[United States Senate Manual, 112th Congress]
[S. Doc. 112-1]
[Standing Rules of the Senate]
[Pages 89-95]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


        44                         RULE XLIV \93\
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                \93\ Rule XLIV added pursuant to Pub. L. 110-81, Sep. 
            14, 2007.
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                 CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING AND RELATED ITEMS

     44.1a      1. (a) It shall not be in order to vote on a motion to 
            proceed to consider a bill or joint resolution reported by 
            any committee unless the chairman of the committee of 
            jurisdiction or the Majority Leader or his or her designee 
            certifies--
                (1) that each congressionally directed spending item, 
            limited tax benefit, and limited tariff benefit, if any, in 
            the bill or joint resolution, or in the committee report 
            accompanying the bill or joint resolution, has been 
            identified through lists, charts, or other similar means 
            including the

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            name of each Senator who submitted a request to the 
            committee for each item so identified; and
                (2) that the information in clause (1) has been 
            available on a publicly accessible congressional website in 
            a searchable format at least 48 hours before such vote.
     44.1b      (b) If a point of order is sustained under this 
            paragraph, the motion to proceed shall be suspended until 
            the sponsor of the motion or his or her designee has 
            requested resumption and compliance with this paragraph has 
            been achieved.
     44.2a      2. (a) It shall not be in order to vote on a motion to 
            proceed to consider a Senate bill or joint resolution not 
            reported by committee unless the chairman of the committee 
            of jurisdiction or the Majority Leader or his or her 
            designee certifies--
                        (1) that each congressionally directed spending 
                    item, limited tax benefit, and limited tariff 
                    benefit, if any, in the bill or joint resolution, 
                    has been identified through lists, charts, or other 
                    similar means, including the name of each Senator 
                    who submitted a request to the sponsor of the bill 
                    or joint resolution for each item so identified; and
                        (2) that the information in clause (1) has been 
                    available on a publicly accessible congressional 
                    website in a searchable format at least 48 hours 
                    before such vote.

     44.2b      (b) If a point of order is sustained under this 
            paragraph, the motion to proceed shall be suspended until 
            the sponsor of the motion or his or her designee has 
            requested resumption and compliance with this paragraph has 
            been achieved.
     44.3a      3. (a) It shall not be in order to vote on the adoption 
            of a report of a committee of conference unless the chairman 
            of the committee of jurisdiction or the Majority Leader or 
            his or her designee certifies--
                        (1) that each congressionally directed spending 
                    item, limited tax benefit, and limited tariff 
                    benefit, if any, in the conference report, or in the 
                    joint statement of managers accompanying the 
                    conference report, has been identified through 
                    lists, charts, or other means, including the name of 
                    each Senator who submitted a request to the 
                    committee of jurisdiction for each item so 
                    identified; and

[[Page 91]]

                        (2) that the information in clause (1) has been 
                    available on a publicly accessible congressional 
                    website at least 48 hours before such vote.
     44.3b      (b) If a point of order is sustained under this 
            paragraph, then the conference report shall be set aside.
     44.4a      4. (a) If during consideration of a bill or joint 
            resolution, a Senator proposes an amendment containing a 
            congressionally directed spending item, limited tax benefit, 
            or limited tariff benefit which was not included in the bill 
            or joint resolution as placed on the calendar or as reported 
            by any committee, in a committee report on such bill or 
            joint resolution, or a committee report of the Senate on a 
            companion measure, then as soon as practicable, the Senator 
            shall ensure that a list of such items (and the name of any 
            Senator who submitted a request to the Senator for each 
            respective item included in the list) is printed in the 
            Congressional Record.
     44.4b      (b) If a committee reports a bill or joint resolution 
            that includes congressionally directed spending items, 
            limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits in the bill 
            or joint resolution, or in the committee report accompanying 
            the bill or joint resolution, the committee shall as soon as 
            practicable identify on a publicly accessible congressional 
            website each such item through lists, charts, or other 
            similar means, including the name of each Senator who 
            submitted a request to the committee for each item so 
            identified. Availability on the Internet of a committee 
            report that contains the information described in this 
            subparagraph shall satisfy the requirements of this 
            subparagraph.
     44.4c      (c) To the extent technically feasible, information made 
            available on publicly accessible congressional websites 
            under paragraphs 3 and 4 shall be provided in a searchable 
            format.
      44.5      5. For the purpose of this rule--
                      
