Skilling's lawyer, Dan Petrocelli, called the unanimous decision "an exhilarating victory" and predicted a lower court will be forced to dismiss all charges against his client. Joint Sessions and Meetings of Congress (1993 to Present), Joint Sessions and Meetings of Congress (1993 to Present). During the morning hour of each legislative day, Rule VII of the Senate provides that, after the Journal is read, the Presiding Officer lay before the Senate messages, reports, and communications of various types. An appointed official of the Senate, the Parliamentarian functions under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate. line-item veto A veto of part rather than all of an appropriations act. Two-thirds of the Senators of an old Congress return to the subsequent new one without having to be re-elected, but all Representatives must stand for re-election every two years. The names of the Senators are called in their alphabetical order. The yeas and nays may be demanded prior to announcement of the results of a division vote. Agreement to the motion is equivalent to defeating the question tabled. In the case of revenue and tariff bills, the hour of approval is usually indicated. standing committee A permanent committee established under the rules of the Senate or House, specializing in the consideration of particular subject areas. All proposed legislation, and nearly all formal actions by either of the two Houses, take the form of a bill or resolution. Nominated by the majority party conference and elected by the Senate. rider A nongermane amendment to a bill or an amendment to an appropriation bill that changes the permanent law governing a program funded by the bill. Any committee may refer its pending bills to its subcommittees for study and reports thereon. The Official Reporters of Debates prepare the material concerning business of the Senate for inclusion in the Congressional Record. ___, for House resolutions. After the passage of a bill by one body, it technically becomes an Act (not yet effective as a law), but it nevertheless continues to generally referred to as a bill. The Presiding Officer then calls for the presentation of petitions and memorials. These are documents memorializing the Government to do or not to do something. As the Senate begins its new day, it is important to note that the Senate recognizes two meanings for the word day, the calendar day and the legislative day. Yielding time refers to a floor manager allowing a member a specified amount of time to speak under a time-limited debate. joint committee A committee that includes membership from both Chambers of Congress, usually established with a narrow jurisdiction and lacking authority to report legislation. How did a bill that could make it more difficult -- or that even appears to make it more difficult -- for borrowers to fight foreclosure win unanimous approval from the world's greatest deliberative body without debate when a notarization scandal has already halted the biggest banks 'foreclosures in 23 states? Usually number (4) includes authority for the Presiding Officer to appoint conferees on the part of the Senate, although the power to name conferees is in the Senate, not in the Chair. If amended, it is returned to the House for its concurrence in the Senate amendments. roll call vote A vote in which each senator or representative votes "yea" or "nay" as his or her name is called by the clerk. All decisions incident thereto are made without debate, and if a quorum is not present by the time the results from the roll call are announced, a majority of the Senators present may direct the Sergeant at Arms to request or compel the attendance of the absent Senators. Senators have the right to yield for questions while maintaining the floorconsent is not required for this to occur. Also includes presidential proclamations. If the president does approve it, he signs the bill, giving the date, and transmits this information by messenger to the Senate or the House, as the case might be. Charged with upholding their Chambers position on measures when negotiating with conferees from the other Chamber. joint resolution A legislative measure frequently employed for such matters as constitutional amendments, continuing appropriations, establishing permanent joint committees, and corrections of errors in existing law, and the vehicle most often used for congressional approval and disapproval, though it can be used for any legislative matter. private law A bill applicable only to specific organizations or individuals that has passed both Chambers and is signed by the president. parliamentary inquiry A question from the floor to the presiding officer by a senator or representative requesting a clarification of the procedural situation on the floor. committee amendment An amendment recommended by a committee when reporting a bill or other measure. The constitutional provision for reconsideration by the Senate is met, under the precedents, by the reading of the veto message, spreading it on the Journal, and adopting a motion (1) to act on it immediately, (2) to refer it, with the accompanying papers, to a standing committee: (3) to order that it lie on the table, to be subsequently considered, or (4) to order its consideration postponed to a definite day. party