[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 106th Congress]
[106th Congress]
[House Document 105-358]
[Rules of the House of Representatives]
[Pages 510-562]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



 


In general
      Rule XI.--PROCEDURES OF COMMITTEES AND UNFINISHED BUSINESS       


[[Page 511]]



787. Committee procedure.

  1.  (a)(1)(A) Except as provided 
in subdivision (B), the Rules of the House are the rules of its 
committees and subcommittees so far as applicable.


  (B) A motion to recess from day to day, and a motion to dispense with 
the first reading (in full) of a bill or resolution, if printed copies 
are available, each shall be privileged in committees and subcommittees 
and shall be decided without debate.


  (2) Each subcommittee is a part of its committee and is subject to the 
authority and direction of that committee and to its rules, so far as 
applicable.

  Paragraph (a)(1) was first adopted December 8, 1931 (VIII, 2215), and 
amended March 23, 1955, pp. 3569, 3585. In the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144), paragraph (a)(2) was incorporated into the 
rules, together with the reference to subcommittees contained in 
paragraph (a)(1), having been contained in the Legislative 
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140). This clause was amended in 
the 99th Congress to allow a privileged motion in committee and 
subcommittee to dispense with the first reading of a measure where 
printed copies are available (H. Res. 7, Jan. 3, 1985, p. 393). Clerical 
and stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified its rules 
in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). See 
Jefferson's Manual at Sec. 412, supra, for the requirement that a bill 
or resolution be read in full upon demand, prior to being read by 
paragraphs of sections for amendment.


  Each committee may appoint subcommittees (VI, 532), which should 
include majority and minority representation (IV, 4551), and confer on 
them powers delegated to the committee itself (VI, 532) except such 
powers as are reserved to the full committee by the Rules of the House; 
but express authority has also been given subcommittees by the House 
(III, 1754-1759, 1801, 2499, 2504, 2508, 2517; IV, 4548).


[[Page 512]]



Sec. 788. Investigative authority.

  (b)(1)  Each committee may 
conduct at any time such investigations and studies as it considers 
necessary or appropriate in the exercise of its responsibilities under 
rule X. Subject to the adoption of expense resolutions as required by 
clause 6 of rule X, each committee may incur expenses, including travel 
expenses, in connection with such investigations and studies.


  (2) A proposed investigative or oversight report shall be considered 
as read in committee if it has been available to the members for at 
least 24 hours (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays except 
when the House is in session on such a day).

  (3) A report of an investigation or study conducted jointly by more 
than one committee may be filed jointly, provided that each of the 
committees complies independently with all requirements for approval and 
filing of the report.


  (4) After an adjournment sine die of the last regular session of a 
Congress, an investigative or oversight report may be filed with the 
Clerk at any time, provided that a member who gives timely notice of 
intention to file supplemental, minority, or additional views shall be 
entitled to not less than seven calendar days in which to submit such 
views for inclusion in the report.


  Paragraph (b)(1) was incorporated into the rules under the Committee 
Reform Amendments of 1974, effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d 
Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), and, together with clauses 2(m) and 2(n) 
of rule XI, eliminated the necessity that each committee obtain such 
authority each Congress by a separate resolution reported from the 
Committee on Rules. Paragraphs (b)(2), (b)(3), and (b)(4) were added in 
the 105th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). Clerical and 
stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified its rules in 
the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).


[[Page 513]]

counts of the House described in clause 1(i)(1) of rule X.



Sec. 789. Printing and binding.

  (c)  Each committee may have 
printed and bound such testimony and other data as may be presented at 
hearings held by the committee or its subcommittees. All costs of 
stenographic services and transcripts in connection with a meeting or 
hearing of a committee shall be paid from the applicable ac



  Paragraph (c) was made part of the rules by the Committee Reform 
Amendments of 1974, effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., 
Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470). In the 105th and 106th Congresses, it was 
amended to update a reference to the ``contingent fund'' (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Clerical and 
stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified its rules in 
the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).



Sec. 790. Activity reports.

  (d)(1)  Each committee shall 
submit to the House not later than January 2 of each odd-numbered year a 
report on the activities of that committee under this rule and rule X 
during the Congress ending at noon on January 3 of such year.


  (2) Such report shall include separate sections summarizing the 
legislative and oversight activities of that committee during that 
Congress.

  (3) The oversight section of such report shall include a summary of 
the oversight plans submitted by the committee under clause 2(d) of rule 
X, a summary of the actions taken and recommendations made with respect 
to each such plan, a summary of any additional oversight activities 
undertaken by that committee, and any recommendations made or actions 
taken thereon.


[[Page 514]]

  (4) After an adjournment sine die of the last regular session of a 
Congress, the chairman of a committee may file an activities report 
under subparagraph (1) with the Clerk at any time and without approval 
of the committee, provided that--

      (A) a copy of the report has been available to each member of the 
committee for at least seven calendar days; and


      (B) the report includes any supplemental, minority, or additional 
views submitted by a member of the committee.

  The provisions of paragraph (d)(1) were first made requirements of the 
rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144, 
incorporating the provisions of sec. 118(b) of the Legislative 
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140)), and effective on January 3, 
1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470) exemptions from 
the reporting requirements for the Committees on Appropriations, the 
Budget, House Administration, Rules, and Standards of Official Conduct 
were removed, so the paragraph from that point applied to all 
committees. The 104th Congress added paragraphs (d)(2) and (d)(3) to 
require that activity reports include separate sections on legislative 
and oversight activities, including a summary comparison of oversight 
plans and eventual recommendations and actions (sec. 203(b), H. Res. 6, 
Jan. 4, 1995, p. 467). Paragraph (d)(4) was added in the 105th Congress 
(H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). Clerical and stylistic changes were 
effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).


  Under the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995, the Committee on Rules 
is required to include in its activity report a separate item 
identifying all waivers of points of order relating to Federal mandates, 
listed by bill or joint resolution number and subject matter (sec. 
107(b), P.L. 104-4; 109 Stat. 63).

                                                       Rule XI, clause 2
Rule XI, clause 2
Adoption of written rules



791. Committee rules.

  2.  (a)(1) Each standing committee 
shall adopt written rules governing its procedure. Such rules--


      (A) shall be adopted in a meeting that is open to the public 
unless the committee, in open session and with a quorum present, 
determines by record vote that all or part of the meeting on that day 
shall be closed to the public;


[[Page 515]]

having the force and effect of Rules of the House; and
      (B) may not be inconsistent with the Rules of the House or with 
those provisions of law

      (C) shall in any event incorporate all of the succeeding 
provisions of this clause to the extent applicable.


  (2) Each committee shall submit its rules for publication in the 
Congressional Record not later than 30 days after the committee is 
elected in each odd-numbered year.

  The requirement that standing committees adopt written rules was first 
incorporated into the rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 
1971, p. 144), having been included in the Legislative Reorganization 
Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140). Under the Committee Reform Amendments of 
1974, clause 2(a) became effective in essentially its present form on 
January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470). In the 
94th Congress it was amended to permit a record vote to close the 
committee meeting at which committee rules are adopted only on the day 
of the meeting (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20). In the 102d Congress 
it was amended to allow a committee 30 days after the election of its 
members, rather than after the convening of the Congress, to publish its 
rules in the Congressional Record (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1991, p. 39). The 
provision requiring publication of committee rules in the Congressional 
Record derived from statute (2 U.S.C. 190a-2 (repealed 1979)). A court 
interpreted that statute to be mandatory in a case where a Senate 
committee failed to publish in the Record a rule regarding a quorum for 
the purpose of taking sworn testimony. In overturning a perjury 
conviction, the court held that the unpublished committee rule was not 
valid. United States v. Reinecke, 524 F.2d 435 (D.C. Cir. 1975). 
Clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified 
its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).

  Committees have historically adopted rules under which they function 
(I, 707; III, 1841, 1842; VIII, 2214). Committee rules are compiled by 
the Committee on Rules each Congress as a committee print. It is the 
responsibility of the committees, and not the House, to construe and 
enforce additional committee rules on the calling of committee meetings 
(Speaker Albert, July 22, 1974, pp. 24436-47). This provision requires a 
select committee to publish its adopted rules in the Record (June 25, 
1998, p. ----).


[[Page 516]]

for reporting bills and resolutions (clause 2(l) of rule XI) or failure 
to adhere to the former prohibition against committees meeting without 
permission while the House is operating under the five-minute rule 
(former clause 2(i) of rule XI) may in some instances be the basis for a 
point of order in the House, resulting in the recommitment of the bill. 
But a point of order does not ordinarily lie in the House against 
consideration of a bill by reason of defective committee procedures 
occurring prior to the time the bill is ordered reported to the House 
(Procedure, ch. 17, sec. 11.1).


Sec. 792. Committee procedure generally.

  Failure  to follow 
certain procedural requirements imposed on committees by this rule may 
invalidate committee actions. Violation of the requirements as to open 
meetings and hearings and other hearing irregularities improperly 
overruled (see clause 2(g)(5) of rule XI) or the prescribed committee 
procedures


  Many of the procedures applicable to committees derive from 
Jefferson's Manual, which govern the House and its committees in all 
cases to which they are applicable (clause 1 of rule XXVIII). A 
committee may act only when together, and not by separate consultation 
and consent, nothing being the report (or recommendation) of the 
committee except what has been agreed to in committee actually assembled 
(see Jefferson's Manual at Sec. 407, supra). A measure before a 
committee for consideration must be read for amendment by section as in 
the House (see Jefferson's Manual at Sec. Sec. 412-414, supra), and 
reading of the measure and of amendments thereto must be in full. The 
procedures applicable in the House as in the Committee of the Whole (see 
Sec. Sec. 424 and 427, supra) generally apply to proceedings in 
committees of the House of Representatives, except that since a measure 
considered in committee must be read for amendment, a motion to limit 
debate under the five-minute rule in committee must be confined to the 
portion of the bill then pending. The previous question may only be 
moved on the measure in committee if the entire measure has been read, 
or considered as read, for amendment.

  Committees generally conduct their business under the five-minute rule 
but may employ the ordinary motions which are in order in the House, 
such as under clause 4 of rule XVI, and may also employ the motion to 
limit debate under the five-minute rule on a proposition which has been 
read.
Regular meeting days


[[Page 517]]

Additional and special meetings


793. Committee meetings.

  (b)  Each standing committee shall 
establish regular meeting days for the conduct of its business, which 
shall be not less frequent than monthly. Each such committee shall meet 
for the consideration of a bill or resolution pending before the 
committee or the transaction of other committee business on all regular 
meeting days fixed by the committee unless otherwise provided by written 
rule adopted by the committee.


  (c)(1) The chairman of each standing committee may call and convene, 
as he considers necessary, additional and special meetings of the 
committee for the consideration of a bill or resolution pending before 
the committee or for the conduct of other committee business, subject to 
such rules as the committee may adopt. The committee shall meet for such 
purpose under that call of the chairman.


