[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 117th Congress]
[117th Congress]
[House Document 116-177]
[Front Matter]
[Pages i-xv]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[[Page i]]


_______________________________________________________________________________
 
  116th Congress, 2d Session -  -  -  -  -  -  -  - House Document No. 116-177


                              CONSTITUTION


                           JEFFERSON'S MANUAL


                                   AND


                          RULES OF THE HOUSE OF


                             REPRESENTATIVES


                          OF THE UNITED STATES


                    ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS


                             JASON A. SMITH



                             PARLIAMENTARIAN



                 [GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

                    


  44-700             U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE




________________________________________________________________________

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Publishing 
                           WASHINGTON : 2021


                                 Office




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                          Washington, DC 20402


                          HOUSE RESOLUTION 1233

                            In the House of Representatives, U.S.,      

                                                    November 20, 2020.  

    Resolved, That a revised edition of the Rules and Manual of the 
House of Representatives for the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress be 
printed as a House document, and that three thousand additional copies 
shall be printed and bound for the use of the House of Representatives, 
of which nine hundred eighty copies shall be bound in leather with thumb 
index and delivered as may be directed by the Parliamentarian of the 
House.

    Attest:

                                                Cheryl L. Johnson,      


                                                                Clerk.  






[[Page v]]


                                  (III)


                              P R E F A C E

    The House Rules and Manual contains the fundamental source material 
for parliamentary procedure used in the House of Representatives: the 
Constitution of the United States; applicable provisions of Jefferson's 
Manual; Rules of the House (as of the date of this preface); provisions 
of law and resolutions having the force of Rules of the House; and 
pertinent decisions of the Speakers and other presiding officers of the 
House and Committee of the Whole interpreting the rules and other 
procedural authority used in the House of Representatives.

    The rules for the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress were adopted on 
January 4, 2021, when the House agreed to House Resolution 8. In 
addition to a series of changes to various standing rules, House 
Resolution 8 included separate free-standing orders constituting 
procedures to be followed in the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress. 
Explanations of the changes to the standing rules appear in the 
annotations following each rule in the text of this Manual.

    The substantive changes in the standing rules made by House 
Resolution 8 of the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress included:

    (1) removal of outdated authority for Clerk maintenance of former 
Speaker staff on the House payroll (clause 2(i) of rule II);

    (2) codification of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and Office 
of the Whistleblower Ombuds and establishment of policy direction and 
oversight thereof (clauses 9 and 10 of rule II; clause 4(d) of rule X);

    (3) clarification that continuing litigation authority includes the 
authority to issue subpoenas (clause 8(c) of rule II);

    (4) expansion of admission in the Hall of the House to the Mayor of 
the District of Columbia and prohibition of admission in the Hall of the 
House for former Members, officers, and staff convicted of any crime 
related to the individual's election or service to the House (clause 2 
and 4 of rule IV);



[[Page vi]]

der-neutrality clause (rules 
X, XXIII, XXVII, and clause 2 of rule XXIX);
    (5) modification of numerous provisions to establish gender-neutral 
terminology and elimination of a blanket gen-

    (6) clarification of the jurisdiction of the Committee on Armed 
Services to include the Space Force and Marine Corps (clause 1(c) of 
rule X);

    (7) modification to the committee oversight plan requirement to 
require priority consideration of diversity-related inequities in the 
development of such plans (clause 2(d) of rule X);

    (8) elimination of the printing requirement for availability of a 
report by the Committee on House Administration on expense resolutions 
(clause 6 of rule X);

    (9) modification of the availability requirement for the report on a 
Senate amendment reported in disagreement to permit availability 
pursuant to clause 3 of rule XXIX (clause 8(b) of rule XXII);

    (10) removal of the requirement that committee votes be made 
available by the committee for physical inspection in the committee 
offices, and expansion of amendment text availability requirement to 
include all amendments disposed of or withdrawn (clause 2(e) of rule 
XI);

    (11) expansion of the committee hearing witness disclosure 
requirements to include disclosure of any fiduciary interest in an 
entity with an interest in the subject matter of the hearing, to include 
grants as part of the foreign government disclosure, and to extend the 
disclosure window to 36 months (clause 2(g) of rule XI);

    (12) codification of a prior separate order to allow electronic 
filing of reports and to permit electronic signatures to satisfy certain 
signature requirements under the rules (rules XIII, XXV, and XXVII);

