sec. 741 (1973).
 3. See Smith v Government of the Virgin Islands, 375 F2d 714 (3d Cir. 
        1967); Government of the Virgin Islands v Rijos, 285 F Supp 126 
        (D. Virgin Islands 1968).
 4. For creation of the D.C. Delegate position, see Sec. 3.1 infra.
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    Since 1936, several offices of Delegate have been created and some 
eliminated. The Delegates from Alaska and from Hawaii

[[Page 688]]

were both eliminated upon the admission of those territories as states 
into the Union.(5) The office of Resident Commissioner from 
the Philippines was discontinued upon the granting of independence to 
the Philippines by the United States.(6) The most recent 
change in the number of Delegates was occasioned by the adoption of an 
act creating new offices of the Delegate from Guam and the Delegate 
from the Virgin Islands.(7)
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 5. See Sec. Sec. 3.4, 3.5, infra.
 6. See Sec. 3.3, infra.
 7. See Sec. 3.2, infra.
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    In early Congresses, there occurred lengthy debate on the 
qualifications, disqualifications, and privileges of the Delegates and 
Resident Commissioners.(8) The principle was established 
that the Delegates and Resident Commissioners should meet the 
qualifications laid down in the Constitution for Members.(9)
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 8. See 1 Hinds' Precedents Sec. Sec. 400, 421, 423, 469, 470, 473.
            It has been held that the Judiciary has no authority to 
        pass on the qualifications of a territorial Delegate. Sevilla v 
        Elizalde, 112 F2d 29 (D.C. Cir. 1940).
 9. 1 Hinds' Precedents Sec. Sec. 421, 423 (qualifications similar to 
        those of Members, on public policy grounds). Contra, 1 Hinds' 
        Precedents Sec. 473 (Delegate excluded on basis of crime of 
        polygamy, on grounds his office was not a constitutional one, 
        and Congress could provide for qualifications other than those 
        for Members in the Constitution).
            No House precedents appear on the extension to Delegates of 
        the immunities from arrest and from being questioned in another 
        place to Delegates. See, however, Doty v Strong, 1 Pinn. 84 
        (Wise. 1840), where the territorial Supreme Court held the 
        privilege from arrest applicable to Delegates.
            15 Op. Att'y Gen. 281 (1877) declared that a Delegate, like 
        a Member, was affected by the prohibition against holding 
        incompatible offices, but that he could hold such an office 
        until sworn in as a Delegate.
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    The most recent acts creating offices of Delegates contain within 
their provisions explicit qualifications similar to those 
constitutionally defined for Members.(10)

[[Page 689]]

The Delegate from the District of Columbia is entitled to all the 
privileges granted a Member under article I, section 6, of the 
Constitution.(11) The Delegates from Guam and the Virgin 
Islands are entitled to those privileges and immunities which are 
granted, or may be granted, to the Resident Commissioner from Puerto 
Rico under House rules.(12)
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10. See 48 USC Sec. 1711 (Guam and Virgin Islands Delegates), requiring 
        age of at least 25 years at election, minimum of seven years' 
        citizenship at election, and inhabitancy in the territory, and 
        prohibiting simultaneous candidacy for another office. Pub. L. 
        No. 91-405, 84 Stat. 852, Sec. 202(b) (District of Columbia 
        Delegate) requires a candidate to be a qualified elector, at 
        least 25 years of age, and at least a three-year resident, and 
        prohibits the holding of another paid public office.
            The qualifications for the Resident Commissioner are United 
        States citizenship, age of at least 25 years, and fluency in 
        the English language 48 USC Sec. 892.
11. Act of Sept. 22, 1970, Pub. L. No. 91-405, 84 Stat. 852, 
        Sec. 202(a).
12. 48 USC Sec. 1715.
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    In early Congresses, Delegates and Resident Commissioners were 
entitled to vote in the committees to which they were 
assigned.(13) The practice was then discontinued for a 
substantial period of time.(14) In the 92d and 93d 
Congresses, however, Rule XII of the standing rules, relating to 
Delegates and Resident Commissioners,(15) was amended to 
extend to Delegates and Resident Commissioners all the powers in 
committee held by constitutional Members of the House.(16) 
The changes in the rule provided for the Delegates and Resident 
Commissioners to be elected to committees rather than assigned 
(although the D.C. Delegate is permanently assigned to serve on the 
District of Columbia Committee).(17) The current powers of 
Delegates and Resident Commissioners include the right to vote in 
committee and the accrual of committee seniority.(18)
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13. See 2 Hinds' Precedents Sec. 1301.
14. 2 Hinds' Precedents Sec. 1300; 6 Cannon's Precedents Sec. 243 
        (committee report denying committee vote to Delegate since he 
        held no legislative power).
15. House Rules and Manual Sec. 740 (1973).
16. See Sec. Sec. 3.9, 3.10, infra.
17. See Sec. 3.10, infra.
18. See Sec. 3.11, infra (announcement of majority party policy 
        extending full voting and seniority rights in committee to the 
        Delegates and Resident Commissioner).
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    On the floor of the House, Delegates and Resident Commissioners may 
debate, make motions, and raise points of order.(19) They 
are entitled to the same salary and some of the allowances of 
Members.(20) They are subject to

