[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 111th Congress]
[111st Congress]
[House Document 110-162]
[Rules of the House of Representatives]
[Pages 537-603]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


 
                                 Rule XI


In general
            procedures of committees and unfinished business


[[Page 538]]



787. Committee procedure.

  1.  (a)(1)(A) The Rules of the 
House are the rules of its committees and subcommittees so far as 
applicable.


  (B) 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.

  (2)(A) In a committee or subcommittee--

      (i) a motion to recess from day to day, or to recess subject to 
the call of the Chair (within 24 hours), shall be privileged; and

      (ii) a motion to dispense with the first reading (in full) of a 
bill or resolution shall be privileged if printed copies are available.


  (B) A motion accorded privilege under this subparagraph shall be 
decided without debate.

  This paragraph was first adopted December 8, 1931, to provide that the 
Rules of the House are the rules of the standing committees (without 
reference to subcommittees) and to provide for a privileged motion to 
recess from day to day (VIII, 2215). The paragraph was amended March 23, 
1955, when the House adopted rules governing committee investigations 
that are now embodied in clause 2 (pp. 3569-3585). In the 92d Congress 
paragraph (a) was amended in the form contained in the Legislative 
Reorganization Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1140) to specifically address 
subcommittees (H. Res. 5, Jan. 22, 1971, p. 144). It was amended again 
in the 99th Congress to allow a privileged motion to dispense with the 
first reading of a measure if 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. 47). In the 109th Congress paragraph (a) was reorganized and 
amended to provide for a privileged motion to recess subject to the call 
of the chair (within 24 hours) (sec. 2(d), H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 2005, p. 
_). For the requirement in Jefferson's Manual that a bill or resolution 
be read in full upon demand, before being read by paragraphs or sections 
for amendment, see Sec. 412, supra.

  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 also has been given subcommittees by the House 
(III, 1754-1759, 1801, 2499, 2504, 2508, 2517; IV, 4548).



[[Page 539]]


  As indicated in Sec. 369, supra, clause 1(a)(1)(A) enables standing 
and select committees to enforce in committee applicable House rules of 
decorum, such as clause 2 of rule I and rule XVII.



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.


[[Page 540]]

changes were effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th 
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47).

  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. 121). Clerical and 
stylistic




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 accounts of the 
House described in clause 1(j)(1) of rule X.



  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. 121; H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47), and a conforming 
change was effected in the 109th Congress (sec. 2(a), H. Res. 5, Jan. 4, 
2005, p. _). Clerical and stylistic changes were effected when the House 
recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 
47).



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.


[[Page 541]]

recommendations made or actions taken thereon. That section shall also 
delineate any hearings held pursuant to clauses 2(n), (o), or (p) of 
this rule.
  (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

  (4) After an adjournment sine die of the last regular session of a 
Congress, the chair 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. 121). Clerical and stylistic changes were 
effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47). In the 111th Congress, the House amended 
subparagraph (3) to require the inclusion of hearings under paragraphs 
(n), (o), and (p) of this clause in the oversight section of activities 
reports (H. Res. 40, Jan. 14, 2009, p. _), and eliminated a gender-based 
reference (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. _).


[[Page 542]]

or joint resolution number and subject matter (sec. 107(b), P.L. 104-4; 
109 Stat. 63).

Adoption of written rules
  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



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;

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

      (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.


  (3) A committee may adopt a rule providing that the chair be directed 
to offer a motion under clause 1 of rule XXII whenever the chair 
considers it appropriate.


[[Page 543]]

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 in which 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. 47). 
Subparagraph (3) was added in the 109th Congress (sec. 2(d), H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 4, 2005, p. _). Gender-based references were eliminated in the 
111th Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. _).
  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.

  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. 14014).



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 for reporting bills and resolutions (clause 2(h) 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. However, a point of order 
does not ordinarily lie in the House against consideration of a bill by 
reason of defective committee procedures occurring before the time the 
bill is ordered reported to the House (Procedure, ch. 17, Sec. 11.1).



[[Page 544]]

debate under the five-minute rule in committee must be confined to the 
portion of the bill then pending. The motion for the previous question 
may be applied to a question under debate in committee when it has been 
read (or considered as read) for amendment in its entirety.
  Many of the procedures applicable to committees derive from 
Jefferson's Manual, which governs the House and its committees in all 
cases to which it is applicable (clause 1 of rule XXIX). 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, 427, supra) generally apply to proceedings in committees 
of the House of Representatives, except that because a measure 
considered in committee must be read for amendment, a motion to limit

  Committees generally conduct their business under the five-minute rule 
but may employ the ordinary motions that are in order in the House, such 
as under clause 4 of rule XVI.
Regular meeting days



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.
Additional and special meetings


  (c)(1) The chair of each standing committee may call and convene, as 
the chair 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 chair.