     44.5a
                        (a) the term ``congressionally directed spending 
                    item'' means a provision or report language included 
                    primarily at the request of a Senator providing, 
                    authorizing, or recommending a specific amount of 
                    discretionary budget authority, credit authority, or 
                    other spending authority for a contract, loan, loan 
                    guarantee, grant, loan authority, or other 
                    expenditure with or to an entity, or targeted to a 
                    specific State, locality or Congressional district, 
                    other than through a statutory or administrative 
                    formula-driven or competitive award process;

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     44.5b
                      
                        (b) the term ``limited tax benefit'' means--
                                (1) any revenue provision that--
                                  (A) provides a Federal tax deduction, 
                            credit, exclusion, or preference to a 
                            particular beneficiary or limited group of 
                            beneficiaries under the Internal Revenue 
                            Code of 1986; and
                                  (B) contains eligibility criteria that 
                            are not uniform in application with respect 
                            to potential beneficiaries of such 
                            provision;
     44.5c
                      
                        (c) the term ``limited tariff benefit'' means a 
                    provision modifying the Harmonized Tariff Schedule 
                    of the United States in a manner that benefits 10 or 
                    fewer entities; and

     44.5d
                      
                        (d) except as used in subparagraph 8(e), the 
                    term ``item'' when not preceded by ``congressionally 
                    directed spending'' means any provision that is a 
                    congressionally directed spending item, a limited 
                    tax benefit, or a limited tariff benefit.

     44.6a      6. (a) A Senator who requests a congressionally directed 
            spending item, a limited tax benefit, or a limited tariff 
            benefit in any bill or joint resolution (or an accompanying 
            report) or in any conference report (or an accompanying 
            joint statement of managers) shall provide a written 
            statement to the chairman and ranking member of the 
            committee of jurisdiction, including--
                        (1) the name of the Senator;
                        (2) in the case of a congressionally directed 
                    spending item, the name and location of the intended 
                    recipient or, if there is no specifically intended 
                    recipient, the intended location of the activity;
                        (3) in the case of a limited tax or tariff 
                    benefit, identification of the individual or 
                    entities reasonably anticipated to benefit, to the 
                    extent known to the Senator;
                        (4) the purpose of such congressionally directed 
                    spending item or limited tax or tariff benefit; and
                        (5) a certification that neither the Senator nor 
                    the Senator's immediate family has a pecuniary 
                    interest in the item, consistent with the 
                    requirements of paragraph 9.

     44.6b      (b) With respect to each item included in a Senate bill 
            or joint resolution (or accompanying report) reported by 
            committee or considered by the Senate, or included in a 
            conference report (or joint statement of managers accom