[[Page 518]]

considered. Immediately upon the filing of the request, the clerk of the 
committee shall notify the chairman of the filing of the request. If the 
chairman does not call the requested special meeting within three 
calendar days after the filing of the request (to be held within seven 
calendar days after the filing of the request) a majority of the members 
of the committee may file in the offices of the committee their written 
notice that a special meeting of the committee will be held. The written 
notice shall specify the date and hour of the special meeting and the 
measure or matter to be considered. The committee shall meet on that 
date and hour. Immediately upon the filing of the notice, the clerk of 
the committee shall notify all members of the committee that such 
special meeting will be held and inform them of its date and hour and 
the measure or matter to be considered. Only the measure or matter 
specified in that notice may be considered at that special meeting.
Temporary absence of chairman
  (2) Three or more members of a standing committee may file in the 
offices of the committee a written request that the chairman call a 
special meeting of the committee. Such request shall specify the measure 
or matter to be


  (d) A member of the majority party on each standing committee or 
subcommittee thereof shall be designated by the chairman of the full 
committee as the vice chairman of the committee or subcommittee, as the 
case may be, and shall preside during the absence of the chairman from 
any meeting. If the chairman and vice chairman of a committee or 
subcommittee are not present at any meeting of the committee or 
subcommittee, the ranking majority member who is present shall preside 
at that meeting.

  Paragraphs (b), (c), and (d) were first adopted on December 8, 1931 
(VIII, 2208), were amended on January 3, 1953 (p. 24), and were revised 
both by the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and 
in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). In the 102d 
Congress paragraph (d) was amended to provide that the ranking majority 
Member of each committee and subcommittee be designated as its vice 
chairman (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1991, p. 39). In the 104th Congress 
paragraph (d) was amended to permit the chairman of a full committee to 
designate vice chairmen of the committee and its subcommittees (sec. 
223(c), H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 477). Clerical and stylistic changes 
were effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress 
(H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).

  A committee scheduled to meet on stated days, when convened on such 
day with a quorum present may proceed to the transaction of business 
regardless of the absence of the chairman (VIII, 2213, 2214). A 
committee meeting being adjourned for lack of a quorum, a majority of 
the members of the committee may not, without the consent of the 
chairman, call a meeting of the committee on the same day (VIII, 2213).
Committee records


[[Page 519]]



794. Required records.

  (e)(1)(A)  Each committee shall keep 
a complete record of all committee action which shall include--


      (i) in the case of a meeting or hearing transcript, a 
substantially verbatim account of remarks actually made during the 
proceedings, subject only to technical, grammatical, and typographical 
corrections authorized by the person making the remarks involved; and

      (ii) a record of the votes on any question on which a record vote 
is demanded.



Sec. 795. Public availability.

  (B)(i)  Except as provided in 
subdivision (B)(ii) and subject to paragraph (k)(7), the result of each 
such record vote shall be made available by the committee for inspection 
by the public at reasonable times in its offices. Information so 
available for public inspection shall include a description of the 
amendment, motion, order, or other proposition, the name of each member 
voting for and each member voting against such amendment, motion, order, 
or proposition, and the names of those members of the committee present 
but not voting.


  (ii) The result of any record vote taken in executive session in the 
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct may not be made available for 
inspection by the public without an affirmative vote of a majority of 
the members of the committee.


[[Page 520]]

House, and each Member, Delegate, and the Resident Commissioner shall 
have access thereto.


Sec. 796. Committee files.

  (2)(A)  Except as provided in 
subdivision (B), all committee hearings, records, data, charts, and 
files shall be kept separate and distinct from the congressional office 
records of the member serving as its chairman. Such records shall be the 
property of the


  (B) A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner, other than members 
of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, may not have access 
to the records of that committee respecting the conduct of a Member, 
Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House 
without the specific prior permission of that committee.

  (3) Each committee shall include in its rules standards for 
availability of records of the committee delivered to the Archivist of 
the United States under rule VII. Such standards shall specify 
procedures for orders of the committee under clause 3(b)(3) and clause 
4(b) of rule VII, including a requirement that nonavailability of a 
record for a period longer than the period otherwise applicable under 
that rule shall be approved by vote of the committee.


  (4) Each committee shall make its publications available in electronic 
form to the maximum extent feasible.


[[Page 521]]

Effective on January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 
34470), the requirement that proxy votes in committee be made available 
for public inspection was eliminated from this paragraph since proxies 
were prohibited as of that date, but in the 94th Congress clause 2(f) of 
rule XI was amended to permit proxies in committee, and this paragraph 
was likewise amended to reinsert the requirement of availability for 
public inspection (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20). When proxy voting 
was again eliminated in the 104th Congress, the reference thereto in the 
third sentence of paragraph (e)(1) was deleted (sec. 104(b), H. Res. 6, 
Jan. 4, 1995, p. 463). Paragraph (e)(2) derives from section 202(d) of 
the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (60 Stat. 812), was made a 
part of the rules in the 83d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1953, p. 24), 
and was amended in the 95th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-
70) to restrict the access of Members to certain records of the 
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct. Paragraph (e)(3) was added 
in the 101st Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1989, p. 72). Paragraph (e)(4) 
was added in the 105th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). 
Clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified 
its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
  The first sentence of paragraph (e)(1) was rewritten entirely in the 
104th Congress (sec. 206, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 475). Its 
predecessor, requiring a complete record of all committee actions, 
including votes on any question on which a roll call was demanded, was 
enacted as section 133(b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 
(60 Stat. 812) and made part of the standing rules on January 3, 1953 
(p. 24). The requirement that committee roll calls be subject to public 
inspection was added by section 104(b) of the Legislative Reorganization 
Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and made a part of the rules in the 92d 
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). The qualified exception for 
the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct from the requirement of 
public availability of record votes was added in the 105th Congress 
(sec. 8, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. ----).


[[Page 522]]

  A Member's right to access to committee records under this clause does 
not entitle him to make photostatic copies of such records (Speaker 
Rayburn, Aug. 14, 1957, pp. 14737-39), and such records may not be 
brought into the well of the House if the committee has not authorized 
such action (Speaker Rayburn, June 3, 1960, p. 11820). Furthermore, such 
access allows a Member to examine executive session materials only in 
committee rooms and does not permit a Member to copy or to take personal 
notes from such materials, to keep such notes or copies in his personal 
office files, or to release such materials to the public without the 
consent of the committee or subcommittee under clause 2(k)(7) of rule XI 
(Speaker O'Neill, Dec. 6, 1977, pp. 38470-73). This clause allowing all 
Members access to committee records and materials which are the property 
of the House does not necessarily apply to records within the possession 
of the executive branch which the members of the committee have been 
allowed to examine under limited conditions at the discretion of the 
executive agency in possession of such materials (Speaker O'Neill, July 
31, 1980, p. 20765). Also, this clause does not apply to records (an 
executive communication not yet referred to committee) in the possession 
of the House (Sept. 9, 1998, p. ----). In the 105th Congress the House 
adopted a resolution restricting Members' access to documents received 
from an independent counsel (said to relate to possible grounds for 
impeachment of the President) and referred to the Committee on the 
Judiciary (H. Res. 525, Sept. 11, 1998, p. ----). Compare this clause 
with clause 11(g)(3) of rule X, which only permits access of nonmembers 
of the Select Committee on Intelligence to classified information in the 
possession of that committee when authorized by that committee.

  While all Members have access to committee records under this clause, 
testimony or evidence taken in executive sessions of a committee is 
under the control and subject to the regulation of the committee and, 
under clause 2(k)(7) of rule XI (Sec. 803, infra), cannot be released 
without the consent of the committee (June 26, 1961, p. 11233; see also 
Procedure, ch. 17, sec. 15). A resolution directing a standing committee 
to release executive-session material referred to it as such by special 
rule of the House was held to propose a change in the rules and, 
therefore, not to constitute a question of the privileges of the House 
under rule IX (Sept. 23, 1998, p. ----).


Prohibition against proxy voting
  In implementing clause 2(e), committees may prescribe regulations to 
govern the manner of access to their records, such as requiring 
examination only in committee rooms. See, for example, the rules of the 
Committees on the Budget, International Relations, and Armed Services, 
as compiled by the Committee on Rules.




797. Ban on proxies.

  (f)  A vote by a member of a committee 
or subcommittee with respect to any measure or matter may not be cast by 
proxy.


  The 104th Congress adopted paragraph (f) in this form (sec. 104, H. 
Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 463). An earlier form of the provision was 
enacted as section 106(b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 
(84 Stat. 1140) and made part of the standing rules in the 92d Congress 
(H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). Clerical and stylistic changes were 
effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).


Open meetings and hearings
  The original form of this paragraph permitted committees to adopt 
written rules permitting proxies in writing, designating the persons to 
execute them and specifying the measures or matters to which they 
applied. Effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 
1974, p. 34470), proxies in committee were prohibited, but in the 94th 
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20), the rule was amended to 
permit proxies in committees with additional restrictions requiring an 
assertion that the grantor was absent on official business or otherwise 
unable to attend, requiring the Member to sign and date the proxy, and 
permitting general proxies for procedural matters.


[[Page 523]]

subcommittee thereof (other than the Committee on Standards of Official 
Conduct or its subcommittees) shall be open to the public, including to 
radio, television, and still photography coverage, except when the 
committee or subcommittee, in open session and with a majority present, 
determines by record vote that all or part of the remainder of the 
meeting on that day shall be in executive session because disclosure of 
matters to be considered would endanger national security, would 
compromise sensitive law enforcement information, would tend to defame, 
degrade, or incriminate any person, or otherwise would violate a law or 
rule of the House. Persons, other than members of the committee and such 
noncommittee Members, Delegates, Resident Commissioner, congressional 
staff, or departmental representatives as the committee may authorize, 
may not be present at a business or markup session that is held in 
executive session. This subparagraph does not apply to open committee 
hearings, which are governed by clause 4(a)(1) of rule X or by 
subparagraph (2).


798. Open meetings and hearings.

  (g)(1)  Each meeting for 
the transaction of business, including the markup of legislation, by a 
standing committee or



[[Page 524]]

mony, evidence, or other matters to be considered would endanger 
national security, would compromise sensitive law enforcement 
information, or would violate a law or rule of the House.
  (2)(A) Each hearing conducted by a committee or subcommittee (other 
than the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct or its 
subcommittees) shall be open to the public, including to radio, 
television, and still photography coverage, except when the committee or 
subcommittee, in open session and with a majority present, determines by 
record vote that all or part of the remainder of that hearing on that 
day shall be closed to the public because disclosure of testi

  (B) Notwithstanding the requirements of subdivision (A), in the 
presence of the number of members required under the rules of the 
committee for the purpose of taking testimony, a majority of those 
present may--

      (i) agree to close the hearing for the sole purpose of discussing 
whether testimony or evidence to be received would endanger national 
security, would compromise sensitive law enforcement information, or 
would violate clause 2(k)(5); or

      (ii) agree to close the hearing as provided in clause 2(k)(5).

  (C) A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner may not be excluded 
from non-
participatory attendance at a hearing of a committee or subcommittee 
(other than the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct or its 
subcommittees) unless the House by majority vote authorizes a particular 
committee or subcommittee, for purposes of a particular series of 
hearings on a particular article of legislation or on a particular 
subject of investigation, to close its hearings to Members, Delegates, 
and the Resident Commissioner by the same procedures specified in this 
subparagraph for closing hearings to the public.