    (13) clarification of the application of committee subpoena 
authority to all persons, including current and former Presidents and 
Vice Presidents, as well as current or former employees of Presidential 
offices (clause 2(m) of rule XI);

    (14) modernization of the restriction on the use of committee audio 
and visual coverage for partisan political campaign purposes (clause 
4(b) of rule XI);

    (15) modification of the cosponsorship process to permit Members to 
remove themselves as cosponsors as a matter of right (clause 7(b) of 
rule XII);

    (16) elimination of certain comparative print requirements (clause 
12 of rule XXI);

    (17) codification of points of order against 

    

    

[[Page vii]]   
    

    

    the consideration of an 
unreported bill or joint resolution and against the consideration of a 
reported bill or joint resolution that fails to include in the report a 
list of related committee and subcommittee hearings and the designation 
of at least one committee or subcommittee hearing used to develop or 
consider such bill or joint resolution (clause 3(c) of rule XIII; clause 
12 of rule XXI);

    (18) elimination of the motion to recommit with instructions and of 
debatability of the motion to recommit, and establishment of automatic 
ordering of previous question thereon (clause 2 of rule XIX; clause 7(d) 
of rule XXII), and conforming modification to the restriction of the 
authority of the Committee on Rules to report a special order of 
business preventing the offering of a motion to recommit (clause 6(c) of 
rule XIII);

    (19) elimination of the special days for the consideration of 
District of Columbia business (clause 4 of rule XV);

    (20) restriction of the authority to offer a motion to amend the 
title of a measure to the Majority Leader or a designee (clause 6 of 
rule XVI);

    (21) elimination of a point of order against consideration of a 
concurrent resolution on the budget containing reconciliation directives 
that specify changes in law that would require reported reconciliation 
legislation to cause an increase in net direct spending (clause 7 of 
rule XXI);

    (22) modification of the availability requirement for unreported 
bills and joint resolutions to allow the publicly-available text of an 
unintroduced bill or joint resolution to count for purposes of 
availability under the rule (clause 11 of rule XXI);

    (23) removal of outdated proscriptive regulatory requirement for the 
ethics rule prohibiting Members from serving as an officer or director 
of a public company (clause 19(c) of rule XXIII);

    (24) prohibition against the prevention of or retaliation for the 
provision of truthful information by an individual to the Committee on 
Ethics, the Office of Congressional Ethics, the Office of Congressional 
Workplace Rights, or law enforcement (clause 20 of rule XXIII);

    (25) prohibition against the disclosure of the identity of or 
personally identifiable information about individuals providing 
information pursuant to specified whistleblower laws (clause 21 of rule 
XXIII); and





[[Page viii]]


    (26) conforming update to the name of the House Communications 
Standards Commission (clause 5 of rule XXIV).

    In addition to the amendments cited above, the definition of ``mass 
mailing'' in clause 9 of rule XXIV was expanded (P.L. 116-260, Dec. 27, 
2020) and clause 3(g) of rule II was modified to conform the Committee 
on Ethics appeals process under such clause to similar appeals processes 
established in the 117th Congress (sec. 8, H. Res. 85, Feb. 2, 2021, p. 
_).

    Citations in this edition refer to:

    (1) Hinds' Precedents of the House of Representatives of the United 
States (volumes I through V) and Cannon's Precedents of the House of 
Representatives of the United States (volumes VI through VIII), by 
volume and section (e.g., V, 5763; VIII, 2852);

    (2) Deschler's Precedents of the U.S. House of Representatives 
(volumes 1 through 9), Deschler-Brown Precedents of the U.S. House of 
Representatives (volumes 10 through 16), Deschler-Brown-Johnson 
Precedents of the U.S. House of Representatives (volume 17), and 
Deschler-Brown-Johnson-Sullivan Precedents of the U.S. House of 
Representatives (volume 18), by chapter and section (e.g., Deschler, ch. 
26, Sec. 79.7; Deschler-Brown, ch. 28, Sec. 4.26);

    (3) Precedents of the U.S. House of Representatives (volumes 1 
through 2), by Parliamentarian last name, chapter and section (e.g., 
Precedents (Wickham), ch. 1, Sec. 1.1);

    (4) the Congressional Record, by date and page (e.g., Jan. 29, 1986, 
p. 684);

    (5) House Practice (2017), by chapter and section (e.g., House 
Practice, ch. 1, Sec. 2);

    (6) Deschler-Brown Procedure in the U.S. House of Representatives 
(4th edition and 1987 supplement), by chapter and section (e.g., 
Procedure, ch. 5, Sec. 8.1);

    (7) the United States Code, by title and section (e.g., 2 U.S.C. 
287); and

    (8) the United States Reports, by volume and page (e.g., 395 U.S. 
486).