[[Page 690]]

the same code of conduct and may be disciplined by the 
House.(1) The rights of Delegates-elect are similar to those 
of Members-elect, and their credentials must be transmitted to the 
House in the same manner. The main distinction at organization is that 
although Delegates and Resident Commissioners must submit credentials 
and must be administered the oath, their names are not included on the 
(Clerk's roll to establish a quorum or to vote for a 
Speaker.(2) A further distinction is that the Resident 
Commissioner is elected for a term of four years by 
statute,(3) as opposed to the constitutional term of two 
years applicable to Members and the statutory term of two years 
applicable to Delegates.(4)
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19. For the parliamentary rights of the Delegate and Resident 
        Commissioner, see House Rules and Manual Sec. 741 (note to Rule 
        XII) (1973). See also Sec. 3.6 (introducing bills) and Sec. 3.7 
        (objection to consideration of bill), infra.
20. 48 USC Sec. 1715 (Guam and Virgin Islands); Pub. L. No. 91-405, 84 
        Stat. 852, Sec. 204(a) (District of Columbia Delegate); 2 USC 
        Sec. 31 (comprehensive provision for Delegates, Resident 
        Commissioner, Senators, and Representatives).
            See Sec. 4, infra, for the salaries of Members and 
        Delegates, Sec. 6, infra, for travel allowances, and Sec. 8, 
        infra, for personnel, office, and supply allowances.
 1. See Sec. 3.8, infra.
 2. See Ch. 2, supra.
 3. 48 USC Sec. 891.
 4. 48 USC Sec. 1712 (Guam and Virgin Islands); Act of Sept. 22, 1970, 
        Pub. L. No. 91-405, 84 Stat. 852, Sec. 202(a) (D.C. 
        Delegate).                          -------------------
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Establishment of Office of Delegate

Sec. 3.1 Congress created by law in 1970 the office of Delegate from 
    the District of Columbia to the House of Representatives.

    On Aug. 10, 1970,(5) the House considered a bill 
reported from the Committee on the District of Columbia establishing a 
Study Commission on the District of Columbia Government and providing 
for a nonvoting Delegate from the District to the House of 
Representatives. The section relating to the Delegate reads as follows:
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 5. 116 Cong. Rec. 28054, 91st Cong. 2d Sess.
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        Sec. 202(a) The people of the District of Columbia shall be 
    represented in the House of Representatives by a Delegate, to be 
    known as the ``Delegate to the House of Representatives from the 
    District of Columbia'', who shall be elected by the voters of the 
    District of Columbia in accordance with the District of Columbia 
    Election Act. The Delegate shall have a seat in the House of 
    Representatives, with the right of debate, but not of voting, shall 
    have all the privileges granted a Representative by section 6 of 
    Article I of the Constitution, and shall be subject to the same 
    restrictions and regulations as are imposed by law or rules on 
    Representatives. The Delegate shall be elected to serve during each 
    Congress.
        (b) No individual may hold the office of Delegate to the House 
    of Representatives from the District of Columbia unless on the date 
    of his election--
        (1) he is a qualified elector (as that term is defined in 
    section 2(2) of the District of Columbia Election Act) of the 
    District of Columbia;