[[Page 525]]

paragraph to close one subsequent day of hearing, except that the 
Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Armed Services, and the 
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and the subcommittees 
thereof, may vote by the same procedure to close up to five additional, 
consecutive days of hearings.
  (D) The committee or subcommittee may vote by the same procedure 
described in this sub

  (3) The chairman of each committee (other than the Committee on Rules) 
shall make public announcement of the date, place, and subject matter of 
a committee hearing at least one week before the commencement of the 
hearing. If the chairman of the committee, with the concurrence of the 
ranking minority member, determines that there is good cause to begin a 
hearing sooner, or if the committee so determines by majority vote in 
the presence of the number of members required under the rules of the 
committee for the transaction of business, the chairman shall make the 
announcement at the earliest possible date. An announcement made under 
this subparagraph shall be published promptly in the Daily Digest and 
made available in electronic form.


[[Page 526]]

amount and source (by agency and program) of each Federal grant (or 
subgrant thereof) or contract (or subcontract thereof) received during 
the current fiscal year or either of the two previous fiscal years by 
the witness or by an entity represented by the witness.
  (4) Each committee shall, to the greatest extent practicable, require 
witnesses who appear before it to submit in advance written statements 
of proposed testimony and to limit their initial presentations to the 
committee to brief summaries thereof. In the case of a witness appearing 
in a nongovernmental capacity, a written statement of proposed testimony 
shall include a curriculum vitae and a disclosure of the

  (5)(A) Except as provided in subdivision (B), a point of order does 
not lie with respect to a measure reported by a committee on the ground 
that hearings on such measure were not conducted in accordance with this 
clause.

  (B) A point of order on the ground described in subdivision (A) may be 
made by a member of the committee that reported the measure if such 
point of order was timely made and improperly disposed of in the 
committee.


  (6) This paragraph does not apply to hearings of the Committee on 
Appropriations under clause 4(a)(1) of rule X.


[[Page 527]]

tees, when voting in open session with a quorum present, to close a 
hearing on that particular day and for up to five additional days, for a 
total of not to exceed six days (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1983, p. 34). In the 
104th Congress the paragraph was amended to require that meetings and 
hearings open to the public also be open to broadcast and photographic 
media; subparagraph (2) was further amended to permit closed meetings 
only on specified conditions and to delete an exception for meetings 
relating to internal budget or personnel matters and to specify a new 
condition (sensitive law enforcement information) for closing hearings 
(sec. 105, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 463). The paragraph was also 
amended to conform references to renamed committees (sec. 202(b), H. 
Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 467; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). In the 
105th Congress subparagraphs (1) and (2) were again amended to reflect 
an amendment to former clause 4(e)(3) of rule X (currently clause 3 of 
rule XI) requiring meetings of the Committee on Standards of Official 
Conduct to occur in executive session (except for adjudicatory 
subcommittee meetings or full committee sanction hearings) unless opened 
by an affirmative vote of a majority of members (sec. 5, H. Res. 168, 
Sept. 18, 1997, p. ----). Subparagraphs (3)-(6) derive from sections 
111(b), 113(b), 115(b), and 242(c) respectively of the Legislative 
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and became part of the rules 
in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). Effective 
January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), these 
provisions were inadvertently omitted from the rules, and were therefore 
reinserted in the 94th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20). 
Subparagraph (3) was amended in the 97th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 5, 
1981, pp. 98-113) to add the requirement of prompt entering of public 
notice of committee meetings into the committee scheduling service of 
the House Information Resources. Subparagraph (3) was again amended in 
the 104th Congress to permit the calling of a hearing on less than seven 
days' notice upon a determination of good cause either by vote of the 
committee or subcommittee or by its chairman with the concurrence of its 
ranking minority member (H. Res. 43, Jan. 31, 1995, p. 3028). In the 
105th and 106th Congresses subparagraphs (3) and (2) (respectively) were 
amended to effect a technical correction (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. --
--; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Subparagraph (4) was rewritten in 
the 105th Congress to encourage committees to elicit curricula vitae and 
disclosures of certain interests from nongovernmental witnesses (H. Res. 
5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). Clerical and stylistic changes were effected 
when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
  Subparagraphs (1) and (2) relating to open committee meetings and 
hearings, were first made part of the rules on March 7, 1973 (H. Res. 
259, 93d Cong., pp. 6713-20). They were amended in the 94th Congress (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20), to limit to one day (in case of a 
committee meeting) or to one day plus one subsequent day (in the case of 
a hearing) the period during which a committee may close its session. 
They were again amended in the 95th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977, 
pp. 53-70), to require that a majority (rather than a quorum) be present 
when a committee or subcommittee votes to close a meeting or hearing and 
to provide that a noncommittee Member cannot be excluded from a hearing 
except by a vote of the House. However, subparagraph (2) was amended in 
the 96th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 15, 1979, p. 8) to permit a majority 
of those present under the rules of the committee for the purpose of 
taking testimony (not less than two members as provided in clause 
2(h)(2) of rule XI) to vote to close a hearing either to discuss whether 
the testimony would endanger national security or would violate clause 
2(k)(5) of this rule, or to proceed to close the hearing as provided by 
clause 2(k)(5). In the 98th Congress subparagraph (2) was amended 
further to permit the Committees on Appropriations, Armed Services, and 
Intelligence, and their subcommit



[[Page 528]]


Quorum requirements
  In the 105th Congress the House adopted a resolution restricting 
access to meetings and hearings held by the Committee on the Judiciary 
on a communication received from an independent counsel relating to 
possible grounds for impeachment of the President (H. Res. 525, Sept. 
11, 1998, p. ----).




799. Requirement of quorum.

  (h)(1)  A measure or 
recommendation may not be reported by a committee unless a majority of 
the committee is actually present.


  This subparagraph (former clause 2(l)(2)(A) is from section 133(d) of 
the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (60 Stat. 812) and was made a 
part of the rules on January 3, 1953 (p. 24). Before the House 
recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, this provision was found in 
former clause 2(l)(2)(A) of rule XI (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). 
The point of order that a bill was reported from a committee without a 
formal meeting and a quorum present comes too late if debate has started 
on a bill in the House (VIII, 2223; Feb. 24, 1947, p. 1374). No 
committee report is valid unless authorized with a quorum of the 
committee actually present at the time the vote is taken (IV, 4584; 
VIII, 2211, 2212, 2221, 2222), and while Speakers have indicated that 
committee members may come and go during the course of the vote if the 
roll call indicates that a quorum was present (VIII, 2222), where it is 
admitted that a quorum was not in the room at any time during the vote 
and the committee transcript does not show a quorum acting as a quorum, 
the Chair will sustain the point of order (VIII, 2212). In the 103d 
Congress, this provision was amended to provide that responses to roll 
calls in committee be deemed contemporaneous and to require that a point 
of no quorum with respect to a committee report be timely asserted in 
committee or considered waived (H. Res. 5, Jan. 5, 1993, p. 49), but in 
the 104th Congress both of those features were deleted from the rule 
(sec. 207, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 467).


  Where the committee transcript was not conclusive and the manager of 
the bill gave absolute assurance that a majority of the full committee 
was actually present when the bill was ordered reported the Speaker 
overruled a point of order made under this provision (Oct. 22, 1987, p. 
28807). A point of no quorum pending a committee vote on ordering a 
measure reported may provoke a quorum call requiring a majority of the 
committee to be present in the committee room. A committee may act only 
when together, nothing being the report of the committee except what has 
been agreed to in committee actually assembled (see Jefferson's Manual 
at Sec. 407, supra).


[[Page 529]]



Sec. 800. Reduced quorum.

  (2)  Each committee may fix the 
number of its members to constitute a quorum for taking testimony and 
receiving evidence, which may not be less than two.



  (3) Each committee (other than the Committee on Appropriations, the 
Committee on the Budget, and the Committee on Ways and Means) may fix 
the number of its members to constitute a quorum for taking any action 
other than the reporting of a measure or recommendation, which may not 
be less than one-third of the members.

  Subparagraphs (2) and (3) (former subparagraphs (1) and (2)) were 
adopted in the 84th Congress and only related to the authority of a 
committee to fix a quorum of not less than two for taking testimony (H. 
Res. 151, Mar. 23, 1955, pp. 3569, 3585). In the 95th Congress (H. Res. 
5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-70) subparagraph (3) (former subparagraph (2)) 
was added to authorize committees to fix a quorum less than a majority 
for certain other action. Before the House recodified its rules in the 
106th Congress, paragraph (h) consisted only of subparagraphs (2) and 
(3) (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Under clause 2(g) of this rule, 
a majority of a committee or subcommittee must be present when a 
committee or subcommittee votes to close a meeting or hearing. Under 
clause 2(m) of this rule a majority of a committee or subcommittee must 
be present to authorize and issue a subpoena. Under subparagraph (1) a 
majority of a committee or subcommittee must be present to order a 
measure or recommendation reported.


Limitation on committee sittings
  By unanimous consent the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct 
was authorized to receive evidence and take testimony before a quorum of 
one of its members for the remainder of the second session of the 100th 
Congress (Oct. 13, 1988, p. 30467). Authority for a committee to conduct 
depositions or interrogatories before one member or staff of the 
committee must be specifically conferred by the House (see, e.g., H. 
Res. 167, 105th Cong., June 20, 1997, p. ----).




801. Committees not to sit.

  (i)  A committee may not sit 
during a joint session of the House and Senate or during a recess when a 
joint meeting of the House and Senate is in progress.



[[Page 530]]

proscribe sittings during the five-minute rule by the Legislative 
Reorganization Act of 1970 (sec. 117(b); 84 Stat. 1140) and this 
revision was made part of the standing rules in the 92d Congress (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 14). Effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 
93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), the committees exempted from this 
clause were Appropriations, Budget, and Rules; and in the 95th Congress 
(H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-70), the Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct was also exempted. The Committee on Ways and Means was 
traditionally permitted to sit during proceedings under the five-minute 
rule by unanimous consent granted each Congress (Jan. 29, 1975, p. 1677) 
until it was exempted from the rule in the 97th Congress (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 5, 1981, pp. 98-113). A provision that special leave to sit be 
granted if ten Members did not object was added to the clause in the 
95th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-70). An exemption for the 
Committee on House Administration and the prohibition against committee 
meetings during joint meetings or joint sessions were added in the 101st 
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1989, p. 72). In the 103d Congress the 
prohibition against sitting during proceedings under the five-minute 
rule was stricken altogether (H. Res. 5, Jan. 5, 1993, p. 49), but in 
the 104th Congress the former rule was reinstated with exemptions for 
the Committees on Appropriations, the Budget, Rules, Standards of 
Official Conduct, and Ways and Means, and also with the provision for a 
privileged motion by the Majority Leader (sec. 208, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 
1995, p. 467), on which he controlled one hour of debate (Jan. 23, 1995, 
p. 2209). In the 105th Congress so much of paragraph (i) as related to 
proceedings under the five-minute rule was again stricken (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). Clerical and stylistic changes were effected 
when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).