conference An organization of all party members in a Chamber. See Senate Rule XXII. The bill, which extends funding for the FAA until Sept. 16, was passed quietly on a near-empty Senate floor through a procedural maneuver known as unanimous consent. This resolution sets levels of new budget authority and spending, revenue, and debt levels. It should be noted that after the final adjournment of the 94th Congress, 1st session, the president returned two bills, giving Congress the opportunity to reconsider and override the vetoes. caucus An informal organization of members of the Senate or House, or both, that exists to discuss issues of mutual concern and possibly to perform legislative research and policy planning for its members. closed session A meeting of the House or Senate from which the public and press are excluded. In the case of motion number (2), the amendments made by the Senate to the House amendments are transmitted to the House, with a request for its concurrence therein. Under the rules of the House, the Committee on House Oversight is charged, when an enrolled bill has been duly signed by the Speaker and the vice president, to present the same, when the bill has originated in the House, to the president of the U. S. for his signature and report the fact and date of such presentation to the House. If it is a Senate bill, this responsibility of presenting the bill to the president falls on the Secretary of the Senate. Senate bills returned with House amendments are held at the desk and almost always are subsequently laid before the Senate by the Presiding Officer upon request or motion of a Senator (usually the Majority Leader or the manager of the bill). If it has been presented to the president, but not acted upon by him, he may be requested by a concurrent resolution to return it to the Senate or the House for correction. whip An assistant to the majority or minority leader who is also elected by his or her party conference. All concurrent resolutions, including corrective resolutions, must be agreed to in both the Senate and House. Various officials are present on the floor of the Senate when it convenes, including the Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate, the Secretary and Assistant Secretary of the Senate, the Sergeant at Arms, the Legislative Clerk, the Journal Clerk, the Parliamentarian of the Senate, the Secretaries for the Majority and the Minority, the Official Reporters of Debate, and the Pages. Senate Roll Call Vote Tables (1989 to Present), Senate Roll Call Vote Tables (1989 to Present). 'All Intensive Purposes' or 'All Intents and Purposes'? 100. These cookies do not store any personal information. Bills which are first considered in the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union are considered for amendment under the 5-minute rule, after which the Committee of the Whole reports them back to the House for action on any amendments that may have been adopted, and then for the vote on final passage. There are certain special procedures in the Senate which limit the amendatory process. The motion to proceed to the consideration of a measure on the Calendar is usually only made if there has been objection to a unanimous consent request to proceed to its consideration. As in the case of the original House amendments, the Senate may agree to some, disagree to others, or ask for a conference with the House thereon. The Constitution does not divide up the process into various component parts which can be identified today, such as initiation, negotiation, signing, Senatorial advice and consent, ratification, deposit or exchange of the instruments of ratification, and promulgation. Used to overcome or deter a filibuster. Each manager then allows any senator to participate in debate by yielding a specified amount of time to the senator. If the nomination is confirmed, a Resolution of Confirmation is transmitted to the White House and the appointment is then signed by the President. The business of the Senate (bills and resolutions) is not divided into classes as a basis for their consideration, nor are there calendar days set aside each month in the Senate for the consideration of particular bills and resolutions. Bills called up under special rules are usually major or controversial pieces of legislation. secretary, party The party official responsible for working with the party floor leader to schedule legislation on the floor and inform senators of all pending business. In addition, the Senate may attach to resolutions of ratification various understandings, interpretations, declarations, and so on. If only one committee has been directed to recommend changes, that committee reports its reconciliation legislation directly to the floor for consideration. , My husband and I made a unanimous choice to relocate after a convicted child molester moved next door to us. It is a way of effecting a final disposition of a measure. Summary of Bills Vetoed (1789 to Present). The preeminent role of the legislative branch, however, is its concern with legislation. Lame Duck Sessions (1940 to Present). amendment tree A way of diagramming the Senate amendment process. floor amendment An amendment offered by an individual senator or representative from the floor during consideration of a bill or other measure, in