[[Page 691]]

        (2) he is at least twenty-five years of age;
        (3) he holds no other paid public office; and
        (4) he has resided in the District of Columbia continuously 
    since the beginning of the three-year period ending on such date. 
    He shall forfeit his office upon failure to maintain the 
    qualifications required by this subsection.

    The House passed the bill on the same day.(6) The Senate 
passed the bill on Sept. 9, 1970.(7)
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 6. 116 Cong. Rec. 28062, 91st Cong. 2d Sess. See at p. 28061 the 
        remarks on the same day of John L. McMillan (S.C.), Chairman of 
        the Committee on the District of Columbia, maintaining that the 
        District should receive a Resident Commissioner rather than a 
        Delegate.
 7. 116 Cong. Rec. 31040, 91st Cong. 2d Sess.
            The bill became Pub. L. No. 91-405, 84 Stat. 852, when the 
        President approved it on Sept. 22, 1970. See the Presidential 
        message to Congress on Sept. 28, 1970, 116 Cong. Rec. 33865, 
        91st Cong. 2d Sess.
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Sec. 3.2 In 1972 the Congress provided for nonvoting Delegates to the 
    House from the unincorporated territories of Guam and the Virgin 
    Islands.

    On Apr. 10, 1972, there was signed into law a bill granting 
nonvoting Delegate representation in the House from both Guam and the 
Virgin Islands.(8) The bill provided for a term of two years 
for those Delegates, laid down qualifications, and accorded them all 
the privileges that were or might be afforded them under the rules of 
the House.(9)
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 8. Pub. L. No. 92-271, 86 Stat. 118, codified as 48 USC 
        Sec. Sec. 1711-1715.
            The bill (H.R. 8787) passed the House on Jan. 18, 1972, and 
        was reported from the Committee on Interior and Insular 
        Affairs. 118 Cong. Rec. 12-29, 92d Cong. 2d Sess.
 9. Pub. L. No. 92-271, 86 Stat. 118, Sec. Sec. 2-5.
            A proposal had been made and rejected, for lack of 
        precedent, for Guam and the Virgin Islands to pay the costs of 
        maintaining Delegates in Congress. 118 Cong. Rec. 25-28, 92d 
        Cong. 2d Sess., Jan. 18, 1972.
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    The Chairman of the committee handling the bill, the Committee on 
Interior and Insular Affairs, Wayne N. Aspinall, of Colorado, indicated 
that there was no legislative intent that the bill be considered as a 
prelude to statehood for either Guam or the Virgin 
Islands.(10)
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10. 118 Cong. Rec. 13-15, 92d Cong. 2d Sess., Jan. 18, 1972. See also 
        the remarks of Mr. Don H. Clausen (Calif.), id. at p. 21.
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Elimination of Office of Delegate or Resident Commissioner

Sec. 3.3 The office of Resident Commissioner from the Philippine 
    Islands to the House

[[Page 692]]

    of Representatives was eliminated in 1946 upon the recognition by 
    the United States of the independence of the Philippines.

