[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 112th Congress]
[112nd Congress]
[House Document 111-157]
[Rules of the House of Representatives]
[Pages 387-389]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page 387]]

 

                                 Rule V


                         broadcasting the house



Sec. 684. Broadcasting of House proceedings.

  1.  The Speaker 
shall administer, direct, and control a system for closed-circuit 
viewing of floor proceedings of the House in the offices of all Members, 
Delegates, the Resident Commissioner, and committees and in such other 
places in the Capitol and the House Office Buildings as the Speaker 
considers appropriate. Such system may include other telecommunications 
functions as the Speaker considers appropriate. Any such 
telecommunications shall be subject to rules and regulations issued by 
the Speaker.


  2. (a) The Speaker shall administer, direct, and control a system for 
complete and unedited audio and visual broadcasting and recording of the 
proceedings of the House. The Speaker shall provide for the distribution 
of such broadcasts and recordings to news media, for the storage of 
audio and video recordings of the proceedings, and for the closed-
captioning of the proceedings for hearing-impaired persons.

  (b) All television and radio broadcasting stations, networks, 
services, and systems (including cable systems) that are accredited to 
the House Radio and Television Correspondents' Galleries, and all radio 
and television correspondents who are so accredited, shall be provided 
access to the live coverage of the House.


[[Page 388]]





  (c) Coverage made available under this clause, including any recording 
thereof--

      (1) may not be used for any political purpose;

      (2) may not be used in any commercial advertisement; and

      (3) may not be broadcast with commercial sponsorship except as 
part of a bona fide news program or public affairs documentary program.


  3. The Speaker may delegate any of the responsibilities under this 
rule to such legislative entity as the Speaker considers appropriate.

  Before the House recodified its rules in the 106th Congress, this 
provision was found in former clause 9 of rule I (H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 
1999, p. 47). It was adopted initially in the 96th Congress (H. Res. 5, 
Jan. 15, 1979, p. 7). Gender-based references were eliminated in the 
111th Congress (sec. 2(l), H. Res. 5, Jan. 6, 2009, p. _). The 
requirement that televised broadcasts of proceedings of the House be 
closed captioned for hearing-impaired individuals was added in the 101st 
Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1989, p. 72). The authority of the Speaker 
to make rules governing telecommunications functions within the House 
was added in the 102d Congress (H. Res. 5, Jan. 3, 1991, p. 39).


[[Page 389]]




(Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 1979) contained the 
following proviso: ``No funds in this bill may be used to implement a 
system for televising and broadcasting the proceedings of the House 
pursuant to House Resolution 866, Ninety-Fifth Congress, under which the 
TV cameras in the Chamber purchased by the House are controlled and 
operated by persons not in the employ of the House.''
  In the 95th Congress the House considered as a question of the 
privileges of the House and adopted a resolution directing the Committee 
on Rules to investigate the impact on the safety, dignity, and integrity 
of House proceedings, of a test authorized by the Speaker under the 
Speaker's general control over the Hall of the House for the audiovisual 
broadcast of House proceedings within the Capitol and House Office 
Buildings (H. Res. 404, Mar. 15, 1977, p. 7608). The resolution directed 
the Committee on Rules to report to the House at the earliest 
practicable date its findings and recommendations, including whether 
such coverage should be made available to the public. The committee 
reported and the House adopted another resolution that: (1) authorized 
the Speaker to establish a closed-circuit system for in-House 
broadcasting of House proceedings; (2) directed the Committee on Rules 
to study methods for providing complete audio and visual broadcasting of 
House proceedings and to report to the House thereon; and (3) directed 
the Speaker after receipt of the committee's report to establish a 
system subject to his direction and control for audio and visual 
broadcast and recording of House proceedings and to provide for 
distribution and access to the news media (H. Res. 866, Oct. 27, 1977, 
pp. 35425-37). The Speaker, after receipt of that report (H. Rept. 95-
881, Feb. 15, 1978), directed implementation of full audio coverage, 
with distribution to the media, on June 8, 1978 (p. 16746). Public Law 
95-391 



  Pursuant to this rule, the Speaker directed the Clerk in the 98th 
Congress to immediately implement periodic wide-angle television 
coverage of all ``special-order'' speeches at the end of legislative 
business (with captions at the bottom of the screen indicating that 
legislative business has been completed) (May 10, 1984, p. 11894) but 
not during ``interim'' special orders (Dec. 19, 1985, p. 38106). 
However, in the 103d and 104th Congresses, the Speaker prohibited wide-
angle coverage but continued the caption at the bottom of the screen not 
only during special-order speeches but also during morning-hour debate 
(Speaker Foley, Feb. 11, 1994, p. 2244; Speaker Gingrich, Jan. 4, 1995, 
p. 551). In the 99th Congress, the House adopted a resolution, raised as 
a question of the privileges of the House, authorizing and directing the 
Speaker to provide for the audio and visual broadcast coverage of the 
Chamber while Members are voting (H. Res. 150, Apr. 30, 1985, p. 9821). 
Although paragraph (a) requires complete and unedited broadcast coverage 
of House proceedings, the House held (by tabling an appeal of a ruling 
of the Chair) that it does not require in-House microphone amplification 
of disorderly conduct by a Member following expiration of recognition 
for debate (Mar. 16, 1988, p. 4081).