[[Page 545]]

clerk of the committee shall notify the chair of the filing of the 
request. If the chair 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 chair
  (2) Three or more members of a standing committee may file in the 
offices of the committee a written request that the chair call a special 
meeting of the committee. Such request shall specify the measure or 
matter to be considered. Immediately upon the filing of the request, the



[[Page 546]]


  (d) A member of the majority party on each standing committee or 
subcommittee thereof shall be designated by the chair of the full 
committee as the vice chair of the committee or subcommittee, as the 
case may be, and shall preside during the absence of the chair from any 
meeting. If the chair and vice chair 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 
chair (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1991, p. 39). In the 104th Congress paragraph 
(d) was amended to permit the chair of a full committee to designate 
vice chairs 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. 47). Gender-based references were eliminated in the 
111th Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, 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 chair (VIII, 2213, 2214). These 
precedents should be read in light of paragraph (d) and clause 5(c) of 
rule X. 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 chair, call a meeting of the committee on the same day (VIII, 2213).
Committee records



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.


[[Page 547]]

tion 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.


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 inspec


  (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.



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 chair. Such records shall be the 
property of the House, and each Member, Delegate, and the Resident 
Commissioner shall have access thereto.


  (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.


[[Page 548]]

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.
  (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


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


[[Page 549]]

  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. 19336). 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 because 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. 121). Clerical and stylistic 
changes were effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th 
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47). A gender-based reference was 
eliminated in the 111th Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. 
_).

  Although all Members have access to committee records under this 
clause, it is not without qualification. For example, this clause: (1) 
does not give a Member the right 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); (2) 
does not necessarily apply to records within the possession of the 
executive branch that 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); (3) does not apply to records (an executive communication not 
yet referred to committee) in the possession of the House (Sept. 9, 
1998, p. 19769). 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. 20020).

  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 
Deschler, ch. 17, Sec. 18). 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 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). Compare this clause with clause 11(g)(3) of rule X, 
which only permits access of nonmembers of the Permanent Select 
Committee on Intelligence to classified information in the possession of 
that committee when authorized by that committee. A resolution directing 
a standing committee to release executive-session material referred to 
it 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. 21562).


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.




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.



[[Page 550]]

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. 47).
  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


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 551]]

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 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


  (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 testimony, 
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.

  (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


[[Page 552]]

      (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.

  (D) The committee or subcommittee may vote by the same procedure 
described in this subparagraph 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.


[[Page 553]]

quired under the rules of the committee for the transaction of business, 
the chair 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.
  (3) The chair 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 chair 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 re

  (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 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.

  (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.


[[Page 554]]

  (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 555]]

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 hearings 
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 chair 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. 121; H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47). 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. 121). Clerical and stylistic changes were effected 
when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47). Gender-based references were eliminated in the 
111th Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, 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 the case of a 
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 and Armed Services, 
and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and their 
subcommittees, 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. 47). 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. 19336). 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


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. 20020).




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.



[[Page 556]]

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).
  This subparagraph 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. 47). 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 although 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


  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).



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 one for which the presence of a majority of the committee is 
otherwise required, which may not be less than one-third of the members.

  Subparagraphs (2) and (3) (formerly 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) (formerly 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. 47). Subparagraph (3) was amended in 
the 107th Congress to preserve all requirements for a majority quorum 
found in House rules (sec. 2(i), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. 25).


[[Page 557]]

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 
(other than the committee on Oversight and Government Reform under 
clause 4(c) of rule X) 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. 
11677).

  By unanimous consent the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct 
was authorized to receive evidence and take testimony before a quorum



Sec. 800a. Postponing votes in committee.

  (4)(A)  Each 
committee may adopt a rule authorizing the chair of a committee or 
subcommittee--


      (i) to postpone further proceedings when a record vote is ordered 
on the question of approving a measure or matter or on adopting an 
amendment; and

      (ii) to resume proceedings on a postponed question at any time 
after reasonable notice.


  (B) A rule adopted pursuant to this subparagraph shall provide that 
when proceedings resume on a postponed question, notwithstanding any 
intervening order for the previous question, an underlying proposition 
shall remain subject to further debate or amendment to the same extent 
as when the question was postponed.

  This subpararaph was added in the 108th Congress (sec. 2(g), H. Res. 
5, Jan. 7, 2003, p. 7). A gender-based reference was eliminated in the 
111th Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. _).
Limitation on committee sittings




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 558]]

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. 144). Effective January 3, 1975 (H. Res. 988, 
93d Cong., Oct. 8, 1974, p. 34470), the Committees on Appropriations, 
the Budget, and Rules were exempted from this clause; 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), who controls one hour of debate thereon 
(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. 121). Clerical and stylistic changes were 
effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47).