Calling and questioning of witnesses
  A clause regulating when committees could sit had its origin in 1794. 
It was omitted from rule XI in the adoption of rules for the 80th 
Congress but remained effective as part of the Legislative 
Reorganization Act of 1946, the applicable provisions of which were 
continued as a part of the Rules of the House. While the rule formerly 
prohibited committees from sitting at any time when the House was in 
session, it was narrowed to



802. Witnesses.

  (j)(1)  Whenever a hearing is conducted by a 
committee on a measure or matter, the minority members of the committee 
shall be entitled, upon request to the chairman by a majority of them 
before the completion of the hearing, to call witnesses selected by the 
minority to testify with respect to that measure or matter during at 
least one day of hearing thereon.



[[Page 531]]

ing the questioning of witnesses in a hearing until such time as each 
member of the committee who so desires has had an opportunity to 
question each witness.
  (2)(A) Subject to subdivisions (B) and (C), each committee shall apply 
the five-minute rule dur

  (B) A committee may adopt a rule or motion permitting a specified 
number of its members to question a witness for longer than five 
minutes. The time for extended questioning of a witness under this 
subdivision shall be equal for the majority party and the minority party 
and may not exceed one hour in the aggregate.


  (C) A committee may adopt a rule or motion permitting committee staff 
for its majority and minority party members to question a witness for 
equal specified periods. The time for extended questioning of a witness 
under this subdivision shall be equal for the majority party and the 
minority party and may not exceed one hour in the aggregate.



[[Page 532]]


Investigative hearing procedures
  Paragraph (j)(1) was contained in section 114(b) of the Legislative 
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and was made a part of the 
rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). Paragraph 
(j)(2) was added to the rules on that latter date. While a majority of 
the minority members of a committee are entitled to call witnesses 
selected by the minority for at least one day of hearings, no rule of 
the House requires the calling of witnesses on opposing sides of an 
issue (Oct. 14, 1987, p. 27921). In the 105th Congress paragraph (j)(2) 
was redesignated as (2)(A) and two new subparagraphs were added as 
(2)(B) and (2)(C) to enable committees to permit extended examinations 
of witnesses (for 30 additional minutes by designated members) or by 
staff (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). A technical correction was 
effected in the 106th Congress to clarify the procedure to extend 
questioning, and clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the 
House recodified its rules in the same Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 
1999, p. ----).



803. Hearing procedure.

  (k)(1)  The chairman at an 
investigative hearing shall announce in an opening statement the subject 
of the investigation.


  (2) A copy of the committee rules and of this clause shall be made 
available to each witness.

  (3) Witnesses at investigative hearings may be accompanied by their 
own counsel for the purpose of advising them concerning their 
constitutional rights.

  (4) The chairman may punish breaches of order and decorum, and of 
professional ethics on the part of counsel, by censure and exclusion 
from the hearings; and the committee may cite the offender to the House 
for contempt.

  (5) Whenever it is asserted that the evidence or testimony at an 
investigative hearing may tend to defame, degrade, or incriminate any 
person--

      (A) notwithstanding paragraph (g)(2), such testimony or evidence 
shall be presented in executive session if, in the presence of the 
number of members required under the rules of the committee for the 
purpose of taking testimony, the committee determines by vote of a 
majority of those present that such evidence or testimony may tend to 
defame, degrade, or incriminate any person; and


[[Page 533]]

tend to defame, degrade, or incriminate any person.
In either case the committee shall afford such person an opportunity 
voluntarily to appear as a witness, and receive and dispose of requests 
from such person to subpoena additional witnesses.
      (B) the committee shall proceed to receive such testimony in open 
session only if the committee, a majority being present, determines that 
such evidence or testimony will not

  (6) Except as provided in subparagraph (5), the chairman shall receive 
and the committee shall dispose of requests to subpoena additional 
witnesses.

  (7) Evidence or testimony taken in executive session, and proceedings 
conducted in executive session, may be released or used in public 
sessions only when authorized by the committee, a majority being 
present.

  (8) In the discretion of the committee, witnesses may submit brief and 
pertinent sworn statements in writing for inclusion in the record. The 
committee is the sole judge of the pertinence of testimony and evidence 
adduced at its hearing.


  (9) A witness may obtain a transcript copy of his testimony given at a 
public session or, if given at an executive session, when authorized by 
the committee.


[[Page 534]]

to permit a committee or subcommittee to hear testimony asserted to be 
defamatory in executive session upon a determination by a majority of 
those present that such testimony is indeed defamatory, degrading, or 
incriminating. In the 105th Congress subparagraph (5) was amended to 
clarify a majority of those voting (a full quorum being present) may 
decide to proceed in open session (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). 
Clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the House recodified 
its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). The 
requirements of clause 2(g)(1) and (2), and of 2(m)(2)(A), of this rule 
that a majority of the committee or subcommittee shall constitute a 
quorum for the purposes of closing meetings or hearings or issuing 
subpoenas have been construed to require, under clause 2(k)(7) of this 
rule, that a majority shall likewise constitute a quorum to release or 
make public any evidence or testimony received in any closed meeting or 
hearing and any other executive session record of the committee or 
subcommittee. See also clauses 11(c) and 11(g) of rule X, which provide 
that executive session material transmitted by the Permanent Select 
Committee on Intelligence to another committee of the House becomes the 
executive session material of the recipient committee by virtue of the 
nature of the material and the injunction of clause 11(g) of rule X 
which prohibit disclosure of information provided to committees or 
Members of the House except in a secret session. A resolution directing 
a standing committee to release executive-session material referred to 
it as such by special rule of the House was held to propose a change in 
the rules and, therefore, not to constitute a question of the privileges 
of the House under rule IX (Sept. 23, 1998, p. ----).

Supplemental, minority, or additional views
  The provisions of paragraph (k) were first incorporated into the rules 
in the 84th Congress (H. Res. 151, Mar. 23, 1955, pp. 3569, 3585). The 
requirement of paragraph (k)(2) that a copy of committee rules be 
furnished to each witness was added in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 
22, 1971, p. 144), and the former requirement of paragraph (k)(9) that a 
witness must pay the cost of a transcript copy of his testimony was 
eliminated under the Committee Reform Amendments of 1974, effective 
January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470). 
Paragraph (k)(5) was amended in the 96th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 15, 
1979, pp. 7-16)



[[Page 535]]




804. Minority views.

  (l)  If at the time of approval of a 
measure or matter by a committee (other than the Committee on Rules) a 
member of the committee gives notice of intention to file supplemental, 
minority, or additional views for inclusion in the report to the House 
thereon, that member shall be entitled to not less than two additional 
calendar days after the day of such notice (excluding Saturdays, 
Sundays, and legal holidays except when the House is in session on such 
a day) to file such views, in writing and signed by that member, with 
the clerk of the committee.



Power to sit and act; subpoena power
  This provision was originally included in section 107 of the 
Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) and was 
incorporated into the rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 
1971, p. 144). In the 104th Congress it was amended to count as a 
``calendar day'' any day on which the House is in session (H. Res. 254, 
Nov. 30, 1995, p. ----). In the 105th Congress it was further amended to 
reduce the guaranteed time for composing separate views from three full 
days to two full days after the day of notice (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, 
p. ----). Before the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, 
paragraph (l) consisted of this paragraph and current clause 2(c) of 
rule XIII (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).



805. Power to sit and to issue subpoenas; oaths.

  (m)(1)  For 
the purpose of carrying out any of its functions and duties under this 
rule and rule X (including any matters referred to it under clause 2 of 
rule XII), a committee or subcommittee is authorized (subject to 
subparagraph (2)(A))--


      (A) to sit and act at such times and places within the United 
States, whether the House is in session, has recessed, or has adjourned, 
and to hold such hearings as it considers necessary; and

      (B) to require, by subpoena or otherwise, the attendance and 
testimony of such witnesses and the production of such books, records, 
correspondence, memoranda, papers, and documents as it considers 
necessary.

  (2) The chairman of the committee, or a member designated by the 
chairman, may administer oaths to witnesses.


[[Page 536]]

authorized by the committee or subcommittee, a majority being present. 
The power to authorize and issue subpoenas under subparagraph (1)(B) may 
be delegated to the chairman of the committee under such rules and under 
such limitations as the committee may prescribe. Authorized subpoenas 
shall be signed by the chairman of the committee or by a member 
designated by the committee.
  (3)(A)(i) Except as provided in subdivision (A)(ii), a subpoena may be 
authorized and issued by a committee or subcommittee under subparagraph 
(1)(B) in the conduct of an investigation or series of investigations or 
activities only when

  (ii) In the case of a subcommittee of the Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct, a subpoena may be authorized and issued only by an 
affirmative vote of a majority of its members.

  (B) A subpoena duces tecum may specify terms of return other than at a 
meeting or hearing of the committee or subcommittee authorizing the 
subpoena.


  (C) Compliance with a subpoena issued by a committee or subcommittee 
under subparagraph (1)(B) may be enforced only as authorized or directed 
by the House.


[[Page 537]]

105th Congress (sec. 15, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. ----). In the 
106th Congress subparagraph (3)(B) was added, and clerical and stylistic 
changes were effected when the House recodified its rules in the same 
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).
  Prior to the adoption of clause 2(m) under the Committee Reform 
Amendments of 1974, effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., 
Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), only the Committees on Appropriations, the 
Budget, Government Operations, Internal Security, and Standards of 
Official Conduct were permitted by the standing rules to perform the 
functions as specified in subparagraphs (1)(A) and (1)(B), and other 
standing and select committees were given those authorities by separate 
resolutions reported from the Committee on Rules each Congress. In the 
94th Congress the paragraph was amended to require authorized subpoenas 
to be signed by the chairman of the full committee or any member 
designated by the committee (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20); and in 
the 95th Congress the paragraph was altered to permit subcommittees, as 
well as full committees, to authorize subpoenas and to allow the 
delegation of such authority to the chairman of the full committee (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-70). The special rule for authorizing and 
issuing a subpoena of a subcommittee of the Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct was adopted in the

  A subpoena issued under this clause need only be signed by the 
chairman of the committee or by any member designated by the committee, 
whereas when the House issues an order or warrant the Speaker must under 
clause 4 of rule I issue the summons under his hand and seal, and it 
must be attested by the Clerk pursuant to clause 2(c) of rule II (former 
clause 3 of rule III) (III, 1668; see H. Rept. 96-1078, p. 22). Pursuant 
to 2 U.S.C. 191, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House 
of Representatives, or a chairman of any joint committee established by 
a joint or concurrent resolution of the two Houses of Congress, or of a 
committee of the whole, or of any committee of either House of Congress, 
is empowered to administer oaths to witnesses in any case under their 
examination, and any Member of either House of Congress may administer 
oaths to witnesses in any matter depending in either House of Congress 
of which he is a Member, or any committee thereof.


  While under this clause the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct 
may issue subpoenas in investigating the conduct of a Member, officer, 
or employee of the House (the extent of the committee's jurisdiction 
under rule X and functions under clause 3 of rule XI), where the House 
mandates a possible investigation by that committee of other persons not 
directly associated with the House, the committee's jurisdiction is 
thereby enlarged and a broader subpoena authority must be conferred on 
the committee (Mar. 3, 1976, p. 5165). Subparagraph (3)(B) (former 
subparagraph (2)(B)) has been interpreted to require authorization by 
the full House before a subcommittee chairman could intervene in a law 
suit in order to gain access to documents subpoenaed by the 
subcommittee. In re Beef Industry Antitrust Litigation, 589 F.2d 786 
(5th Cir. 1979). The authority conferred in clause 2(m)(1)(B) to require 
information ``by subpoena or otherwise'' has not been interpreted to 
authorize depositions and interrogatories. That authority must be 
conferred by separate action of the House (see Sec. 800, supra).

