    [Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 112th Congress]
    [112nd Congress]
    [House Document 111-157]
    [Legislate Procedures Enacted in Law]
    [Pages 1230-1232]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

         23. Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, Sec. 8 [43 U.S.C. 1337]

      Sec. 8. (a)(1) The Secretary is authorized to grant to the highest
    responsible qualified bidder or bidders by competitive bidding, under
    regulations promulgated in advance, any oil and gas lease on submerged
    lands of the Outer Continental Shelf which are not covered by leases
    meeting the requirements of subsection (a) of section 6 of this Act [43
    U.S.C. 1335(a)]. * * *

                                      * * *

      (4)(A) The Secretary of Energy shall submit any bidding system
    authorized in subparagraph (H) of paragraph (1) to the Senate and House
    of Representatives. The Secretary may institute such bidding system
    unless either the Senate or the House of Representatives passes a
    resolution of disapproval within thirty days after receipt of the
    bidding system.

      (B) Subparagraphs (C) through (J) of this paragraph are enacted by
    Congress--

              (i) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the Senate and

            the House of Representatives, respectively, and as such they are

            deemed a part of the rules of each House, respectively, but they

            are applicable only with respect to the procedures to be

            followed in that House in the case of resolutions described by

    [[Page 1231]]

    rules only to the
            this paragraph, and they supersede other

            extent that they are inconsistent therewith; and

              (ii) with full recognition of the constitutional right of

            either House to change the rules (so far as relating to the

            procedure of that House) at any time, in the same manner, and to

            the same extent as in the case of any other rule of that House.

      (C) A resolution disapproving a bidding system submitted pursuant to
    this paragraph shall immediately be referred to a committee (and all
    resolutions with respect to the same request shall be referred to the
    same committee) by the President of the Senate or the Speaker of the
    House of Representatives, as the case may be.

      (D) If the committee to which has been referred any resolution
    disapproving the bidding system of the Secretary has not reported the
    resolution at the end of ten calendar days after its referral, it shall
    be in order to move either to discharge the committee from further
    consideration of the resolution or to discharge the committee from
    further consideration of any other resolution with respect to the same
    bidding system which has been referred to the committee.

      (E) A motion to discharge may be made only by an individual favoring
    the resolution, shall be highly privileged (except that it may not be
    made after the committee has reported a resolution with respect to the
    same recommendation), and debate thereon shall be limited to not more
    than one hour, to be divided equally between those favoring and those
    opposing the resolution. An amendment to the motion shall not be in
    order, and it shall not be in order to move to reconsider the vote by
    which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to.

      (F) If the motion to discharge is agreed to or disagreed to, the
    motion may not be renewed, nor may another motion to discharge the
    committee be made with respect to any other resolution with respect to
    the same bidding system.

    [[Page 1232]]

    to move to reconsider the vote
    by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to.
      (G) When the committee has reported, or has been discharged from
    further consideration of, a resolution as provided in this paragraph, it
    shall be at any time thereafter in order (even though a previous motion
    to the same effect has been disagreed to) to move to proceed to the
    consideration of the resolution. The motion shall be highly privileged
    and shall not be debatable. An amendment to the motion shall not be in
    order, and it shall not be in order

      (H) Debate on the resolution is limited to not more than two hours, to
    be divided equally between those favoring and those opposing the
    resolution. A motion further to limit debate is not debatable. An
    amendment to, or motion to recommit, the resolution is not in order, and
    it is not in order to move to reconsider the vote by which the
    resolution is agreed to or disagreed to.

      (I) Motions to postpone, made with respect to the discharge from the
    committee, or the consideration of a resolution with respect to a
    bidding system, and motions to proceed to the consideration of other
    business, shall be decided without debate.

      (J) Appeals from the decisions of the Chair relating to the
    application of the rules of the Senate or the House of Representatives,
    as the case may be, to the procedure relating to a resolution with
    respect to a bidding system shall be decided without debate.

                                                              Sec. 1130(24A)