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. Although 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 chair 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 559]]

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 560]]


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. Although 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 by designated members or by staff (H. Res. 5, Jan. 7, 1997, 
p. 121). 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. 47). A gender-based reference was 
eliminated in the 111th Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. 
_).



803. Hearing procedure.

  (k)(1)  The chair at a hearing shall 
announce in an opening statement the subject of the hearing.


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

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

  (4) The chair 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 by a member of the committee that the 
evidence or testimony at a hearing may tend to defame, degrade, or 
incriminate any person, or it is asserted by a witness that the evidence 
or testimony that the witness would give at a hearing may tend to 
defame, degrade, or incriminate the witness--

      (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 561]]

committee, a majority being present, determines that such evidence or 
testimony will not 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

  (6) Except as provided in subparagraph (5), the chair 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 the testimony of such 
witness given at a public session or, if given at an executive session, 
when authorized by the committee.


[[Page 562]]

a witness must pay the cost of a transcript copy of 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) 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. It was amended in the 107th Congress to 
permit such an assertion to be made by the witness (with respect to that 
witness) or a member of the Committee (with respect to any person) (sec. 
2(j), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. 25). 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. 121). Clerical and stylistic changes were 
effected when the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47). ``Investigative'' was removed from the 
heading and subparagraphs (1), (3), and (5) of paragraph (k) in the 
107th Congress to conform the rule to House practice, which is to apply 
this paragraph to all committee investigative, oversight, or legislative 
hearings (sec. 2(j), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. 25). Gender-based 
references were eliminated in the 111th Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 6, 2009, p. _).
  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 was amended in the 107th Congress to require the 
committee to furnish such rules only when the witness so requests (sec. 
2(j), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. 25). The former requirement of 
paragraph (k)(9) that


Supplemental, minority, or additional views
  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 prohibits disclosure of information provided to committees or 
Members of the House except in a secret session. For a discussion of 
questions of the privileges of the House addressing committee hearing 
procedure, see Sec. 704, supra.


[[Page 563]]

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.



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,



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. 35077). 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. 121). 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. 47).



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 (3)(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


[[Page 564]]

      (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 chair of the committee, or a member designated by the chair, 
may administer oaths to witnesses.

  (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 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 chair of the committee under 
such rules and under such limitations as the committee may prescribe. 
Authorized subpoenas shall be signed by the chair of the committee or by 
a member designated by the committee.

  (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 565]]

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 chair of the full committee or any member designated by the 
committee (H. Res. 5, Jan. 14, 1975, p. 20). In the 95th Congress the 
paragraph was amended to permit a subcommittee, as well as a full 
committee, to authorize subpoenas and to allow a full committee to 
delegate such authority to the chair 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 105th Congress (sec. 15, H. Res. 168, Sept. 
18, 1997, p. 19319). 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. 
47). A clerical correction was effected to paragraph (m)(1) in the 107th 
Congress to correct a cross reference (sec. 2(x), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 
2001, p. 26). Gender-based references were eliminated in the 111th 
Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. _).
  Before 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

  A subpoena issued under this clause need only be signed by the chair 
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 the Speaker's hand and seal, and it 
must be attested by the Clerk pursuant to clause 2(c) of rule II 
(formerly 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 chair 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 the House 
of Congress of which a Member, or any committee thereof.


[[Page 566]]

of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform under clause 4(c) of 
rule X, such authority must be conferred by separate action of the House 
(see Sec. 800, supra).

  Although 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 authorizes an 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) (formerly subparagraph (2)(B)) has been interpreted to require 
authorization by the full House before a subcommittee chair could 
intervene in a lawsuit 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 or interrogatories. Except in the 
case



Sec. 805a. Certain hearings required.

  (n)(1)  Each standing 
committee, or a subcommittee thereof, shall hold at least one hearing 
during each 120-day period following the establishment of the committee 
on the topic of waste, fraud, abuse, or mismanagement in Government 
programs which that committee may authorize.


  (2) A hearing described in subparagraph (1) shall include a focus on 
the most egregious instances of waste, fraud, abuse, or mismanagement as 
documented by any report the committee has received from a Federal 
Office of the Inspector General or the Comptroller General of the United 
States.

  (o) Each committee, or a subcommittee thereof, shall hold at least one 
hearing in any session in which the committee has received disclaimers 
of agency financial statements from auditors of any Federal agency that 
the committee may authorize to hear testimony on such disclaimers from 
representatives of any such agency.