                                                       Rule XI, clause 3
Rule XI, clause 3
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct



806. Standards of Official Conduct; additional 
duties.

  3. (a) The  Committee on Standards of Official Conduct has the following 
functions:



[[Page 538]]

tablish or enforce standards of official conduct for Members, Delegates, 
the Resident Commissioner, officers, and employees of the House. A 
letter of reproval or other administrative action of the committee 
pursuant to an investigation under subparagraph (2) shall only be issued 
or implemented as a part of a report required by such subparagraph.
      (1) The committee may recommend to the House from time to time 
such administrative actions as it may consider appropriate to es

      (2) The committee may investigate, subject to paragraph (b), an 
alleged violation by a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, 
or employee of the House of the Code of Official Conduct or of a law, 
rule, regulation, or other standard of conduct applicable to the conduct 
of such Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee in 
the performance of his duties or the discharge of his responsibilities. 
After notice and hearing (unless the right to a hearing is waived by the 
Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee), the 
committee shall report to the House its findings of fact and 
recommendations, if any, for the final disposition of any such 
investigation and such action as the committee may consider appropriate 
in the circumstances.


[[Page 539]]

law applicable to the performance of his duties or the discharge of his 
responsibilities that may have been disclosed in a committee 
investigation.
      (3) The committee may report to the appropriate Federal or State 
authorities, either with the approval of the House or by an affirmative 
vote of two-thirds of the members of the committee, any substantial 
evidence of a violation by a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, 
officer, or employee of the House, of a

      (4) The committee may consider the request of a Member, Delegate, 
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House for an advisory 
opinion with respect to the general propriety of any current or proposed 
conduct of such Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or 
employee. With appropriate deletions to ensure the privacy of the person 
concerned, the committee may publish such opinion for the guidance of 
other Members, Delegates, the Resident Commissioner, officers, and 
employees of the House.

      (5) The committee may consider the request of a Member, Delegate, 
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House for a written 
waiver in exceptional circumstances with respect to clause 4 of rule 
XXIV.

  (b)(1)(A) Unless approved by an affirmative vote of a majority of its 
members, the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct may not report a 
resolution, report, recommendation, or advisory opinion relating to the 
official conduct of a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, 
or employee of the House, or, except as provided in subparagraph (2), 
undertake an investigation of such conduct.


[[Page 540]]

man and ranking minority member jointly may appoint members to serve as 
an investigative subcommittee.
  (B)(i) Upon the receipt of information offered as a complaint that is 
in compliance with this rule and the rules of the committee, the chair

  (ii) The chairman and ranking minority member of the committee jointly 
may gather additional information concerning alleged conduct that is the 
basis of a complaint or of information offered as a complaint until they 
have established an investigative subcommittee or either of them has 
placed on the agenda of the committee the issue of whether to establish 
an investigative subcommittee.

  (2) Except in the case of an investigation undertaken by the committee 
on its own initiative, the committee may undertake an investigation 
relating to the official conduct of an individual Member, Delegate, 
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House only--

      (A) upon receipt of information offered as a complaint, in writing 
and under oath, from a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner and 
transmitted to the committee by such Member, Delegate, or Resident 
Commissioner; or


[[Page 541]]

If a complaint is not disposed of within the applicable periods set 
forth in the rules of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, 
the chairman and ranking minority member shall establish jointly an 
investigative subcommittee and forward the complaint, or any portion 
thereof, to that subcommittee for its consideration. However, if at any 
time during those periods either the chairman or ranking minority member 
places on the agenda the issue of whether to establish an investigative 
subcommittee, then an investigative subcommittee may be established only 
by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.
      (B) upon receipt of information offered as a complaint, in writing 
and under oath, from a person not a Member, Delegate, or Resident 
Commissioner provided that a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner 
certifies in writing to the committee that he believes the information 
is submitted in good faith and warrants the review and consideration of 
the committee.

  (3) The committee may not undertake an investigation of an alleged 
violation of a law, rule, regulation, or standard of conduct that was 
not in effect at the time of the alleged violation. The committee may 
not undertake an investigation of such an alleged violation that 
occurred before the third previous Congress unless the committee 
determines that the alleged violation is directly related to an alleged 
violation that occurred in a more recent Congress.


[[Page 542]]

proceeding of the committee relating to that conduct.
  (4) A member of the committee shall be ineligible to participate as a 
member of the committee in a committee proceeding relating to the 
member's official conduct. Whenever a member of the committee is 
ineligible to act as a member of the committee under the preceding 
sentence, the Speaker shall designate a Member, Delegate, or Resident 
Commissioner from the same political party as the ineligible member to 
act in any

  (5) A member of the committee may disqualify himself from 
participating in an investigation of the conduct of a Member, Delegate, 
Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House upon the 
submission in writing and under oath of an affidavit of disqualification 
stating that the member cannot render an impartial and unbiased decision 
in the case in which the member seeks to be disqualified. If the 
committee approves and accepts such affidavit of disqualification, the 
chairman shall so notify the Speaker and request the Speaker to 
designate a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner from the same 
political party as the disqualifying member to act in any proceeding of 
the committee relating to that case.

  (6) Information or testimony received, or the contents of a complaint 
or the fact of its filing, may not be publicly disclosed by any 
committee or staff member unless specifically authorized in each 
instance by a vote of the full committee.

  (7) The committee shall have the functions designated in titles I and 
V of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, in sections 7342, 7351, and 
7353 of title 5, United States Code, and in clause 11(g)(4) of rule X.


[[Page 543]]

of a majority of its members, opens the meeting to the public.
  (c)(1) Notwithstanding clause 2(g)(1) of rule XI, each meeting of the 
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct or a subcommittee thereof 
shall occur in executive session unless the committee or subcommittee, 
by an affirmative vote

  (2) Notwithstanding clause 2(g)(2) of rule XI, each hearing of an 
adjudicatory subcommittee or sanction hearing of the Committee on 
Standards of Official Conduct shall be held in open session unless the 
committee or subcommittee, in open session by an affirmative vote of a 
majority of its members, closes all or part of the remainder of the 
hearing on that day to the public.

  (d) Before a member, officer, or employee of the Committee on 
Standards of Official Conduct, including members of a subcommittee of 
the committee selected under clause 5(a)(4) of rule X and shared staff, 
may have access to information that is confidential under the rules of 
the committee, the following oath (or affirmation) shall be executed:


[[Page 544]]

      ``I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will not disclose, to any 
person or entity outside the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, 
any information received in the course of my service with the committee, 
except as authorized by the committee or in accordance with its rules.''
Copies of the executed oath shall be retained by the Clerk as part of 
the records of the House. This paragraph establishes a standard of 
conduct within the meaning of paragraph (a)(2). Breaches of 
confidentiality shall be investigated by the Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct and appropriate action shall be taken.

  (e)(1) If a complaint or information offered as a complaint is deemed 
frivolous by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the 
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, the committee may take such 
action as it, by an affirmative vote of a majority of its members, 
considers appropriate in the circumstances.


  (2) Complaints filed before the One Hundred Fifth Congress may not be 
deemed frivolous by the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.

  The investigative authority contained in this clause (former clause 
4(e) of rule X) was first conferred upon the commitee in the 90th 
Congress (H. Res. 1099, Apr. 3, 1968, p. 8802). Effective January 3, 
1975, the former requirement in paragraph (b)(1)(A) (former clause 
4(e)(2)(A) of rule X) that seven committee members must authorize an 
investigation was changed to permit a majority of the commitee to 
provide that authorization (H. Res. 988, 93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 
34470). That provision was further amended in the 105th Congress to 
permit the chairman and ranking minority member, with respect to a 
properly filed complaint, to gather additional information or to 
establish an investigative subcommittee (sec. 11, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 
1997, p. ----). Paragraph (b)(5) (former clause 4(e)(2)(E) of rule X) 
was added in the 95th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 1977, pp. 53-70), to 
provide a mechanism for a committee member to disqualify himself from 
participating in an investigation, and paragraph (b)(6) (former clause 
4(e)(2)(F) of rule X) was added in the 96th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 
15, 1979, p. 8).

  This provision was amended in several particulars by the Ethics Reform 
Act of 1989 (P.L. 101-194): (1) paragraph (a)(1) (former clause 
4(e)(1)(A) of rule X) was amended to enable a letter of reproval or 
other administrative action of the commitee to be implemented as part of 
a report to the House, with no action required of the House; (2) 
paragraph (a)(2) (former clause 4(e)(1)(B) of rule X) was amended to 
require the commitee to report to the House its findings of fact and any 
recommendations respecting the final disposition of a matter in which it 
votes to undertake an investigation; (3) a new paragraph (a)(4) (former 
clause 4(e)(1)(E) of rule X) was added to empower the commitee to 
consider requests that the rule restricting the acceptance of gifts be 
waived in exceptional circumstances; and (4) paragraph (b)(3) (former 
clause 4(e)(2)(C) of rule X) was amended to set a general limitation on 
actions for committee consideration of ethics matters.


[[Page 545]]

on Ethics only to resolve a specific inquiry originally undertaken by 
the standing Committee on Standards of Official Conduct in the 104th 
Congress but not concluded (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----). The 
select commitee filed one report to the House (H. Rept. 105-1, H. Res. 
31, Jan. 21, 1997, p. ----). The current form of paragraph (c) (former 
clause 4(e)(3) of rule X) was adopted later in the 105th Congress (sec. 
5, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. ----).
  In the beginning of the 105th Congress a subparagraph (3) was added at 
the end of former clause 4(e) of rule X to establish a Select Committee

  Additional amendments to this provision were adopted in the 105th 
Congress as follows: (1) paragraphs (d) and (3) (former clauses 4(e)(4) 
and 4(e)(5)) were adopted (sec. 6 and sec. 19, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 
1997, p. ----); (2) paragraph (b)(2) (former clause 4(e)(2)(B) of rule 
X) was amended to address the disposition of a complaint after 
expiration of periods set forth in the commitee rules and to specify 
parameters for the filing of complaints by non-Members (sec. 11, H. Res. 
168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. ----); and (3) paragraph (a)(3) (former clause 
4(e)(1)(C) of rule X) was amended to permit the commitee to report to 
the appropriate authorities substantial evidence of a violation of law 
by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the members of the commitee 
without the approval of the House (sec. 18, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, 
p. ----). Before the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, 
this provision was found in former clause 4(e) of rule X and paragraph 
(b)(7) was found in former clause 1(p) of rule X (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 
1999, p. ----).


