Suspension of the rules
Encyclopedia
Suspension of the rules in the United States Congress is the specific set of procedures within the United States Congress
that allows for the general parliamentary procedure
notion of how and when to suspend the rules
.
.
A motion to suspend the rules is in order on Mondays and Tuesdays and towards the end of a session of Congress and may only be made by the Speaker of the House
or their designee, though it is customary for committee chairs to write the Speaker requesting a suspension. Once a member makes a motion to "suspend the rules" and take some action, debate is limited to 40 minutes, no amendments can be offered to the motion or the underlying matter, and a 2/3 majority of Members present and voting is required to agree to the motion.
A suspension motion sets aside all procedural and other rules that would otherwise prohibit the House from consideration of the measure, but the specific rules that are to be suspended are never mentioned in the motion. Typically, a suspension motion is phrased as a motion to "suspend the rules and pass the bill," and, if the Motion is agreed to, the bill is considered as passed by the House. A Member can also move to suspend the rules and take another action, such as to "suspend the rules and consider the bill," and the House shall take the proposed action if two-thirds of those voting are in favor of the motion.
Most often, bills "on suspension" are non-controversial legislation -- such as naming Post Offices of the United States Postal Service
or federal buildings -- and nearly all bills that are considered under suspension rules have bipartisan support. Both major political parties in the United States -- the Democratic Party
and Republican Party
-- have internal rules that prohibit proposing or supporting a bill under suspension unless it costs less than $100 million.
The 2007 U.S. Farm Bill was considered using such a procedure. Due to a procedural glitch, the bill was improperly sent to the President and in an unusual attempt to solve the problem, the House passed it again as . Hence the House Leadership used the suspension calendar to do so.
Other examples of suspension bills in the 110th United States Congress
:
- Recognizing the necessity for the United States to maintain its significant leadership role in improving the health and promoting the resiliency of coral reef ecosystems, and for other purposes (Rep. Bordallo – Natural Resources)
- A joint resolution directing the United States to initiate international discussions and take necessary steps with other Nations to negotiate an agreement for managing migratory and transboundary fish stocks in the Arctic Ocean
(Sen. Stevens (AK) – Natural Resources)
- Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Mackinac Island State Park
Commission's Historical Preservation and Museum Program, which began on June 15, 1958 (Rep. Stupak – Natural Recourses)
- Honoring the 60th anniversary of the commencement of the carving of the Crazy Horse Memorial
(Rep. Herseth–Sandlin – Natural Resources)
- To assist in the conservation of rare felids and rare canids by supporting and providing financial resources for the conservation programs of nations within the range of rare felid and rare canid populations and projects of persons with demonstrated expertise in the conservation of rare felid and rare canid populations (Rep. Udall (NM) – Natural Resources)
,
Rule XVI prohibits amendments that propose general legislation to appropriations legislations. To prevent a point of order
from killing the amendment, a Senator may offer a motion to suspend rule XVI, paragraph 4, essentially making the order germane. This motion requires a 2/3 majority to approve, meaning that it rarely passes. It should not be confused with a motion to waive the Budget Act, which requires a 3/5 vote to pass and applies to amendments that spend in amounts that exceed the levels set out in the annual budget resolution, as well as many other financial issues.
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
that allows for the general parliamentary procedure
Parliamentary procedure
Parliamentary procedure is the body of rules, ethics, and customs governing meetings and other operations of clubs, organizations, legislative bodies, and other deliberative assemblies...
notion of how and when to suspend the rules
Suspend the rules
In parliamentary procedure, suspension of the rules is a procedure in which a deliberative assembly sets aside its normal rules of order in order to do something that it could not do otherwise.-Background and rationale:...
.
Overview
Suspension of the rules is a procedure generally used to quickly pass non-controversial bills in the United States House of RepresentativesUnited States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
.
A motion to suspend the rules is in order on Mondays and Tuesdays and towards the end of a session of Congress and may only be made by the Speaker of the House
Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
The Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, or Speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives...
or their designee, though it is customary for committee chairs to write the Speaker requesting a suspension. Once a member makes a motion to "suspend the rules" and take some action, debate is limited to 40 minutes, no amendments can be offered to the motion or the underlying matter, and a 2/3 majority of Members present and voting is required to agree to the motion.