  (p) Each standing committee, or a subcommittee thereof, shall hold at 
least one hearing on issues raised by reports issued by the Comptroller 
General of the United States indicating that Federal programs or 
operations that the committee may authorize are at high risk for waste, 
fraud, and mismanagement, known as the ``high-risk list'' or the ``high-
risk series.''



[[Page 567]]

Committee on Standards of Official Conduct
  Paragraphs (n), (o), and (p) were added in the 111th Congress (H. Res. 
40, Jan. 14, 2009, p. _).



806. Standards of Official Conduct; additional 
duties.

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


      (1) The committee may recommend to the House from time to time 
such administrative actions as it may consider appropriate to establish 
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.


[[Page 568]]

action as the committee may consider appropriate in the circumstances.
      (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 the duties or the discharge of the responsibilities 
of such individual. 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

      (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 law applicable to the 
performance of the duties or the discharge of the responsibilities of 
such individual that may have been disclosed in a committee 
investigation.

      (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 
XXIII.


[[Page 569]]

dent Commissioner, officer, and employee of the House. Such training 
shall--
      (6)(A) The committee shall offer annual ethics training to each 
Member, Delegate, Resi

          (i) involve the classes of employees for whom the committee 
determines such training to be appropriate; and

          (ii) include such knowledge of the Code of Official Conduct 
and related House rules as may be determined appropriate by the 
committee.

      (B)(i) A new officer or employee of the House shall receive 
training under this paragraph not later than 60 days after beginning 
service to the House.

      (ii) Not later than January 31 of each year, each officer and 
employee of the House shall file a certification with the committee that 
the officer or employee attended ethics training in the last year as 
established by this subparagraph.

  (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 570]]

point 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 
and ranking minority member jointly may ap

  (ii) The chair 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;


[[Page 571]]

      (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 such Member, Delegate, or 
Resident Commissioner believes the information is submitted in good 
faith and warrants the review and consideration of the committee; or

      (C) upon receipt of a report regarding a referral from the board 
of the Office of Congressional Ethics.
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 chair 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 chair 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.

  (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 572]]

the Speaker shall designate a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner 
from the same political party as the ineligible member to act in any 
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,

  (5) A member of the committee may seek disqualification 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 
chair 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 573]]

5 legislative days, whichever is later, after receipt of a written 
report and any findings and supporting documentation regarding a 
referral from the board of the Office of Congressional Ethics or of a 
referral of the matter from the board pursuant to a request under 
paragraph (r), the chairman of the Committee on Standards of Official 
Conduct shall make public the written report and findings of the board 
unless the chairman and ranking member, acting jointly, decide or the 
committee votes to withhold such information for not more than one 
additional period of the same duration, in which case the chairman 
shall--
  (8)(A) Except as provided by subdivisions (B), (C), and (D), not later 
than 45 calendar days or

      (i) upon the termination of such additional period, make public 
the written report and findings; and


[[Page 574]]

      (ii) upon the day of such decision or vote, make a public 
statement that the committee has voted to extend the matter relating to 
the referral made by the board of the Office of Congressional Ethics 
regarding the Member, officer, or employee of the House who is the 
subject of the applicable referral.
At least one calendar day before the committee makes public any written 
report and findings of the board, the chairman shall notify such board 
and the applicable Member, officer, or employee of that fact and 
transmit to such individual a copy of the statement on the committee's 
disposition of, and any committee report on, the matter.

  (B)(i) Notwithstanding subdivision (A)(i), if the committee votes to 
dismiss a matter which is the subject of a referral from the board of 
the Office of Congressional Ethics, the committee is not required to 
make public the written report and findings described in such 
subdivision unless the committee's vote is inconsistent with the 
recommendation of the board. For purposes of the previous sentence, a 
vote by the committee to dismiss a matter is not inconsistent with a 
report from the board respecting the matter as unresolved due to a tie 
vote.

  (ii) Notwithstanding subdivision (A)(ii), if the board transmits a 
report respecting any matter with a recommendation to dismiss or as 
unresolved due to a tie vote, and the committee votes to extend the 
matter for an additional period as provided in subdivision (A), the 
committee is not required to make a public statement that the committee 
has voted to extend the matter.