    Between 1916 and 1946, provision was made for the appointment and 
qualifications of a Resident Commissioner to the House of 
Representatives from the Philippine Islands.(11) However, on 
Mar. 24, 1934, Congress provided by law for the recognition of 
Philippine independence and withdrawal of American 
sovereignty.(12) That law provided for a Presidential 
proclamation to effectuate the surrender of all rights of sovereignty 
of the United States over the Philippines on a date following the 
expiration of a period of 10 years from the date of the inauguration of 
the new government under the Philippine (Constitution provided for in 
the law. The Presidential proclamation declaring Philippine 
independence was signed on July 4, 1946.(13)
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11. 48 USC Sec. 1091, Aug. 29, 1916, Ch. 416, Sec. 20, 39 Stat. 552; 
        June 5, 1934, Ch. 390, Sec. 4, 48 Stat. 879.
12. 22 USC Sec. 1394, 48 Stat. 463, Ch. 84, Sec. 10.
13. Proclamation No. 2695, set out as notes following 22 USCA 
        Sec. 1394.
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    On July 2, 1946,(14) the House granted unanimous consent 
that Speaker Sam Rayburn, of Texas, send an appropriate message to the 
President and the people of the Republic of the Philippines extending 
the congratulations of the House of Representatives on their 
independence.
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14. 92 Cong. Rec. 8167, 79th Cong. 2d Sess.
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Sec. 3.4 The office of Delegate from Alaska to the House of 
    Representatives was eliminated in 1959 when Alaska was admitted to 
    statehood.

    From 1906 to 1959, the United States Code provided for a Delegate 
from the Territory of Alaska to represent that territory in the House 
of Representatives.(15) On July 7, 1958, Alaska was declared 
by law to be a State of the United States of America. The law provided 
for the President to issue a proclamation to effectuate the admission 
of Alaska into the Union.(16) His proclamation was issued on 
Jan. 3, 1959,(17) and the names of Members-elect from the

[[Page 693]]

State of Alaska were called for the first time on the Clerk's roll at 
the convening of the 86th Congress on Jan. 7, 1959.(18)
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15. 48 USC Sec. 131 (May 7, 1906, Ch. 2083, Sec. 1, 34 Stat. 169). The 
        Delegate's term of office was provided for in 48 USC Sec. 132 
        and his salary and allowances provided for in 48 USC Sec. 134.
16. Pub. L. No. 85-508, July 7, 1958, 72 Stat. 339, Sec. 8(c).
17. For the text of Pub. L. No. 85-508 and of the President's 
        Proclamation No. 3269 and other materials relating to Alaska 
        statehood, see the notes preceding 48 USCA Sec. 21.
18. 105 Cong. Rec. 11, 86th Cong. 1st Sess.
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Sec. 3.5 The office of Delegate from the Territory of Hawaii to the 
    House of Representatives was eliminated in 1959 when Hawaii was 
    admitted as a State.

    From 1900 until 1959, the law provided for a Delegate to the House 
of Representatives from the Territory of Hawaii.(19) On Mar. 
18, 1959, a law was enacted granting statehood to Hawaii and providing 
for the issuance of a Presidential proclamation to effectuate the 
admission of Hawaii into the Union.(20) On Aug. 21, 1959, 
Hawaii was officially admitted into the Union pursuant to the issuance 
of a Presidential proclamation.(1)
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19. 48 USC Sec. 651, Apr. 30, 1900, 31 Stat. 158, Ch. 339, 85.
20. Pub. L. No. 86-3, 73 Stat. 4, Sec. 7(c).
 1. Proclamation No. 3309. The proclamation, Pub. L. No. 86-3, and 
        other materials relating to Hawaii's statehood are set out as 
        notes preceding 48 USCA Sec. 491.
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    The first Representative from the State of Hawaii appeared to take 
the oath of office in the 86th Congress on Aug. 24, 1959.(2)
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 2. 105 Cong. Rec. 16799, 86th Cong. 1st Sess. A scroll praising former 
        Delegate John A. Byrns (Hawaii) for his role in achieving 
        Hawaii statehood was placed in the Speaker's lobby for the 
        signature of Members. 105 Cong. Rec. 11588, 86th Cong. 1st 
        Sess., June 23, 1959. A private bill introduced by Delegate 
        Byrns before the admission of Hawaii as a state was considered 
        and passed by the House after the admission of Hawaii on May 3, 
        1960. 106 Cong. Rec. 9246, 86th Cong. 2d Sess.
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Floor Privileges; Introducing or Objecting to Bills

Sec. 3.6 The House granted unanimous consent that a Delegate be 
    permitted to introduce bills notwithstanding his absence from the 
    House.