  The Ethics Reform Act of 1989 (P.L. 101-194) contains free-standing 
provisions requiring: (1) that the respective party caucuses nominate 
seven majority and seven minority members, although in the 104th 
Congress only five returning majority and five returning minority 
members were initially elected (H. Res. 41, H. Res. 42, Jan. 20, 1995, 
p. 1909), and in the 105th Congress only the chairman and ranking 
minority member were elected initially pending recommendations by a 12-
member bipartisan task force informally appointed by the Majority and 
Minority Leaders to conduct a comprehensive review of the House ethics 
process (H. Res. 12, Jan. 7, 1997, p. ----; H. Res. 44, Feb. 10, 1997, 
p. ----); (2) that the commitee adopt rules establishing investigative 
and adjudicative subcommittees; and (3) that the commitee adopt rules 
establishing an Office on Advice and Education (see sec. 803(b), (c), 
(d), and (i), P.L. 101-194, 2 U.S.C. 29d). The texts of those provisions 
are set forth below. Section 803(b), (c), and (d) should be read in 
light of H. Res. 168, adopted in the 105th Congress, and reaffirmed in 
the 106th (sec. 2(c), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----), and described 
later in this annotation.


 ``Sec. 803. Reforms Respecting the Committee on Standards of Official 
                               __________


                               Conduct.--


[[Page 546]]

                                  * * *


  ``(b) committee composition.--The respective party caucus or 
conference of the House of Representatives shall each nominate to the 
House of Representatives at the beginning of each Congress 7 members to 
serve on the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.

  ``(c) investigative subcommittees.--The Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct shall adopt rules providing--

          ``(1) for the establishment of a 4 or 6-member investigative 

        subcommittee (with equal representation from the majority and 

        minority parties) whenever the committee votes to undertake any 

        investigation;

          ``(2) that the senior majority and minority members on an 

        investigative subcommittee shall serve as the chairman and 

        ranking minority member of the subcommittee; and

          ``(3) that the chairman and ranking minority member of the 

        full committee may only serve as non-voting, ex officio members 


        on an investigative subcommittee.
``Clause 5(d) of rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives 
shall not apply to any investigative subcommittee.

  ``(d) adjudicatory subcommittees.--The Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct shall adopt rules providing--

          ``(1) that upon the completion of an investigation, an 

        investigative subcommittee shall report its findings and 

        recommendations to the committee;

          ``(2) that, if an investigative subcommittee by majority vote 

        of its membership adopts a statement of alleged violation, the 

        remaining members of the committee shall comprise an 

        adjudicatory subcommittee to hold a disciplinary hearing on the 

        violation alleged in the statement;

          ``(3) that any statement of alleged violation and any written 

        response thereto shall be made public at the first meeting or 

        hearing on the matter which is open to the public after the 

        respondent has been given full opportunity to respond to the 

        statement in accordance with committee rules, but, if no public 

        hearing or meeting is held on the matter, the statement of 

        alleged violation and any written response thereto shall be 

        included in the committee's final report to the House of 

        Representatives as required by clause 4(e)(1)(B) of rule X of 

        the Rules of the House of Representatives;

          ``(4) that a quorum for an adjudicatory subcommittee for the 

        purpose of taking testimony and conducting any business shall 

        consist of a majority of the membership of the subcommittee plus 

        one; and

          ``(5) that an adjudicatory subcommittee shall determine, after 

        receiving evidence, whether the counts in the statement have 


[[Page 547]]

        been proved and shall report its findings to the committee.
``Clause 5(d) of rule XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives 
shall not apply to any adjudicatory subcommittee.


                                  * * *

  ``(i) advice and education.--(1) The Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct shall establish within the Committee an Office on 
Advice and Education (hereinafter in this subsection referred to as the 
`Office') under the supervision of the chairman.

          ``(2) The Office shall be headed by a director who shall be 

        appointed by the chairman, in consultation with the ranking 

        minority member, and shall be comprised of such staff as the 

        chairman determines is necessary to carry out the 

        responsibilities of the Office.

          ``(3) The primary responsibilities of the Office shall 

        include:

                  ``(A) Providing information and guidance to Members, 

                officers and employees of the House regarding any laws, 

                rules, regulations, and other standards of conduct 

                applicable to such individuals in their official 

                capacities, and any interpretations and advisory 

                opinions of the committee.

                  ``(B) Submitting to the chairman and ranking minority 

                member of the committee any written request from any 

                such Member, officer or employee for an interpretation 

                of applicable laws, rules, regulations, or other 

                standards of conduct, together with any recommendations 

                thereon.

                  ``(C) Recommending to the committee for its 

                consideration formal advisory opinions of general 

                applicability.

                  ``(D) Developing and carrying out, subject to the 

                approval of the chairman, periodic educational briefings 

                for Members, officers and employees of the House on 

                those laws, rules, regulations, or other standards of 

                conduct applicable to them.

          ``(4) No information provided to the Committee on Standards of 

        Official Conduct by a Member, officer or employee of the House 

        of Representatives when seeking advice regarding prospective 

        conduct of such Member, officer or employee may be used as the 

        basis for initiating an investigation under clause 4(e)(1)(B) of 

        rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives, if such 

        Member, officer or employee acts in accordance with the written 


        advice of the committee.''.


                               __________


[[Page 548]]

ommendations of the task force with certain amendments (H. Res. 168, 
105th Cong., p. ----), which included not only changes to the standing 
Rules of the House but also free-standing directives to the Committee on 
Standards of Official Conduct, which where reaffirmed for the 106th 
Congress (sec. 2(c), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). The texts of 
those free-standing provisions are set forth below.

  In the 105th Congress a 12-member bipartisan task force was informally 
appointed by the Majority and Minority Leaders to conduct a 
comprehensive review of the House ethics process. At the same time an 
order of the House was adopted imposing a moratorium on filing or 
processing ethics complaints and on raising certain questions of 
privilege under rule IX with respect to official conduct. The moratorium 
was imposed in the expectation that the recommendations of the task 
force would include changes relating to the Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct and the process by which the House enforces standards 
of official conduct (Feb. 12, 1997, p. ----). The moratorium was 
extended through September 10, 1997 (July 30, 1997, p. ----). On 
September 18, 1997, the House adopted the rec


                               __________


                              ``H. Res. 168


``SEC. 3. COMMITTEE AGENDAS.
                                  * * *


``SEC. 4. COMMITTEE STAFF.
  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules 
providing that the chairman shall establish the agenda for meetings of 
the committee, but shall not preclude the ranking minority member from 
placing any item on the agenda.

  ``(a) Committee Rules.--The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct 
shall adopt rules providing that:

          ``(1)(A) The staff is to be assembled and retained as a 

        professional, nonpartisan staff.

          ``(B) Each member of the staff shall be professional and 

        demonstrably qualified for the position for which he is hired.

          ``(C) The staff as a whole and each member of the staff shall 

        perform all official duties in a nonpartisan manner.

          ``(D) No member of the staff shall engage in any partisan 

        political activity directly affecting any congressional or 

        presidential election.

          ``(E) No member of the staff or outside counsel may accept 

        public speaking engagements or write for publication on any 

        subject that is in any way related to his or her employment or 

        duties with the committee without specific prior approval from 

        the chairman and ranking minority member.

          ``(F) No member of the staff or outside counsel may make 

        public, unless approved by an affirmative vote of a majority of 

        the members of the committee, any information, document, or 

        other material that is confidential, derived from executive 

        session, or classified and that is obtained during the course of 

        employment with the committee.

          ``(2)(A) All staff members shall be appointed by an 

        affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee. 

        Such vote shall occur at the first meeting of the membership of 

        the committee during each Congress and as necessary during the 

        Congress.

          ``(B) Subject to the approval of Committee on House Oversight, 

        the committee may retain counsel not employed by the House of 

        Representatives whenever the committee determines, by an 

        affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee, 

        that the retention of outside counsel is necessary and 


[[Page 549]]

        appropriate.

          ``(C) If the committee determines that it is necessary to 

        retain staff members for the purpose of a particular 

        investigation or other proceeding, then such staff shall be 

        retained only for the duration of that particular investigation 

        or proceeding.

          ``(3) Outside counsel may be dismissed prior to the end of a 

        contract between the committee and such counsel only by an 

        affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.

          ``(4) Only subparagraphs (C), (E), and (F) of paragraph (1) 

        shall apply to shared staff.


``SEC. 5. MEETINGS AND HEARINGS.

  ``(b) Additional Committee Staff.--In addition to any other staff 
provided for by law, rule, or other authority, with respect to the 
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, the chairman and ranking 
minority member each may appoint one individual as a shared staff member 
from his or her personal staff to perform service for the committee. 
Such shared staff may assist the chairman or ranking minority member on 
any subcommittee on which he serves.


                                  * * *

  ``(b) Committee Rules.--The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct 
shall adopt rules providing that--

          ``(1) all meetings of the committee or any subcommittee 

        thereof shall occur in executive session unless the committee or 

        subcommittee by an affirmative vote of a majority of its members 

        opens the meeting or hearing to the public; and

          ``(2) any hearing held by an adjudicatory subcommittee or any 

        sanction hearing held by the committee shall be open to the 

        public unless the committee or subcommittee by an affirmative 

        vote of a majority of its members closes the hearing to the 


        public.


``SEC. 7. PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.
                                  * * *


  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules 
providing that, unless otherwise determined by a vote of the committee, 
only the chairman or ranking minority member, after consultation with 
each other, may make public statements regarding matters before the 
committee or any subcommittee thereof.


``SEC. 10. REQUIREMENTS TO CONSTITUTE A COMPLAINT.
                                  * * *



[[Page 550]]


``SEC. 11. DUTIES OF CHAIRMAN AND RANKING MINORITY MEMBER REGARDING 
PROPERLY FILED COMPLAINTS.
  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall amend its rules 
regarding complaints to provide that whenever information offered as a 
complaint is submitted to the committee, the chairman and ranking 
minority member shall have 14 calendar days or 5 legislative days, 
whichever occurs first, to determine whether the information meets the 
requirements of the committee's rules for what constitutes a complaint.

  ``(a) Committee Rules.--The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct 
shall adopt rules providing that whenever the chairman and ranking 
minority member jointly determine that information submitted to the 
committee meets the requirements of the committee's rules for what 
constitutes a complaint, they shall have 45 calendar days or 5 
legislative days, whichever is later, after the date that the chairman 
and ranking minority member determine that information filed meets the 
requirements of the committee's rules for what constitutes a complaint, 
unless the committee by an affirmative vote of a majority of its members 
votes otherwise, to--

          ``(1) recommend to the committee that it dispose of the 

        complaint, or any portion thereof, in any manner that does not 

        require action by the House, which may include dismissal of the 

        complaint or resolution of the complaint by a letter to the 

        Member, officer, or employee of the House against whom the 

        complaint is made;

          ``(2) establish an investigative subcommittee; or

          ``(3) request that the committee extend the applicable 45-

        calendar day or 5-legislative day period by one additional 45-

        calendar day period when they determine more time is necessary 


        in order to make a recommendation under paragraph (1).


                                  * * *


  ``(c) Disposition of Properly Filed Complaints by Chairman and Ranking 
Minority Member if no Action Taken by Them Within Prescribed Time 
Limit.--The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules 
providing that if the chairman and ranking minority member jointly 
determine that information submitted to the committee meets the 
requirements of the committee rules for what constitutes a complaint, 
and the complaint is not disposed of within the applicable time periods 
under subsection (a), then they shall establish an investigative 
subcommittee and forward the complaint, or any portion thereof, to that 
subcommittee for its consideration. However, if, at any time during 
those periods, either the chairman or ranking minority member places on 
the agenda the issue of whether to establish an investigative 
subcommittee, then an investigative subcommittee may be established only 
by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.