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            panying the conference report) considered by the Senate, 
            each committee of jurisdiction shall make available for 
            public inspection on the Internet the certifications under 
            subparagraph (a)(5) as soon as practicable.
      44.7      7. In the case of a bill, joint resolution, or 
            conference report that contains congressionally directed 
            spending items in any classified portion of a report 
            accompanying the measure, the committee of jurisdiction 
            shall, to the greatest extent practicable, consistent with 
            the need to protect national security (including 
            intelligence sources and methods), include on the list 
            required by paragraph 1, 2, or 3 as the case may be, a 
            general program description in unclassified language, 
            funding level, and the name of the sponsor of that 
            congressionally directed spending item.
     44.8a      8. (a) A Senator may raise a point of order against one 
            or more provisions of a conference report if they constitute 
            new directed spending provisions. The Presiding Officer may 
            sustain the point of order as to some or all of the 
            provisions against which the Senator raised the point of 
            order.
     44.8b      (b) If the Presiding Officer sustains the point of order 
            as to any of the provisions against which the Senator raised 
            the point of order, then those provisions against which the 
            Presiding Officer sustains the point of order shall be 
            stricken. After all other points of order under this 
            paragraph have been disposed of--
                        (1) the Senate shall proceed to consider the 
                    question of whether the Senate should recede from 
                    its amendment to the House bill, or its disagreement 
                    to the amendment of the House, and concur with a 
                    further amendment, which further amendment shall 
                    consist of only that portion of the conference 
                    report that has not been stricken; and
                        (2) the question in clause (1) shall be decided 
                    under the same debate limitation as the conference 
                    report and no further amendment shall be in order.
     44.8c      (c) Any Senator may move to waive any or all points of 
            order under this paragraph with respect to the pending 
            conference report by an affirmative vote of three-fifths of 
            the Members, duly chosen and sworn. All motions to waive 
            under this paragraph shall be debatable collectively for not 
            to exceed 1 hour equally divided between the Majority Leader 
            and the Minority Leader or their designees. A motion to 
            waive all points of order under this paragraph shall not be 
            amendable.

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     44.8d      (d) All appeals from rulings of the Chair under this 
            paragraph shall be debatable collectively for not to exceed 
            1 hour, equally divided between the Majority and the 
            Minority Leader or their designees. An affirmative vote of 
            three-fifths of the Members of the Senate, duly chosen and 
            sworn, shall be required in the Senate to sustain an appeal 
            of the ruling of the Chair under this paragraph.
     44.8e      (e) The term ``new directed spending provision'' as used 
            in this paragraph means any item that consists of a specific 
            provision containing a specific level of funding for any 
            specific account, specific program, specific project, or 
            specific activity, when no specific funding was provided for 
            such specific account, specific program, specific project, 
            or specific activity in the measure originally committed to 
            the conferees by either House.
      44.9      9. No Member, officer, or employee of the Senate shall 
            knowingly use his official position to introduce, request, 
            or otherwise aid the progress or passage of congressionally 
            directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited 
            tariff benefits a principal purpose of which is to further 
            only his pecuniary interest, only the pecuniary interest of 
            his immediate family, or only the pecuniary interest of a 
            limited class of persons or enterprises, when he or his 
            immediate family, or enterprises controlled by them, are 
            members of the affected class.
     44.10      10. Any Senator may move to waive application of 
            paragraph 1, 2, or 3 with respect to a measure by an 
            affirmative vote of three-fifths of the Members, duly chosen 
            and sworn. A motion to waive under this paragraph with 
            respect to a measure shall be debatable for not to exceed 1 
            hour equally divided between the Majority Leader and the 
            Minority Leader or their designees. With respect to points 
            of order raised under paragraphs 1, 2, or 3, only one appeal 
            from a ruling of the Chair shall be in order, and debate on 
            such an appeal from a ruling of the Chair on such point of 
            order shall be limited to one hour.
     44.11      11. Any Senator may move to waive all points of order 
            under this rule with respect to the pending measure or 
            motion by an affirmative vote of three-fifths of the 
            Members, duly chosen and sworn. All motions to waive all 
            points of order with respect to a measure or motion as 
            provided by this paragraph shall be debatable collectively 
            for not to exceed 1 hour equally divided between the 
            Majority Leader and the Minority Leader or their designees. 
            A motion to waive all points of order with respect to a 
            measure

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            or motion as provided by this paragraph shall not be 
            amendable.
     44.12      12. Paragraph 1, 2, or 3 of this rule may be waived by 
            joint agreement of the Majority Leader and the Minority 
            Leader of the Senate upon their certification that such 
            waiver is necessary as a result of a significant disruption 
            to Senate facilities or to the availability of the Internet.
                      appendix to standing rules of the senate

                      appendix to standing rules of the senate