[[Page ix]]


    All of the members of the Office of the Parliamentarian - Anne 
Gooch, Kyle T. Jones, Julia Cook, Ben Osheroff, Christina Reid, Lloyd 
Jenkins, Kristen Donahue, and Matthew Kowalewski, as well as Charles 
Johnson, Max Spitzer, Andrew Neal, Catherine Moran, and Bryan Feldblum - 
worked diligently to annotate the decisions of the Chair and other 
parliamentary precedents of the 116th Congress and of the 117th Congress 
to the date of publication of this edition. Their contributions, and 
their devotion to the pursuit of excellence in the procedural practices 
of the House, are gratefully acknowledged.


    Finally, we take a moment to express our gratitude to Thomas J. 
Wickham, Jr., not only for his significant contribution to this 
publication but for his decades of service to the office. Tom's 
immeasurable knowledge and adroit application of House procedure were 
matched only by his reverence for the institution and his commitment to 
mentorship. Like his predecessors, Tom has left an indelible mark on his 
colleagues and on the procedure of the House.

                                                             Jay Smith  





[[Page xi]]

  March 31, 2021


                             C O N T E N T S


                               __________

                            THE CONSTITUTION

                                                                    Page
Preamble..........................................................     3

            Article I.--The legislative power.....................     4

                   II.--The executive power.......................    68

                  III.--The judicial power........................    81

                   IV.--Obligations, duties, etc., of the States..    83

                    V.--Amendments to.............................    85

                   VI.--Law of the land, etc......................    87

                  VII.--Ratification of...........................    92

                        Amendments ratified.......................    94

                           JEFFERSON'S MANUAL

            Section I.--Importance of adhering to rules...........   129

                  III.--Privilege.................................   132

                   VI.--Quorum....................................   153

                  VII.--Call of the House.........................   154

                   IX.--Speaker...................................   154

                    X.--Address...................................   157

                   XI.--Committees................................   157

                  XII.--Committee of the Whole....................   161

                 XIII.--Examination of witnesses..................   170

                  XIV.--Arrangement of business...................   175

                   XV.--Order.....................................   176

                  XVI.--Order respecting papers...................   177

                 XVII.--Order in debate...........................   178

                XVIII.--Orders of the House.......................   203

                  XIX.--Petition..................................   207

                   XX.--Motion....................................   208

                  XXI.--Resolutions...............................   209

                XXIII.--Bills, leave to bring in..................   211

                 XXIV.--Bills, first reading......................   212

                  XXV.--Bills, second reading.....................   212

                 XXVI.--Bills, commitment.........................   213

                XXVII.--Report of committee.......................   224


[[Page xii]]

                                                                    Page

       Section XXVIII.--Bill, recommitment........................   225

                 XXIX.--Bills, reports taken up...................   226

                  XXX.--Quasi-committee...........................   228

                 XXXI.--Bill, second reading in the House.........   231

                XXXII.--Reading papers............................   234

               XXXIII.--Privileged questions......................   236

                XXXIV.--The previous question.....................   249

                 XXXV.--Amendments................................   251

                XXXVI.--Division of the question..................   260

               XXXVII.--Coexisting questions......................   263

              XXXVIII.--Equivalent questions......................   264

                XXXIX.--The question..............................   266

                   XL.--Bills, third reading......................   267

                  XLI.--Division of the House.....................   271

                 XLII.--Titles....................................   276

                XLIII.--Reconsideration...........................   276

                 XLIV.--Bills sent to the other House.............   280

                  XLV.--Amendments between the Houses.............   281

                 XLVI.--Conferences...............................   291

                XLVII.--Messages..................................   304

               XLVIII.--Assent....................................   309

                 XLIX.--Journals..................................   311

                    L.--Adjournment...............................   314

                   LI.--A session.................................   315

                  LII.--Treaties..................................   319

                 LIII.--Impeachment...............................   322

                           RULES OF THE HOUSE

               Rule I.--The Speaker...............................   345

                   II.--Other Officers and Officials..............   371

                  III.--The Members, Delegates, and Resident 

                        Commissioner of Puerto Rico...............   396

                   IV.--The Hall of the House.....................   401

                    V.--Broadcasting the House....................   410

                   VI.--Official Reporters and News Media 

                        Galleries.................................   412

                  VII.--Records of the House......................   425

                 VIII.--Response to Subpoenas.....................   429

                   IX.--Questions of Privilege....................   432

                    X.--Organization of Committees................   454

                   XI.--Procedures of Committees and Unfinished 

                        Business..................................   567

                  XII.--Receipt and Referral of Measures and 

                        Matters...................................   639

                 XIII.--Calendars and Committee Reports...........   655

                  XIV.--Order and Priority of Business............   691

                   XV.--Business in Order on Special Days.........   701

                   

