House rules for 112th House of Representatives

7/30/2019 House rules for 112th House of Representatives

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112TH CONGRESS1ST SESSION H. RES. 5

Adopting rules for the One Hundred Twelfth Congress.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

RESOLUTION

Adopting rules for the One Hundred Twelfth Congress.

Resolved, That the Rules of the House of Representa-1

tives of the One Hundred Eleventh Congress, including2

applicable provisions of law or concurrent resolution that3

constituted rules of the House at the end of the One Hun-4

dred Eleventh Congress, are adopted as the Rules of the5

House of Representatives of the One Hundred Twelfth6

Congress, with amendments to the standing rules as pro-7

vided in section 2, and with other orders as provided in8

sections 3, 4, and 5.9

SECTION 2. CHANGES TO THE STANDING RULES.10

(a) CITING AUTHORITY UNDER THE CONSTITU-11

TION.12

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(1) In clause 7 of rule XII, add the following1

new paragraph:2

(c)(1) A bill or joint resolution may not be in-3

troduced unless the sponsor submits for printing in4

the Congressional Record a statement citing as spe-5

cifically as practicable the power or powers granted6

to Congress in the Constitution to enact the bill or7

joint resolution. The statement shall appear in a8

portion of the Record designated for that purpose9

and be made publicly available in electronic form by10

the Clerk.11

(2) Before consideration of a Senate bill or12

joint resolution, the chair of a committee of jurisdic-13

tion may submit the statement required under sub-14

paragraph (1) as though the chair were the sponsor15

of the Senate bill or joint resolution..16

(2) In clause 3(d) of rule XIII17

(A) strike subparagraph (1) (and redesig-18

nate the succeeding subparagraphs accord-19

ingly); and20

(B) in subparagraph (2), as redesignated,21

strike subparagraph (2) each place it appears22

and insert (in each instance) subparagraph23

(1).24


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(b) THREE-DAY AVAILABILITY FOR UNREPORTED1

MEASURES.In rule XXI, add the following new clause:2

11. It shall not be in order to consider a bill or joint3

resolution which has not been reported by a committee4

until the third calendar day (excluding Saturdays, Sun-5

days, or legal holidays except when the House is in session6

on such a day) on which such measure has been available7

to Members, Delegates, and the Resident Commissioner..8

(c) TRANSPARENCY FOR HOUSE AND COMMITTEE9

OPERATIONS.10

(1) STANDARDS FOR ELECTRONIC DOCU-11

MENTS.In clause 4(d)(1) of rule X12

(A) in subdivision (C), strike and;13

(B) in subdivision (D), strike the period14

and insert ; and; and15

(C) add the following new subdivision:16

(E) establish and maintain standards17

for making documents publicly available in18

electronic form by the House and its com-19

mittees..20

(2) ENSURING THAT TEXT IS PUBLICLY AVAIL-21

ABLE IN ELECTRONIC FORM.In rule XXIX, add22

the following new clause:23

3. If a measure or matter is publicly available in24

electronic form at a location designated by the Committee25


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on House Administration, it shall be considered as having1

been available to Members, Delegates, and the Resident2

Commissioner for purposes of these rules..3

(3) MINIMUM NOTICE PERIOD FOR COMMITTEE4

MEETINGS AND HEARINGS.In rule XI, amend5

clause 2(g)(3) to read as follows:6

(3)(A) The chair of a committee shall an-7

nounce the date, place, and subject matter of8

(i) a committee hearing, which may not9

commence earlier than one week after such no-10

tice; or11

(ii) a committee meeting, which may not12

commence earlier than the third day on which13

members have notice thereof.14

(B) A hearing or meeting may begin sooner15

than specified in subdivision (A) in either of the fol-16

lowing circumstances (in which case the chair shall17

make the announcement specified in subdivision (A)18

at the earliest possible time):19

(i) the chair of the committee, with the20

concurrence of the ranking minority member,21

determines that there is good cause; or22

(ii) the committee so determines by ma-23

jority vote in the presence of the number of24


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members required under the rules of the com-1

mittee for the transaction of business.2

(C) An announcement made under this sub-3

paragraph shall be published promptly in the Daily4

Digest and made publicly available in electronic5

form.6

(D) This subparagraph and subparagraph (4)7

shall not apply to the Committee on Rules..8

(4) MINIMUM PERIOD FOR AVAILABILITY OF9

COMMITTEE MARKUP TEXT.In clause 2(g) of rule10

XI, insert the following new subparagraph, and re-11

designate the succeeding subparagraphs accordingly:12

(4) At least 24 hours prior to the com-13

mencement of a meeting for the markup of leg-14

islation, or at the time of an announcement15

under subparagraph (3)(B) made within 2416

hours before such meeting, the chair of the17

committee shall cause the text of such legisla-18

tion to be made publicly available in electronic19

form..20

(5) AVAILABILITY OF VOTES IN ELECTRONIC21

FORM.In clause 2(e)(1)(B)(i) of rule XI22

(A) in the first sentence, before the period23

at the end thereof insert and also made pub-24


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licly available in electronic form within 48 hours1