``SEC. 12. DUTIES OF CHAIRMAN AND RANKING MINORITY MEMBER REGARDING 
INFORMATION NOT CONSTITUTING A COMPLAINT.
                                  * * *


[[Page 551]]

requirements for what constitutes a complaint set forth in the committee 
rules, they may--
  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules 
providing that whenever the chairman and ranking minority member jointly 
determine that information submitted to the committee does not meet the

          ``(1) return the information to the complainant with a 

        statement that it fails to meet the requirements for what 

        constitutes a complaint set forth in the committee's rules; or

          ``(2) recommend to the committee that it authorize the 


``SEC. 13. INVESTIGATIVE AND ADJUDICATORY SUBCOMMITTEES.
        establishment of an investigative subcommittee.

  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules 
providing that--

          ``(1)(A) investigative subcommittees shall be comprised of 4 

        Members (with equal representation from the majority and 

        minority parties) whenever such subcommittee is established 

        pursuant to the rules of the committee; and

          ``(B) adjudicatory subcommittees shall be comprised of the 

        members of the committee who did not serve on the investigative 

        subcommittee (with equal representation from the majority and 

        minority parties) whenever such subcommittee is established 

        pursuant to the rules of the committee;

          ``(2) at the time of appointment, the chairman shall designate 

        one member of the subcommittee to serve as chairman and the 

        ranking minority member shall designate one member of the 

        subcommittee to serve as the ranking minority member of the 

        investigative subcommittee or adjudicatory subcommittee; and

          ``(3) the chairman and ranking minority member of the 

        committee may serve as members of an investigative subcommittee, 


``SEC. 14. STANDARD OF PROOF FOR ADOPTION OF STATEMENT OF ALLEGED 
VIOLATION.
        but may not serve as non-voting, ex officio members.


``SEC. 15. SUBCOMMITTEE POWERS.
  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall amend its rules 
to provide that an investigative subcommittee may adopt a statement of 
alleged violation only if it determines by an affirmative vote of a 
majority of the members of the committee that there is substantial 
reason to believe that a violation of the Code of Official Conduct, or 
of a law, rule, regulation, or other standard of conduct applicable to 
the performance of official duties or the discharge of official 
responsibilities by a Member, officer, or employee of the House of 
Representatives has occurred.


  ``(a) Subpoena Power.--


                                  * * *

          ``(2) Committee rules.--The Committee on Standards of Official 

        Conduct shall adopt rules providing that an investigative 

        subcommittee or an adjudicatory subcommittee may authorize and 

        issue subpoenas only when authorized by an affirmative vote of a 


[[Page 552]]

        majority of the members of the subcommittee.

  ``(b) Expansion of Scope of Investigations.--The Committee on 
Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules providing that an 
investigative subcommittee may, upon an affirmative vote of a majority 
of its members, expand the scope of its investigation approved by an 
affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.

  ``(c) Amendments of Statements of Alleged Violation.--The Committee on 
Standards of Official Conduct shall adopt rules to provide that--

          ``(1) an investigative subcommittee may, upon an affirmative 

        vote of a majority of its members, amend its statement of 

        alleged violation anytime before the statement of alleged 

        violation is transmitted to the committee; and

          ``(2) if an investigative subcommittee amends its statement of 

        alleged violation, the respondent shall be notified in writing 

        and shall have 30 calendar days from the date of that 

        notification to file an answer to the amended statement of 


``SEC. 16. DUE PROCESS RIGHTS OF RESPONDENTS.
        alleged violation.

  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall amend its rules 
to provide that--

          ``(1) not less than 10 calendar days before a scheduled vote 

        by an investigative subcommittee on a statement of alleged 

        violation, the subcommittee shall provide the respondent with a 

        copy of the statement of alleged violation it intends to adopt 

        together with all evidence it intends to use to prove those 

        charges which it intends to adopt, including documentary 

        evidence, witness testimony, memoranda of witness interviews, 

        and physical evidence, unless the subcommittee by an affirmative 

        vote of a majority of its members decides to withhold certain 

        evidence in order to protect a witness, but if such evidence is 

        withheld, the subcommittee shall inform the respondent that 

        evidence is being withheld and of the count to which such 

        evidence relates;

          ``(2) neither the respondent nor his counsel shall, directly 

        or indirectly, contact the subcommittee or any member thereof 

        during the period of time set forth in paragraph (1) except for 

        the sole purpose of settlement discussions where counsels for 

        the respondent and the subcommittee are present;

          ``(3) if, at any time after the issuance of a statement of 

        alleged violation, the committee or any subcommittee thereof 

        determines that it intends to use evidence not provided to a 

        respondent under paragraph (1) to prove the charges contained in 

        the statement of alleged violation (or any amendment thereof), 

        such evidence shall be made immediately available to the 

        respondent, and it may be used in any further proceeding under 

        the committee's rules;

          ``(4) evidence provided pursuant to paragraph (1) or (3) shall 

        be made available to the respondent and his or her counsel only 

        after each agrees, in writing, that no document, information, or 


[[Page 553]]

        other ma

        terials obtained pursuant to that paragraph shall be made public 

        until--

                  ``(A) such time as a statement of alleged violation is 

                made public by the committee if the respondent has 

                waived the adjudicatory hearing; or

                  ``(B) the commencement of an adjudicatory hearing if 

                the respondent has not waived an adjudicatory hearing;

        ``but the failure of respondent and his counsel to so agree in 

        writing, and therefore not receive the evidence, shall not 

        preclude the issuance of a statement of alleged violation at the 

        end of the period referred to in paragraph (1);

          ``(5) a respondent shall receive written notice whenever--

                  ``(A) the chairman and ranking minority member 

                determine that information the committee has received 

                constitutes a complaint;

                  ``(B) a complaint or allegation is transmitted to an 

                investigative subcommittee;

                  ``(C) that subcommittee votes to authorize its first 

                subpoena or to take testimony under oath, whichever 

                occurs first; and

                  ``(D) an investigative subcommittee votes to expand 

                the scope of its investigation;

          ``(6) whenever an investigative subcommittee adopts a 

        statement of alleged violation and a respondent enters into an 

        agreement with that subcommittee to settle a complaint on which 

        that statement is based, that agreement, unless the respondent 

        requests otherwise, shall be in writing and signed by the 

        respondent and respondent's counsel, the chairman and ranking 

        minority member of the subcommittee, and the outside counsel, if 

        any;

          ``(7) statements or information derived solely from a 

        respondent or his counsel during any settlement discussions 

        between the committee or a subcommittee thereof and the 

        respondent shall not be included in any report of the 

        subcommittee or the committee or otherwise publicly disclosed 

        without the consent of the respondent; and

          ``(8) whenever a motion to establish an investigative 

        subcommittee does not prevail, the committee shall promptly send 


``SEC. 17. COMMITTEE REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.
        a letter to the respondent informing him of such vote.

  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall amend its rules 
to provide that--

          ``(1) whenever an investigative subcommittee does not adopt a 

        statement of alleged violation and transmits a report to that 

        effect to the committee, the committee may by an affirmative 

        vote of a majority of its members transmit such report to the 

        House of Representatives; and

          ``(2) whenever an investigative subcommittee adopts a 

        statement of alleged violation, the respondent admits to the 


[[Page 554]]

        violations set forth in

        such statement, the respondent waives his or her right to an 

        adjudicatory hearing, and the respondent's waiver is approved by 

        the committee--

                  ``(A) the subcommittee shall prepare a report for 

                transmittal to the committee, a final draft of which 

                shall be provided to the respondent not less than 15 

                calendar days before the subcommittee votes on whether 

                to adopt the report;

                  ``(B) the respondent may submit views in writing 

                regarding the final draft to the subcommittee within 7 

                calendar days of receipt of that draft;

                  ``(C) the subcommittee shall transmit a report to the 

                committee regarding the statement of alleged violation 

                together with any views submitted by the respondent 

                pursuant to subparagraph (B), and the committee shall 

                make the report together with the respondent's views 

                available to the public before the commencement of any 

                sanction hearing; and

                  ``(D) the committee shall by an affirmative vote of a 

                majority of its members issue a report and transmit such 

                report to the House of Representatives, together with 

                the respondent's views previously submitted pursuant to 

                subparagraph (B) and any additional views respondent may 

                submit for attachment to the final report; and

          ``(3) members of the committee shall have not less than 72 

        hours to review any report transmitted to the committee by an 

        investigative subcommittee before both the commencement of a 

        sanction hearing and the committee vote on whether to adopt the 


        report.


``SEC. 20. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.
                                  * * *

  ``The Committee on Standards of Official Conduct shall--

          ``(1) clarify its rules to provide that whenever the committee 

        votes to authorize an investigation on its own initiative, the 

        chairman and ranking minority member shall establish an 

        investigative subcommittee to undertake such investigation;

          ``(2) revise its rules to refer to hearings held by an 

        adjudicatory subcommittee as adjudicatory hearings; and

          ``(3) make such other amendments to its rules as necessary to 


``SEC. 21. EFFECTIVE DATE.
        conform such rules to this resolution.


  ``This resolution and the amendments made by it apply with respect to 
any complaint or information offered as a complaint that is or has been 
filed during this Congress.''


                               __________


[[Page 555]]

mittee to take depositions with one Member present, notwithstanding 
clause 2(h) of rule XI, to serve subpoenas within or without the United 
States, and to participate by special counsel in relevant judicial 
proceedings (see H. Res. 252, 95th Cong., Feb. 9, 1977, pp. 3966-75; H. 
Res. 608, Mar. 27, 1980, pp. 6995-98; H. Res. 254, June 30, 1983, p. 
18279), and to investigate persons other than Members, officers and 
employees with expanded subpoena authority (see H. Res. 1054, 94th 
Cong., Mar. 3, 1976, pp. 5165-68). By unanimous consent the committee 
was authorized to receive evidence and take testimony before a quorum of 
one of its Members for the remainder of the second session of the 100th 
Congress (Oct. 13, 1988, p. 30467). By resolutions considered as 
questions of the privileges of the House, the committee has been 
directed to investigate illegal solicitation of political contributions 
in the House Office Building by unnamed sitting Members (July 10, 1985, 
p. 18397); to review GAO audits of the operations of the ``bank'' in the 
Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms (Oct. 3, 1991, p. 25435), to disclose the 
names and pertinent account information of Members and former Members 
found to have abused the privileges of that entity (Mar. 12, 1992, p. 
5519), and to disclose further account information respecting Members 
and former Members having checks held by that entity (Mar. 12, 1992, p. 
5534); and to investigate violations of confidentiality by staff engaged 
in the investigation of the operation and management of the Office of 
the Postmaster (July 22, 1992, p. 18786). In compliance with one such 
direction of the House, the Acting Chairman of the Committee on 
Standards of Official Conduct inserted in the Record names and pertinent 
account information of Members and former Members found to have abused 
the privileges of the ``bank'' in the Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms (H. 
Res. 393, Apr. 1, 1992, p. 7888).
  On occasions where the House has directed the committee to conduct 
specific investigations by separate resolution, it has authorized the 
com

  Under clause 3(b)(4) (former clause 4(e)(2)(D) of rule X), a member of 
the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct is ineligible to 
participate in a committee proceeding relating to that member's official 
conduct. Upon notification to the Speaker of such ineligibility, the 
Speaker designates another Member of the same political party as the 
ineligible member to serve on the committee during proceedings relating 
to that conduct (Speaker O'Neill, Feb. 5, 1980, p. 1908; July 23, 1996, 
p. 18596). Under clause 3(b)(5) (former clause 4(e)(2)(E) of rule X), a 
member of the committee may be recused from serving on the committee 
during proceedings relating to a pending investigation by submitting an 
affidavit of disqualification to the committee stating that the member 
cannot render an impartial and unbiased decision relating to that 
investigation. If the committee accepts the affidavit, the chairman 
notifies the Speaker and requests the Speaker to designate another 
Member from the same political party as the disqualified member to serve 
on the committee during proceedings relating to that investigation 
(Speaker O'Neill, Mar. 18, 1980).