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                                                                    Page

             Rule XVI.--Motions and Amendments....................   720

                 XVII.--Decorum and Debate........................   776

                XVIII.--The Committee of the Whole House on the 

                        state of the Union........................   809

                  XIX.--Motions Following the Amendment Stage.....   840

                   XX.--Voting and Quorum Calls...................   854

                  XXI.--Restrictions on Certain Bills.............   884

                 XXII.--House and Senate Relations................   943

                XXIII.--Code of Official Conduct..................   970

                 XXIV.--Limitations on Use of Official Funds......   987

                  XXV.--Limitations on Outside Earned Income and 

                        Acceptance of Gifts.......................   992

                 XXVI.--Financial Disclosure......................  1021

                XXVII.--Disclosure by Members and Staff of 

                        Employment Negotiations...................  1047

               XXVIII.--Statutory Limit on the Public Debt........  1048

                 XXIX.--General Provisions........................  1051

                 
Provisions of Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, as Amended by the 


    Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970, Applicable to Both Houses
Congressional adjournment.........................................  1057
Preservation of committee hearings................................  1058


                       Joint and Select Committees
Economic Committee, Joint.........................................  1059
Taxation, Joint Committee on......................................  1059
Library, Joint Committee of Congress on the.......................  1060
Printing, Joint Committee on......................................  1060
Inaugural Ceremonies, Joint Congressional Committee on............  1060
Select committees.................................................  1060




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                     House and Congressional Offices
House Communications Standards Commission.........................  1063
House Office Building Commission..................................  1063
Government Accountability Office..................................  1063
Office of Congressional Workplace Rights..........................  1063
Congressional Research Service....................................  1064
Legislative Counsel...............................................  1064
Congressional Budget Office.......................................  1064
Law Revision Counsel..............................................  1064
Technology Assessment.............................................  1064
Office of the Parliamentarian.....................................  1064
Speaker's Office for Legislative Floor Activities.................  1065

                                                                    Page
Office of Interparliamentary Affairs..............................  1065
House Recording Studio............................................  1065
United States Capitol Preservation Commission.....................  1065
Office of General Counsel.........................................  1065
Former Office of Emergency Planning, Preparedness, and Operations.  1066
Office of Attending Physician.....................................  1066
Office of Architect of the Capitol................................  1066
House Democracy Partnership.......................................  1066
Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission................................  1066
Office of Congressional Ethics....................................  1067
Early organization of the House...................................  1069

          Miscellaneous Provisions of Congressional Budget Laws
Congressional Budget Act of 1974..................................  1075
Budget Enforcement Act of 1990....................................  1157
Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010...............................  1161

                  Legislative Procedures Enacted in Law
Measures privileged for consideration in House....................  1165



[[Page xv]]

                                  Index
Index.............................................................  1361

                        GENERAL ORDER OF BUSINESS


                                Rule XIV


              First. Prayer by Chaplain.


              Second. Approval of Journal.


              Third. The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag.


              Fourth. Correction of reference of public bills.


              Fifth. Disposal of business on Speaker's table.


              Sixth. Unfinished business.


              Seventh. The morning hour for the consideration of bills.


              Eighth. Motions to go into Committee of the Whole.


              Ninth. Orders of the day.

                        SPECIAL ORDER OF BUSINESS


Every Monday:

                                 Mondays


              Motions to suspend rules. Rule XV, clause 1.


First Tuesday:

                                Tuesdays

  Private Calendar. Rule XV, clause 5. Individual private bills 


Every Tuesday:

        considered on first Tuesday of each month.


              Motions to suspend rules. Rule XV, clause 1.


Call of Committees under Calendar Wednesday. Rule XV, clause 6.

Every Wednesday:

                               Wednesdays

              Motions to suspend rules. Rule XV, clause