A suspension motion sets aside all procedural and other rules that would otherwise prohibit the House from consideration of the measure, but the specific rules that are to be suspended are never mentioned in the motion. Typically, a suspension motion is phrased as a motion to "suspend the rules and pass the bill," and, if the Motion is agreed to, the bill is considered as passed by the House. A Member can also move to suspend the rules and take another action, such as to "suspend the rules and consider the bill," and the House shall take the proposed action if two-thirds of those voting are in favor of the motion.
Most often, bills "on suspension" are non-controversial legislation -- such as naming Post Offices of the United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
or federal buildings -- and nearly all bills that are considered under suspension rules have bipartisan support. Both major political parties in the United States -- the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
and Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
-- have internal rules that prohibit proposing or supporting a bill under suspension unless it costs less than $100 million.
Suspension Calendar
These votes, under the rules, may only take place on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. Under special circumstances, suspension votes may take place on Thursdays or Fridays, or other days, but that happens rarely and requires a separate vote of the House as to whether that should occur.The 2007 U.S. Farm Bill was considered using such a procedure. Due to a procedural glitch, the bill was improperly sent to the President and in an unusual attempt to solve the problem, the House passed it again as . Hence the House Leadership used the suspension calendar to do so.
Other examples of suspension bills in the 110th United States Congress
110th United States Congress
The One Hundred Tenth United States Congress was the meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, between January 3, 2007, and January 3, 2009, during the last two years of the second term of President George W. Bush. It was composed of the Senate and the House of...
:
- Recognizing the necessity for the United States to maintain its significant leadership role in improving the health and promoting the resiliency of coral reef ecosystems, and for other purposes (Rep. Bordallo – Natural Resources)
- A joint resolution directing the United States to initiate international discussions and take necessary steps with other Nations to negotiate an agreement for managing migratory and transboundary fish stocks in the Arctic Ocean
Arctic Ocean
The Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
(Sen. Stevens (AK) – Natural Resources)
- Celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the Mackinac Island State Park
Mackinac Island State Park
Mackinac Island State Park is a state park located on Mackinac Island in the U.S. state of Michigan. The island park encompasses 2.81 mi² , which is approximately 74% of the island's total area of 3.78 mi² . The park is also within the boundaries of the city of Mackinac Island and has permanent...
Commission's Historical Preservation and Museum Program, which began on June 15, 1958 (Rep. Stupak – Natural Recourses)
- Honoring the 60th anniversary of the commencement of the carving of the Crazy Horse Memorial
Crazy Horse Memorial
The Crazy Horse Memorial is a mountain monument complex that is under construction on privately held land in the Black Hills, in Custer County, South Dakota. It represents Crazy Horse, an Oglala Lakota warrior, riding a horse and pointing into the distance. The memorial was commissioned by Lakota...
(Rep. Herseth–Sandlin – Natural Resources)
- To assist in the conservation of rare felids and rare canids by supporting and providing financial resources for the conservation programs of nations within the range of rare felid and rare canid populations and projects of persons with demonstrated expertise in the conservation of rare felid and rare canid populations (Rep. Udall (NM) – Natural Resources)
U.S. Senate
In the United States SenateUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
,
Rule XVI prohibits amendments that propose general legislation to appropriations legislations. To prevent a point of order
Point of order
A point of order is a matter raised during consideration of a motion concerning the rules of parliamentary procedure.-Explanation and uses:A point of order may be raised if the rules appear to have been broken. This may interrupt a speaker during debate, or anything else if the breach of the rules...
from killing the amendment, a Senator may offer a motion to suspend rule XVI, paragraph 4, essentially making the order germane. This motion requires a 2/3 majority to approve, meaning that it rarely passes. It should not be confused with a motion to waive the Budget Act, which requires a 3/5 vote to pass and applies to amendments that spend in amounts that exceed the levels set out in the annual budget resolution, as well as many other financial issues.