contrast to a committee amendment. However, Rule V , disallowing motions to suspend, modify or amend any rule, except on one days notice in writing, although not specifying the type of day, is interpreted as meaning one calendar day. For additional information on the budget process go to Legislation & Records. Most of the committees have standing subcommittees, and frequently ad hoc subcommittees are appointed to study and report on particular pieces of legislation or to make a study of a certain subject. The bill is then transmitted by messenger to the Senate, where it is signed by the vice president. The executive business of the Senate consists of nominations and treaties submitted to the Senate by the President of the United States for its advice and consent. This business of the Senate is handled separately from its legislative business. Once these amendments are offered and the tree is filled no other amendments are allowed. Floor assistance for Democratic Senators is provided by the staff of the Democratic Policy Committee. But Stone withdrew the measure after it became clear he would not gain unanimous board support. If a bill which has been vetoed is passed upon reconsideration by the first House by the required two-thirds vote, an endorsement to this effect is made on the back of the bill, and it is then transmitted, together with the accompanying message, to the second House for its action thereon. After a Senate bill is passed by the House, with or without amendment, it is returned to the Senate; if there are amendments, the amendments are engrossed before being messaged to the Senate. Though custom permits unlimited numbers of Senators to sponsor a wide assortment of measures, it prohibits more than one Members name to appear on a reported bill or resolution and the printed report accompanying it. May only be offered once after each vote and may only be offered by a member of the winning side. When the yeas and nays are ordered, the names of Senators shall be called alphabetically; and each Senator shall, without debate, declare his assent or dissent to the question, unless excused by the Senate, and no Senator shall be permitted to vote after the decision shall have been announced by the Presiding Officer, but may for sufficient reasons, with unanimous consent, change or withdraw his vote. They may report a third version on the same subject matter; all of its provisions, however, must be germane modifications of either the House or Senate version, or it will be subject to a point of order. This war, and much as it is, with Britain unanimous and determined as she is, was inevitable in the very nature of things, and did not depend upon an incident here and there, a detail trivial and avoidable. The question is then put upon passage of the bill, which requires a simple majority vote. Changes have not been frequent, as demonstrated by the fact that a codification of the accumulated alterations has occurred on only a few different occasions. It provides also that the rules of each committee shall be published in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 of each year, except that if any such committee is established on or after February 1 of a year, the rules of that committee during the year of establishment shall be published in the Record within 60 days. A conference may be requested at any stage of the consideration of these amendments between the houses. Takes precedence over the original print of a report or document. In 2008, the three-judge appeals panel found the verdict form potentially misleading, given its repeated use of the word unanimous,'' even in the section on mitigating circumstances. After the second House agrees to the conference, appoints conferees, and apprises the first House of its action by message, all the papers relating to the measure sent to conference (referred to as the official papers) are transmitted to the conference. If, instead, the Senate agrees to all the House amendments to the Senate bill or to the Senates amendments to House amendments, such action brings the two Houses into complete agreement, and likewise completes the legislative steps. In the House, as in the Senate, bills are read three times before they are passed. Bikini, bourbon, and badminton were places first. A motion to take up another bill while unfinished business is pending has precedence over a motion to postpone the unfinished business to a day certain. See the CRS report, Holds in the Senate (PDF). Private Calendar business, if any, is considered on the first and third Tuesdays of each month, and discharge motions on the second and fourth Mondays. Under current practice, however, this very rarely occurs; instead, the Calendar is usually called, if at all, pursuant to a unanimous consent order. Delivered to your inbox! For additional information on appropriations go to Legislation & Records. Usually, however, there is compromise. If referred, they are processed in much the same fashion as in the Senatethat is, endorsed for reference, recorded in the Journal, listed in the Congressional Record, and printed by the Government Printing Office for distribution. At these meetings matters on the committee calendar are usually the order of business, but any matter within the committees jurisdiction may be consideredfor