[[Page 575]]

a report respecting any matter, then the committee shall make public the 
report and upon the expiration of the Congress in which the report is 
made public, the committee shall make public any findings.
  (iii) Except as provided by subdivision (E), if the committee 
establishes an investigative subcommittee respecting any such matter, 
then the report and findings of the board shall not be made public until 
the conclusion of the investigative subcommittee process and the 
committee shall issue a public statement of the establishment of an 
investigative subcommittee, which statement shall include the name of 
the applicable Member, officer, or employee, and shall set forth the 
alleged violation. If any such investigative subcommittee does not 
conclude its review within one year after the board transmits

  (C)(i) If, after receipt of a written report and any findings and 
supporting documentation regarding a referral from the board of the 
Office of Congressional Ethics or of a referral of the matter from the 
board pursuant to a request under paragraph (r), the committee agrees to 
a request from an appropriate law enforcement or regulatory authority to 
defer taking action on the matter--

      (I) notwithstanding subdivision (A)(i), the committee is not 
required to make public the written report and findings described in 
such subdivision, except that if the recommendation of the board with 
respect to the report is that the matter requires further review, the 
committee shall make public the written report but not the findings; and

      (II) before the end of the first day (excluding Saturdays, 
Sundays, and public holidays) after the day that the committee agrees to 
the request, the committee shall make a public statement that it is 
deferring taking action on the matter at the request of such authority.


[[Page 576]]

statement that it is still deferring taking action on the matter, and 
shall make a new statement upon the expiration of each succeeding one-
year period during which the committee has not acted on the matter.
  (ii) If, upon the expiration of the one-year period that begins on the 
date the committee makes the public statement described in item (i)(II), 
the committee has not acted on the matter, the committee shall make a 
new public

  (D) The committee may not receive any referral from the board of the 
Office of Congressional Ethics within 60 days before a Federal, State, 
or local election in which the subject of the referral is a candidate. 
The committee may delay any reporting requirement under this 
subparagraph that falls within that 60-day period until the end of such 
period and in that case, for purposes of subdivision (A), days within 
the 60-day period shall not be counted.

  (E) If, at the close of any applicable period for a reporting 
requirement under this subparagraph with respect to a referral from the 
board of the Office of Congressional Ethics, the vote of the committee 
is a tie or the committee fails to act, the report and the findings of 
the board shall be made public by the committee, along with a public 
statement by the chairman explaining the status of the matter.

  (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 of a majority of its members, opens the meeting 
to the public.


[[Page 577]]

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.
  (2) Notwithstanding clause 2(g)(2) of rule XI, each hearing of an 
adjudicatory subcommittee or

  (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:

      ``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.


[[Page 578]]

firmative vote of a majority of its members, considers appropriate in 
the circumstances.
  (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 af


  (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 provision (formerly 
clause 4(e) of rule X) was first conferred upon the committee in the 
90th Congress (H. Res. 1099, Apr. 3, 1968, p. 8802). Effective January 
3, 1975, the former requirement in paragraph (b)(1)(A) (formerly clause 
4(e)(2)(A) of rule X) that not less than seven committee members 
authorize an investigation was changed to permit a majority of the 
committee 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 chair 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. 19318). Paragraph (b)(5) (formerly 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 seek disqualification from 
participating in an investigation, and paragraph (b)(6) (formerly 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) (formerly clause 
4(e)(1)(A) of rule X) was amended to enable a letter of reproval or 
other administrative action of the committee to be implemented as part 
of a report to the House, with no action required of the House; (2) 
paragraph (a)(2) (formerly clause 4(e)(1)(B) of rule X) was amended to 
require the committee 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) 
(formerly clause 4(e)(1)(E) of rule X) was added to empower the 
committee to consider requests that the rule restricting the acceptance 
of gifts be waived in exceptional circumstances; and (4) paragraph 
(b)(3) (formerly clause 4(e)(2)(C) of rule X) was amended to set a 
general limitation on actions for committee consideration of ethics 
matters.


[[Page 579]]

  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 
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. 121). The select 
committee filed one report to the House (H. Rept. 105-1, H. Res. 31, 
Jan. 21, 1997, p. 393). The current form of paragraph (c) (formerly 
clause 4(e)(3) of rule X) was adopted later in the 105th Congress (sec. 
5, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. 19318).

  Additional amendments to this provision were adopted in the 105th 
Congress as follows: (1) paragraphs (d) and (3) (formerly clauses 
4(e)(4) and 4(e)(5)) were adopted (sec. 6 and sec. 19, H. Res. 168, 
Sept. 18, 1997, pp. 19318, 19320); (2) paragraph (b)(2) (formerly 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 committee rules 
and to specify parameters for the filing of complaints by non-Members 
(sec. 11, H. Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. 19318); and (3) paragraph 
(a)(3) (formerly clause 4(e)(1)(C) of rule X) was amended to permit the 
committee 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 committee without the approval of the House (sec. 18, H. 
Res. 168, Sept. 18, 1997, p. 19320). Paragraph (a)(5) was amended in the 
107th Congress to reflect the redesignation of a rule (sec. 2(s), H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. 24). Paragraph (a)(6) was added in the 110th 
Congress, effective March 1, 2007 (sec. 211, H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 2007, p. 
_). Paragraphs (b)(2)(C) and (b)(8) were added in the 110th Congress (H. 
Res. 895, Mar. 11, 2008, p. _). Gender-based references were eliminated 
in the 111th Congress, and paragraph (b)(5) was amended to clarify the 
disqualification process (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, 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. 
47).