    On Jan. 3, 1953,(3) the House granted unanimous consent 
to a request that the Delegate from Hawaii, Joseph R. Farrington, 
unavoidably absent due to a family death, be permitted to introduce 
bills despite his absence.
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 3. 99 Cong. Rec. 29, 83d Cong. 1st Sess.
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Sec. 3.7 The Resident Commissioner objected to the consideration of a 
    private bill, thereby causing its recommittal.

    On Oct. 7, 1969,(4) Speaker John W. McCormack, of 
Massachusetts, ordered a private bill recommitted

[[Page 694]]

to the Committee on the Judiciary after recognizing Mr. Harold R. 
Gross, of Iowa, and Jorge L. Cordova, Resident Commissioner, Puerto 
Rico, for objections to the bill's consideration.
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 4. 115 Cong. Rec. 28801, 91st Cong. 1st Sess.
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Sec. 3.8 In the 92d Congress, all Delegates were admitted to the floor, 
    extended the services of the Clerk and Sergeant at Arms, and 
    brought under the Code of Conduct by amendments to the House rules.

    On Jan. 21, 1971, the opening day of the 92d 
Congress,(5) there was offered by William M. Colmer, of 
Mississippi, Chairman of the Committee on Rules, House Resolution 5, to 
amend the House rules to reflect the creation of the office of Delegate 
from the District of Columbia. One amendment extended the privileges of 
the House floor to the Delegate under Rule XXXII.(6) Other 
amendments included the Delegate within the class of persons entitled 
to the services of the Clerk under Rule III clause 3,(7) and 
to the services of the Sergeant at Arms under Rule IV clause 
1.(8) The last amendment brought the Delegate within the 
definition of ``Members'' affected by the Code of Conduct of Rule 
XLIII.(9)
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 5. 117 Cong. Rec. 15, 92d Cong. 1st Sess.
 6. House Rules and Manual Sec. 919 (1973).
 7. House Rules and Manual Sec. 641-646 (1973).
 8. House Rules and Manual Sec. 648 (1973).
 9. House Rules and Manual Sec. 939 (1973).
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    The House adopted House Resolution 5 on Jan. 22, 
1971.(10)
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10. 117 Cong. Rec. 144, 92d Cong. 1st Sess.
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    Later in the 92d Congress, on Oct. 13, 1972,(11) the 
House amended the House rules to reflect the grant to Guam and the 
Virgin Islands of Delegate positions by the passage of House Resolution 
1153. The resolution extended to all Delegates the right of admission 
to the floor, the services of the Clerk and Sergeant at Arms, and 
brought them within the scope of the Code of Conduct.
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11. 118 Cong. Rec. 36013-23, 92d Cong. 2d Sess.
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Committee Membership

Sec. 3.9 In the 92d and 93d Congresses, the House amended its rules to 
    provide for the election, rather than the assignment, of the 
    Resident Commissioner and Delegates to standing committees.

    On Jan. 21, 1971, the opening day of the 92d 
Congress,(12) Wil

[[Page 695]]

liam M. Colmer, of Mississippi, Chairman of the Committee on Rules, 
offered House Resolution 5, amending the standing rules of the House. 
Among the proposed changes was a complete revision of Rule XII, which 
had formerly provided for the Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico to 
be assigned to the standing Committees on Agriculture, Armed Services, 
and Interior and Insular Affairs, and for the Delegates from Alaska and 
Hawaii to be similarly assigned to certain standing 
committees.(13) The new Rule XII proposed by House 
Resolution 5 provided:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
12. 117 Cong. Rec. 144, 92d Cong. 1st Sess.
13. House Rules and Manual Sec. 740 (1969). The references to the 
        Hawaiian and Alaskan Delegates were obsolete, as those 
        territories had become states (see Sec. Sec. 3.4, 3.5, supra). 
        For an amendment to the House rules in 1949 permitting the 
        Alaskan Delegate to serve on an additional committee, see 95 
        Cong. Rec. 10618, 81st Cong. 1st Sess., Aug. 2, 1949.
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        Strike out Rule XII, and insert in lieu thereof the following:

                                    Rule XII

        resident commissioner from puerto rico and delegate from the 
            district of columbia

            1. The Resident Comrmissioner to the United States from 
        Puerto Rico shall be elected to serve on standing committees in 
        the same manner as Members of the House and shall possess in 
        such committees the same powers and privileges as the other 
        Members.
            2. The Delegate from the District of Columbia shall be 
        elected to serve as a member of the Committee on the District 
        of Columbia and shall be elected to serve on other standing 
        committees of the House in the same manner as Members of the 
        House and shall possess in all committees on which he ser.ves 
        the same powers and privileges as the other Members.

    The House adopted House Resolution 5 on Jan. 22, 
1971.(14) At the opening of the 93d Congress, the House 
further amended Rule XII to provide for all Delegates to be elected to 
conmittees: (15)
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14. 117 Cong. Rec. 144, 92d Cong. 1st Sess.
15. H. Res. 6, 119 Cong. Rec. 26, 27, 93d Cong. 1st Sess., Jan. 3, 
        1973.
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        In Rule XII, clause 2 is amended to read as follows:

            The Delegate from the District of Columbia shall be elected 
        to serve as a member of the Committee on the District of 
        Columbia and each Delegate to the House shall be elected to 
        serve on standing committees of the House in the same manner as 
        Members of the House and shall possess in all committees on 
        which he serves the same powers and privileges as the other 
        Members.

Committee Powers and Privileges

Sec. 3.10 In the 92d and 93d Congresses, Delegates and the Resident 
    Commissioner were extended all the powers and privileges of Members 
    in

[[Page 696]]

    committees, including the right in committee to vote and to obtain 
    seniority.

    On Jan. 21, 1971, the opening day of the 92d 
Congress,(16) William M. Colmer, of Mississippi, Chairman of 
the Committee on Rules, offered House Resolution 5, amending the 
standing rules of the House. One portion of the resolution completely 
revised Rule XII, relating to committee service by the Resident 
Commissioner and Delegates.(17)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
16. 117 Cong. Rec. 14, 92d Cong. 1st Sess.
17. See Sec. 3.9, supra, for the text of the amendment.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The proposed amendment not only provided for the Resident 
Commissioner from Puerto Rico and the Delegate from the District of 
Columbia to be elected to committees, but also extended to them all the 
powers and privileges in committee as those possessed by Members of the 
House (including the right to vote and to obtain seniority 
rights).(18)
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18. Rule XII clauses 1 and 2, House Rules and Manual Sec. 740 (1973).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The House adopted House Resolution 5 on Jan. 22, 
1971.(19)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
19. 117 Cong. Rec. 144, 92d Cong. 1st Sess.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    At the opening of the 93d Congress, the House further amended Rule 
XII to provide for all Delegates, including those from Guam and the 
Virgin Islands, to possess all the powers and privileges of Members in 
committees to which elected.(20)
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20. H. Res. 6, 119 Cong. Rec. 26, 27, 93d Cong. 1st Sess., Jan. 3, 1973 
        (see Sec. 3.9, supra, for the text of the amendment).
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Sec. 3.11 In the 93d Congress, the majority party caucus announced a 
    policy extending full committee voting and seniority rights to the 
    Delegates and the Resident Commissioner

    On Mar. 15, 1973,(1) Philip Burton, of California, 
Chairman of the Democratic Study Group, announced the policy changes 
adopted by the Democratic Caucus at the beginning of the 93d Congress.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
 1. 119 Cong. Rec. 8018, 93d Cong. 1st Sess.
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    Among them was a policy providing that the Delegates from the 
District of Columbia, Guam, and the Virgin Islands, and the Resident 
Commissioner of Puerto Rico have full voting rights and seniority in 
committee.

[[Page 697]]



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