example, an investigation of an agency of the Government over which the committee has jurisdiction, or a hearing at which an official discusses policies and operations of his agency. The President fulfills this duty either by personally addressing a joint session of the two Houses or by sending messages in writing to Congress, or to either body thereof, which are received and referred to the appropriate committees. measure Proposed legislation on which the Senate or House takes action, such as a bill or resolution. United States Statutes at Large (GPO govInfo), United States Statutes at Large (GPO govInfo). sergeant at arms The protocol officer and chief law enforcement officer of the Senate. veto override The passage into law of a bill vetoed by the president. authorization A statutory provision that obligates funding for a federal program or agency. After all amendments to a bill have been acted on, the question recurs on third reading and passage of the bill. The conferees cannot report parts of amendments in disagreement. Summary of Bills Vetoed (1789 to Present), Regular Vetoes and Pocket Vetoes: In Brief (PDF) If the Senate decides to issue warrants of arrest for its absent members, it is the duty of the Sergeant of Arms to bring those Senators into custody. Clerks Note: Items on the Unanimous Consent Calendar are not individually discussed. In the absence of a quorum, neither debate nor the transaction of business, including motions (except the motion to adjourn), is in order; it is not even in order to move to recess. The Constitution does not use the word ratification in regard to treaties. For additional information on the budget process go to Legislation & Records. At present, Senate committees include 16 standing committees, three select committees, and one special committee. These two calendars are printed separately. This is called unanimous consent - a move reserved, generally, for bills that are clear and non-controversial. Senators may be forced to attend, unless granted a leave of absence or by authority of the Senate, even if a quorum is present. Also called a "substitute amendment.". For example: "the unanimous" or "a unanimous", Words that often come after unanimous in sentences. A former practice of holding measures at the desk for days, to permit the addition of names, has often met considerable opposition and was discontinued in the 1960s. The Majority Leader customarily secures unanimous consent at the beginning of each new Congress to allow receipt at the desk of all measures on days when morning business is conducted. They're going to try to get what is known as unanimous consent, otherwise known as total agreement to pass this legislation. act A measure passed by one or both Chambers. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. Subject to Senate confirmation. Becomes law when approved by both Chambers and signed by the president, except for a proposed constitutional amendment,which requires a two-thirds affirmative vote in each Chamber and ratification by three-quarters of the states. Alternatively, a bill may be made a special order for a day certain, which requires a two-thirds vote; laid aside temporarily; recommitted to the committee which reported the bill; referred to a different committee; or displaced by taking up another bill by a majority vote. Senate bills and resolutions when messaged to the House may be referred by the Speaker to the appropriate House committee, just as he refers all bills and resolutions introduced in the House. The Secretary is the disbursing officer for the Senate. The letter to Brown calls the stance of local government "unanimous" - the definition of which Reeves indicates is still evolving. These agreements, though, are sometimes subject to what's called a unanimous consent request - if just one senator objects, the entire process can shut down. It is applicable to a bill and amendments thereto as well as to certain motions. Also, the title may be amended. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. The vote on a motion to postpone indefinitely requires the same two-thirds majority; all other motions and questions arising in relation to a treaty are decided by a majority vote. Under the Senates rules, a Senator may enter a motion to discharge a committee from the further consideration of any bill, but this is rarely done. Such clauses, which are introductory statements declaring the reasons for and the intent of the legislation, if amended, would reflect changes or modifications contained in the text of the measure. No motion to suspend this rule shall be in order, nor shall the Presiding Officer entertain any request to suspend it by unanimous consent. By unanimous consent, some bills are discharged from one committee and sent to another. Now that could happen even without most of the members there, if all would agree to have what is called unanimous consent. continuing resolution A joint resolution enacted by Congress to provide budget authority for federal agencies and programs to continue operating in the absence of regular appropriations. Legislation originates in several ways. Select and special committees have varying powers and obligations, and increasingly have been given legislative jurisdiction.

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