  In the 110th and 111th Congresses, the House directed the committee to 
empanel an investigative subcommittee upon a Member being indicted or 
otherwise formally charged with criminal conduct, or to report to the 
House if it decides not to so empanel a subcommittee (June 5, 2007, p. 
_; sec. 4(e), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. _).


Committee agendas
  In the 110th Congress, the House adopted a resolution establishing an 
independent Office of Congressional Ethics to investigate individually-
initiated alleged ethics violations and to report its recommendations to 
the Committee (Mar. 11, 2008, p. _). The 111th Congress re-established 
the office with a modification on its authority to engage consultants 
(sec. 4(d), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. _).


[[Page 580]]

Committee staff


806a. Standards of Official Conduct; committee 
rules.

  (f)  The committee shall adopt rules providing that the chair shall 
establish the agenda for meetings of the committee, but shall not 
preclude the ranking minority member from placing any item on the 
agenda.


  (g)(1) The committee shall adopt rules providing that--

      (A) the staff 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 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 the employment or duties with the committee of such 
individual without specific prior approval from the chair and ranking 
minority member; and

      (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) Only subdivisions (C), (E), and (F) of subparagraph (1) shall 
apply to shared staff.


[[Page 581]]

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.
  (3)(A) All staff members shall be appointed by an affirmative vote of 
a majority of the members

  (B) Subject to the approval of the Committee on House Administration, 
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 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.

  (D) Outside counsel may be dismissed before 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.


[[Page 582]]

Meetings and hearings
  (4) In addition to any other staff provided for by law, rule, or other 
authority, with respect to the committee, the chair and ranking minority 
member each may appoint one individual as a shared staff member from the 
respective personal staff of the chair or ranking minority member to 
perform service for the committee. Such shared staff may assist the 
chair or ranking minority member on any subcommittee on which the chair 
or ranking minority member serves.

  (h)(1) The committee shall adopt rules providing that--

      (A) all meetings or hearings of the committee or any subcommittee 
thereof, other than any hearing held by an adjudicatory subcommittee or 
any sanction hearing held by the committee, 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

      (B) 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.
Public disclosure

  (i) The committee shall adopt rules providing that, unless otherwise 
determined by a vote of the committee, only the chair or ranking 
minority member, after consultation with each other, may make public 
statements regarding matters before the committee or any subcommittee 
thereof.
Requirements to constitute a complaint


[[Page 583]]

days, whichever is sooner, to determine whether the information meets 
the requirements of the rules of the committee for what constitutes a 
complaint.
Duties of chair and ranking minority member regarding properly filed 
  (j) The committee shall adopt rules regarding complaints to provide 
that whenever information offered as a complaint is submitted to the 
committee, the chair and ranking minority member shall have 14 calendar 
days or five legislative

        complaints

  (k)(1) The committee shall adopt rules providing that whenever the 
chair and ranking minority member jointly determine that information 
submitted to the committee meets the requirements of the rules of the 
committee for what constitutes a complaint, they shall have 45 calendar 
days or five legislative days, whichever is later, after that 
determination (unless the committee by an affirmative vote of a majority 
of its members votes otherwise) to--

      (A) 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;

      (B) establish an investigative subcommittee; or


[[Page 584]]

      (C) request that the committee extend the applicable 45-calendar 
day or five-legislative day period by one additional 45-calendar day 
period when they determine more time is necessary in order to make a 
recommendation under subdivision (A).

  (2) The committee shall adopt rules providing that if the chair and 
ranking minority member jointly determine that information submitted to 
the committee meets the requirements of the rules of the committee for 
what constitutes a complaint, and the complaint is not disposed of 
within the applicable time periods under subparagraph (1), 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 chair 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.
Duties of chair and ranking minority member regarding information not 

        constituting a complaint

  (l) The committee shall adopt rules providing that whenever the chair 
and ranking minority member jointly determine that information submitted 
to the committee does not meet the requirements of the rules of the 
committee for what constitutes a complaint, they may--


[[Page 585]]

      (1) return the information to the complainant with a statement 
that it fails to meet the requirements of the rules of the committee for 
what constitutes a complaint; or

      (2) recommend to the committee that it authorize the establishment 
of an investigative subcommittee.
Investigative and adjudicatory subcommittees