[[Page 556]]

(former clause 4(e)(1)(D) of rule X), together with advisory opinions 
issued by the former Select Committee on Ethics, in its discussions of 
various ethical issues, including gifts, outside income, financial 
disclosure, staff rights and duties, official allowances and franking, 
casework considerations, campaign financing and practices, and 
involvement with official and unofficial organizations.

  The committee has compiled statutory and rule-based ethical standards 
in the House Ethics Manual (102d Cong., 2d Sess.). In the Manual, the 
committee incorporates its advisory opinions issued under clause 3(a)(4)

                                                       Rule XI, clause 4
Rule XI, clause 4
Audio and visual coverage of committee proceedings



807. Coverage of committee proceedings.

  4.  (a) The purpose 
of this clause is to provide a means, in conformity with acceptable 
standards of dignity, propriety, and decorum, by which committee 
hearings or committee meetings that are open to the public may be 
covered by audio and visual means--


      (1) for the education, enlightenment, and information of the 
general public, on the basis of accurate and impartial news coverage, 
regarding the operations, procedures, and practices of the House as a 
legislative and representative body, and regarding the measures, public 
issues, and other matters before the House and its committees, the 
consideration thereof, and the action taken thereon; and

      (2) for the development of the perspective and understanding of 
the general public with respect to the role and function of the House 
under the Constitution as an institution of the Federal Government.


[[Page 557]]

the candidacy of any person for elective public office.
  (b) In addition, it is the intent of this clause that radio and 
television tapes and television film of any coverage under this clause 
may not be used, or made available for use, as partisan political 
campaign material to promote or oppose



Sec. 808. Media coverage.

  (c) It is,  further, the intent of 
this clause that the general conduct of each meeting (whether of a 
hearing or otherwise) covered under authority of this clause by audio or 
visual means, and the personal behavior of the committee members and 
staff, other Government officials and personnel, witnesses, television, 
radio, and press media personnel, and the general public at the hearing 
or other meeting, shall be in strict conformity with and observance of 
the acceptable standards of dignity, propriety, courtesy, and decorum 
traditionally observed by the House in its operations, and may not be 
such as to--


      (1) distort the objects and purposes of the hearing or other 
meeting or the activities of committee members in connection with that 
hearing or meeting or in connection with the general work of the 
committee or of the House; or

      (2) cast discredit or dishonor on the House, the committee, or a 
Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner or bring the House, the 
committee, or a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner into 
disrepute.


[[Page 558]]

  (d) The coverage of committee hearings and meetings by audio and 
visual means shall be permitted and conducted only in strict conformity 
with the purposes, provisions, and requirements of this clause.



Sec. 809. When permitted.

  (e) Whenever  a hearing or meeting 
conducted by a committee or subcommittee is open to the public, those 
proceedings shall be open to coverage by audio and visual means. A 
committee or subcommittee chairman may not limit the number of 
television or still cameras to fewer than two representatives from each 
medium (except for legitimate space or safety considerations, in which 
case pool coverage shall be authorized).




Sec. 810. Committee rules.

  (f) Each  committee shall adopt 
written rules to govern its implementation of this clause. Such rules 
shall contain provisions to the following effect:


      (1) If audio or visual coverage of the hearing or meeting is to be 
presented to the public as live coverage, that coverage shall be 
conducted and presented without commercial sponsorship.

      (2) The allocation among the television media of the positions or 
the number of television cameras permitted by a committee or 
subcommittee chairman in a hearing or meeting room shall be in 
accordance with fair and equitable procedures devised by the Executive 
Committee of the Radio and Television Correspondents' Galleries.


[[Page 559]]

      (3) Television cameras shall be placed so as not to obstruct in 
any way the space between a witness giving evidence or testimony and any 
member of the committee or the visibility of that witness and that 
member to each other.

      (4) Television cameras shall operate from fixed positions but may 
not be placed in positions that obstruct unnecessarily the coverage of 
the hearing or meeting by the other media.

      (5) Equipment necessary for coverage by the television and radio 
media may not be installed in, or removed from, the hearing or meeting 
room while the committee is in session.

      (6)(A) Except as provided in subdivision (B), floodlights, 
spotlights, strobelights, and flash-
guns may not be used in providing any method of coverage of the hearing 
or meeting.

      (B) The television media may install additional lighting in a 
hearing or meeting room, without cost to the Government, in order to 
raise the ambient lighting level in a hearing or meeting room to the 
lowest level necessary to provide adequate television coverage of a 
hearing or meeting at the current state of the art of television 
coverage.


[[Page 560]]

equitable pool arrangement devised by the Standing Committee of Press 
Photographers.
      (7) In the allocation of the number of still photographers 
permitted by a committee or subcommittee chairman in a hearing or 
meeting room, preference shall be given to photographers from Associated 
Press Photos and United Press International Newspictures. If requests 
are made by more of the media than will be permitted by a committee or 
subcommittee chairman for coverage of a hearing or meeting by still 
photography, that coverage shall be permitted on the basis of a fair and



Sec. 811. Press photographers.

      (8)  Photographers may not 
position themselves between the witness table and the members of the 
committee at any time during the course of a hearing or meeting.


      (9) Photographers may not place themselves in positions that 
obstruct unnecessarily the coverage of the hearing by the other media.

      (10) Personnel providing coverage by the television and radio 
media shall be currently accredited to the Radio and Television 
Correspondents' Galleries.



Sec. 812. Accreditation.

      (11)  Personnel providing 
coverage by still photography shall be currently accredited to the Press 
Photographers' Gallery.



      (12) Personnel providing coverage by the television and radio 
media and by still photography shall conduct themselves and their 
coverage activities in an orderly and unobtrusive manner.


[[Page 561]]

and paragraph (e) was amended to eliminate the requirement that a 
committee vote to permit broadcast and photographic coverage of open 
hearings and meetings and to prohibit chairmen from limiting coverage to 
less than two representatives from each medium, except where space or 
safety considerations warrant pool coverage (sec. 105, H. Res. 6, Jan. 
4, 1995, p. 463). Later in the 104th Congress this clause was again 
amended to make conforming changes in its heading and in paragraph (f) 
(H. Res. 254, Nov. 30, 1995, p. ----). Before the House recodified its 
rules in the 106th Congress, this provision was found in former clause 3 
of rule XI (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).

  The rule permitting broadcasting of committee hearings was contained 
in section 116(b) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 
Stat. 1140) and became part of the rules in the 92d Congress (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). In the 93d Congress (H. Res. 1107, July 22, 
1974, p. 24447), the rule was amended to permit committees to adopt 
rules allowing coverage of committee meetings as well as hearings. 
Paragraphs (e), (f)(3), (f)(5), and (f)(8) of this clause were amended 
in the 99th Congress to remove the limit on the number of television 
cameras (previously four) and press photographers (previously five) 
covering committee proceedings, and to provide the committee or 
subcommittee chairman with the discretion to determine the appropriate 
number (H. Res. 7, Jan. 3, 1985, p. 393). At the beginning of the 104th 
Congress paragraph (d) was amended to delete the former characterization 
of broadcast and photographic coverage of committee meetings and 
hearings as ``a privilege made available by the House,''

                                                       Rule XI, clause 5
Rule XI, clause 5
Pay of witnesses




813. Fees of witnesses before the House or 
committees.

  5.  Witnesses appearing before the House or any of its 
committees shall be paid the same per diem rate as established, 
authorized, and regulated by the Committee on House Administration for 
Members, Delegates, the Resident Commissioner, and employees of the 
House, plus actual expenses of travel to or from the place of 
examination. Such per diem may not be paid when a witness has been 
summoned at the place of examination.



  This clause (former rule XXXV) was adopted in 1872, with amendments in 
1880 (III, 1825), 1930 (VI, 393), April 19, 1955 (p. 4722), August 12, 
1969 (H. Res. 495, 91st Cong., p. 23355), and July 28, 1975 (H. Res. 
517, 94th Cong. p. 25258). The last amendment eliminated the specific 
per diem and travel rate of reimbursement and allowed actual travel 
costs and per diem for witnesses requested or subpoenaed to appear at 
the same rate as established by the Committee on House Administration 
for Members and employees. In the 104th and 106th Congresses it was 
amended to conform references to a renamed committee (sec. 202(b), H. 
Res. 6, Jan. 4, 1995, p. 467; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). Before 
the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, this provision was 
found in former rule XXXV (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----). For 
further provisions relating to witnesses, see clauses 2(j) and (k) of 
rule XI (Sec. Sec. 802-803, supra).


[[Page 562]]

Unfinished business of the session
                                                       Rule XI, clause 6
Rule XI, clause 6




814. Resumption of business of a preceding 
session.

  6. All business  of the House at the end of one session shall be resumed at 
the commencement of the next session of the same Congress in the same 
manner as if no adjournment had taken place.


  At first the Congress attempted to follow the rule of the English 
Parliament that business unfinished in one session should begin anew at 
the next; but in 1818, after an investigation of a joint committee in 
1816, a rule was adopted that House bills remaining undetermined in the 
House should be continued at the next session after six days. This rule 
did not reach House bills sent to the Senate; but in 1848 the two Houses 
remedied this omission by a joint rule. Business referred to committees 
of the House was still subject to the old rule of Parliament; but in 
1860 the present rule was adopted as a supplement to the rule of 1818. 
In 1890, desiring to do away with the limitation of the six days and 
apparently overlooking the main purpose of the rule of 1818, the House 
rescinded that portion of this provision which dated from 1818. Also, in 
1876 the joint rules were abrogated, leaving no provision, except the 
headline of the rule, for the continuance of business not before 
committees. The practice, however, had become so well established that 
no question has ever been raised (V, 6727). Before the House recodified 
its rules in the 106th Congress, this provision was found in former rule 
XXVI (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. ----).


  The business of conferences between the two Houses is not interrupted 
by an adjournment of a session which does not terminate the Congress (V, 
6260-6262), and even where one House asks a conference at one session 
the other may agree to it in the next session (V, 6286). Where bills 
were enrolled and signed by the presiding officers of the two Houses at 
the close of one session they were sent to the President and approved at 
the beginning of the next session (IV, 3486-3488).