[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 115th Congress]
[115th Congress]
[House Document 114-192]
[Jeffersons Manual of ParliamentaryPractice]
[Pages 221-223]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                    sec. xxix--bill, reports taken up


[[Page 222]]

Hats., 348, no question needs be put on the whole report. 5 Grey, 381.



Sec. 422. Consideration and action on reports.

  When  the 
report of a paper originating with a committee is taken up by the House, 
they proceed exactly as in committee. Here, as in committee, when the 
paragraphs have, on distinct questions, been agreed to seriatim, 5 Grey, 
366; 6 Grey, 368; 8 Grey, 47, 104, 360; 1 Torbuck's Deb., 125; 3



  In the House, bills, joint resolutions, concurrent resolutions, and 
simple resolutions come before the House for action although the written 
reports accompanying them, which are always printed, do not (IV, 4674), 
and even the reading of the reports is in order only in the time of 
debate (V, 5292). The Chair will not recognize a Member during debate on 
a bill in the House or in the Committee of the Whole for unanimous 
consent to amend the accompanying committee report in a specified 
manner, because the House should not change the substance of a committee 
report upon which it is not called to vote (Apr. 2, 1985, p. 7209; Nov. 
7, 1989, p. 27762). In rare instances, however, committees submit merely 
written reports without propositions for action. Such reports being 
before the House may be debated before any specific motion has been made 
(V, 4987, 4988), and are in such case read to the House (IV, 4663) and 
after being considered the question is taken on agreeing. In such cases 
the report appears in full on the Journal (II, 1364; IV, 4675; V, 7177). 
When reports are acted on in this way it has not been the practice of 
the House to consider them by paragraphs, but the question has been put 
on the whole report (II, 1364).




Sec. 423. Action by the House on amendments recommended by 
committees.

  On  taking up a bill reported with amendments the amendments 
only are read by the Clerk. The Speaker then reads the first, and puts 
it to the question, and so on till the whole are adopted or rejected, 
before any other amendment be admitted, except it be an amendment to an 
amendment. Elsynge's Mem., 53. When through the amendments of the 
committee, the Speaker pauses, and gives time for amendments to be 
proposed in the House to the body of the bill; as he does also if it has 
been reported without amendments; putting no questions but on amendments 
proposed; and when through the whole, he puts the question whether the 
bill shall be read a third time?



[[Page 223]]

it is usual to vote on the amendments en gros unless a Member demands a 
separate vote (see Sec. 337, supra). The principle that the committee 
amendments should be voted on before amendments proposed by individual 
Members is recognized (IV, 4872-4876; V, 5773; VIII, 2862, 2863), except 
when it is proposed to amend a committee amendment. The Clerk reads the 
amendments and the Speaker does not again read them. Frequently the 
House orders the previous question on the committee amendments and the 
bill to final passage, thus preventing further amendment. When a bill is 
of such nature that it does not go to Committee of the Whole, it comes 
before the House from the House Calendar, on which it has been placed on 
being reported from the standing or select committee or pursuant to a 
special order of business. On being taken from the House Calendar the 
bill is read through and then the amendments proposed by the committee 
are read. In modern practice the House may adopt a special order ``self-
executing'' the adoption of the reported committee amendments in the 
House, and may permit further amendment to the amended text (e.g., H. 
Res. 245, 106th Cong., July 15, 1999, p. 16216).



  The procedure outlined by this provision of the parliamentary law 
applies to bills when reported from the Committee of the Whole; but in 
practice