  (m) The committee shall adopt rules providing that--

      (1)(A) an investigative subcommittee shall be composed of four 
Members (with equal representation from the majority and minority 
parties) whenever such a subcommittee is established pursuant to the 
rules of the committee;

      (B) an adjudicatory subcommittee shall be composed of the members 
of the committee who did not serve on the pertinent investigative 
subcommittee (with equal representation from the majority and minority 
parties) whenever such a subcommittee is established pursuant to the 
rules of the committee; and

      (C) notwithstanding any other provision of this clause, the chair 
and ranking minority member of the committee may consult with an 
investigative subcommittee either on their own initiative or on the 
initiative of the subcommittee, shall have access to information before 
a subcommittee with which they so consult, and shall not thereby be 
precluded from serving as full, voting members of any adjudicatory 
subcommittee;


[[Page 586]]

member shall designate one member of the subcommittee to serve as the 
ranking minority member; and
      (2) at the time of appointment, the chair shall designate one 
member of a subcommittee to serve as chair and the ranking minority

      (3) the chair and ranking minority member of the committee may 
serve as members of an investigative subcommittee, but may not serve as 
non-voting, ex officio members.
Standard of proof for adoption of statement of alleged violation

  (n) The committee shall adopt 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 
subcommittee 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.
Subcommittee powers

  (o)(1) The committee 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 majority of 
the members of the subcommittee.


[[Page 587]]

by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the committee.
  (2) The committee 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

  (3) The committee shall adopt rules to provide that--

      (A) 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

      (B) 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 alleged violation.
Due process rights of respondents

  (p) The committee shall adopt rules to provide that--


[[Page 588]]

subcommittee shall inform the respondent that evidence is being withheld 
and of the count to which such evidence relates;
      (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

      (2) neither the respondent nor the counsel of the respondent 
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 counsel 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 rules of the committee;

      (4) evidence provided pursuant to paragraph (1) or (3) shall be 
made available to the respondent and the counsel of the respondent only 
after each agrees, in writing, that no document, information, or other 
materials obtained pursuant to that paragraph shall be made public 
until--


[[Page 589]]

          (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 the counsel of the respondent to 
so agree in writing, and their consequent failure to 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 chair 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) an investigative subcommittee votes to authorize its first 
subpoena or to take testimony under oath, whichever occurs first; or

          (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 chair 
and ranking minority member of the subcommittee, and the outside 
counsel, if any;


[[Page 590]]

ent 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
      (7) statements or information derived solely from a respondent or 
the counsel of a respond

      (8) whenever a motion to establish an investigative subcommittee 
does not prevail, the committee shall promptly send a letter to the 
respondent informing the respondent of such vote.
Committee reporting requirements

  (q) The committee shall adopt 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;

      (2) whenever an investigative subcommittee adopts a statement of 
alleged violation, the respondent admits to the violations set forth in 
such statement, the respondent waives the right to an adjudicatory 
hearing, and the respondent's waiver is approved by the committee--


[[Page 591]]

fore the subcommittee votes on whether to adopt the report;
          (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 be

          (B) the respondent may submit views in writing regarding the 
final draft to the subcommittee within seven 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 subdivision (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 subdivision (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.


[[Page 592]]

investigating such matter, the committee may at any time so notify the 
board and request that the board cease its review and refer the matter 
to the committee for its consideration. If at the end of the applicable 
time period (including any permissible extension) the committee has not 
reached a final resolution of the matter or has not referred the matter 
to the appropriate Federal or State authorities, the committee shall so 
notify the board of the Office of Congressional Ethics in writing. The 
committee may not request the same matter from the board more than one 
time.

  (r) Upon receipt of any written notification from the board of the 
Office of Congressional Ethics that the board is undertaking a review of 
any alleged conduct of any Member, officer, or employee of the House and 
if the committee is


[[Page 593]]

  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 with 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. 2058). The moratorium was 
extended through September 10, 1997 (July 30, 1997, p. 16958). On 
September 18, 1997, the House adopted the recommendations of the task 
force with certain amendments (H. Res. 168, 105th Cong., p. 19340), 
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 were reaffirmed for the 106th Congress (sec. 2(c), H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47) and again for the 107th Congress with an 
exception to section 13 (sec. 3(a), H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 2001, p. 24). In 
the 108th Congress the pertinent free-standing provisions were codified 
(including the exception to section 13 added in the 107th Congress) as 
new paragraphs (f) through (q) of clause 3 (sec. 2(h), H. Res. 5, Jan. 
7, 2003, p. 7). On the opening day of the 109th Congress, various 
changes were made to paragraphs (b), (k), (p), and (q) (sec. 2(k), H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 4, 2005, p. _). Later in the 109th Congress, those changes 
were redacted and the affected provisions as they existed at the close 
of the 108th Congress were reinstated (H. Res. 240, Apr. 27, 2005, p. 
_). Paragraph (r) was added in the 110th Congress (H. Res. 895, Mar. 11, 
2008, p. _). Gender-based references were eliminated in the 111th 
Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. _).


  Section 803 of the Ethics Reform Act of 1989 (2 U.S.C. 29d) contains 
several free-standing provisions, which are carried in this annotation. 
The requirement that the respective party caucuses nominate seven 
majority and seven minority members should be read in light of clause 5 
of rule X, setting the composition of the committee at 10, five from the 
majority and five from the minority. The requirement that the committee 
adopt rules establishing investigative and adjudicative subcommittees 
should be read in light of clause 3(m), which constitutes the same 
requirement. The references to clause 5(d) of rule XI applied to a 
former rule regarding minority staffing requirements, which was 
eliminated in the 104th Congress (sec. 101(c)(5), H. Res. 6, Jan. 4, 
1995, p. 462).


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


                               Conduct.--


                                  * * *


  ``(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 


[[Page 594]]

        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 


        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 


[[Page 595]]

        of Rep

        resentatives 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.''.


                               __________

  On occasions in which the House has directed the committee to conduct 
specific investigations by separate resolution, it has authorized the 
committee to take depositions with one member present, notwithstanding 
clause 2(h) of rule XI, to serve subpoenas, 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 chair 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). 
In the 106th Congress the chair of the Committee on Standards of 
Official Conduct inserted in the Record an explanation of the 
committee's amendment to committee rule 20(f) to reflect that the full 
committee retains discretion whether to report to the House that an 
investigative subcommittee has not adopted a statement of alleged 
violation (Apr. 13, 2000, p. 5631). In the 106th Congress the committee 
filed a report issuing a letter of reproval regarding the conduct of a 
Member (Oct. 16, 2000, p. 22834).


[[Page 596]]

ignates 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) (formerly 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 chair 
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).
  Under clause 3(b)(4) (formerly 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 des


Audio and visual coverage of committee proceedings
  The committee has compiled statutory and rule-based ethical standards 
in the House Ethics Manual (110th Cong., 2d Sess.). In the Manual, the 
committee incorporates its advisory opinions issued under clause 3(a)(4) 
(formerly 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.



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--



[[Page 597]]

and its committees, the consideration thereof, and the action taken 
thereon; and
      (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

      (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.

  (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 the candidacy of any person for 
elective public office.



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--



[[Page 598]]

general work of the committee or of the House; or
      (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

      (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.

  (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 chair 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.


[[Page 599]]

vision cameras permitted by a committee or subcommittee chair 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.
      (2) The allocation among the television media of the positions or 
the number of tele

      (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.


[[Page 600]]

      (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.

      (7) In the allocation of the number of still photographers 
permitted by a committee or subcommittee chair 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 chair for coverage of a hearing or meeting by still 
photography, that coverage shall be permitted on the basis of a fair and 
equitable pool arrangement devised by the Standing Committee of Press 
Photographers.



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.



[[Page 601]]

erage activities in an orderly and unobtrusive manner.

      (12) Personnel providing coverage by the television and radio 
media and by still photography shall conduct themselves and their cov


Pay of witnesses
  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 chair 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,'' 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 chairs from limiting coverage to less than two 
representatives from each medium, except if 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. 35077). Former clause 4(f)(2), permitting a 
witness to terminate audio and visual (including photographic) coverage, 
was eliminated in the 105th Congress (H. Res. 301, Nov. 12, 1997, p. 
26041). Gender-based references were eliminated in the 111th Congress 
(sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, 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. 47).


[[Page 602]]

witness has been summoned at the place of examination.



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


  This clause (formerly 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. 47). 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. 47). For further 
provisions relating to witnesses, see clauses 2(j) and (k) of rule XI 
(Sec. Sec. 802-803, supra).


Unfinished business of the session
  Regulations of the Committee on House Administration do not permit per 
diem reimbursement for witnesses. Regulations for reimbursement of 
actual travel costs may be found in the Committees' Congressional 
Handbook, Committee on House Administration, under the section entitled 
``Hearings and Meetings.''




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.



[[Page 603]]

in the 106th Congress, this provision was found in former rule XXVI (H. 
Res. 5, Jan. 6, 1999, p. 47).
  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 limitation. 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




  The business of conferences between the two Houses is not interrupted 
by an adjournment of a session that does not terminate the Congress (V, 
6260-6262), and if 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).