of such record vote; and2

(B) in the second sentence, strike for3

public inspection.4

(6) AVAILABILITY OF THE TEXT OF AMEND-5

MENTS IN ELECTRONIC FORM.In clause 2(e) of6

rule XI, add the following new subparagraph:7

(6) Not later than 24 hours after the8

adoption of any amendment to a measure or9

matter considered by a committee, the chair of10

such committee shall cause the text of each11

such amendment to be made publicly available12

in electronic form..13

(7) AVAILABILITY OF TRUTH IN TESTIMONY14

INFORMATION IN ELECTRONIC FORM.In clause15

2(g)(5) of rule XI, as redesignated, add the fol-16

lowing new sentence: Such statements, with appro-17

priate redactions to protect the privacy of the wit-18

ness, shall be made publicly available in electronic19

form not later than one day after the witness ap-20

pears.21

(8) AVAILABILITY OF COMMITTEE RULES IN22

ELECTRONIC FORM.In clause 2(a) of rule XI,23

amend subparagraph (2) to read as follows:24


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(2) Each committee shall make its rules1

publicly available in electronic form and submit2

such rules for publication in the Congressional3

Record not later than 30 days after the chair4

of the committee is elected in each odd-num-5

bered year..6

(9) AUDIO AND VIDEO COVERAGE OF COM-7

MITTEE HEARINGS AND MEETINGS.In clause 2(e)8

of rule XI, add the following new subparagraph:9

(5) To the maximum extent practicable,10

each committee shall11

(A) provide audio and video coverage12

of each hearing or meeting for the trans-13

action of business in a manner that allows14

the public to easily listen to and view the15

proceedings; and16

(B) maintain the recordings of such17

coverage in a manner that is easily acces-18

sible to the public..19

(10) RECORD VOTES IN THE COMMITTEE ON20

RULES.In clause 3(b) of rule XIII, strike a re-21

port by the Committee on Rules on a rule, joint rule,22

or the order of business or to.23

(11) ELIMINATION OF DUPLICATIVE PRO-24

GRAMS.In clause 2(d)(1) of rule X25


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(A) in subdivision (D), strike and;1

(B) in subdivision (E), strike the period2

and insert ; and; and3

(C) add the following new subdivision:4

(F) include proposals to cut or elimi-5

nate programs, including mandatory6

spending programs, that are inefficient,7

duplicative, outdated, or more appro-8

priately administered by State or local gov-9

ernments..10

(d) INITIATIVES TO REDUCE SPENDING AND IM-11

PROVEACCOUNTABILITY.12

(1) CUT-AS-YOU-GO.In rule XXI, amend13

clause 10 to read as follows:14

10.(a)(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and15

(c), it shall not be in order to consider a bill or joint reso-16

lution, or an amendment thereto or a conference report17

thereon, if the provisions of such measure have the net18

effect of increasing mandatory spending for the period of19

either20

(A) the current year, the budget year, and the21

four fiscal years following that budget year; or22

(B) the current year, the budget year, and the23

nine fiscal years following that budget year.24


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(2) For the purpose of this clause, the terms budget1

year and current year have the meanings specified in2

section 250 of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Def-3

icit Control Act of 1985, and the term mandatory spend-4

ing has the meaning of direct spending specified in such5

section 250 except that such term shall also include provi-6

sions in appropriation Acts that make outyear modifica-7

tions to substantive law as described in section 3(4)(C)8

of the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010.9

(b) If a bill or joint resolution, or an amendment10

thereto, is considered pursuant to a special order of the11

House directing the Clerk to add as new matter at the12

end of such bill or joint resolution the entire text of a13

separate measure or measures as passed by the House,14

the new matter proposed to be added shall be included15

in the evaluation under paragraph (a) of the bill, joint res-16

olution, or amendment.17

(c)(1) Except as provided in subparagraph (2), the18

evaluation under paragraph (a) shall exclude a provision19

expressly designated as an emergency for the Statutory20

Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, in the case of a point of order21

under this clause against consideration of22

(A) a bill or joint resolution;23

(B) an amendment made in order as original24

text by a special order of business;25


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(C) a conference report; or1

(D) an amendment between the Houses.2

(2) In the case of an amendment (other than one3

specified in subparagraph (1)) to a bill or joint resolution,4

the evaluation under paragraph (a) shall give no cog-5

nizance to any designation of emergency..6

(2) REQUIRING A VOTE ON RAISING THE DEBT7

LIMIT.Rule XXVIII is amended to read as follows:8

RULE XXVIII9

(RESERVED.).10

(3) CLARIFYING THE ROLE OF THE CHAIR OF11

THE COMMITTEE ON THE BUDGET.In rule XXIX,12

add the following new clause:13

4. Authoritative guidance from the Committee on14

the Budget concerning the impact of a legislative propo-15

sition on the levels of new budget authority, outlays, direct16

spending, new entitlement authority and revenues may be17

provided by the chair of the committee..18

(4) HIGHWAY FUNDING.In rule XXI19

(A) amend clause 3 to read as follows:20

3. It shall not be in order to consider a general ap-21

propriation bill or joint resolution, or conference report22

thereon, that23

(a) provides spending authority derived from re-24

ceipts deposited in the Highway Trust Fund (excluding25


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any transfers from the General Fund of the Treasury);1

or2

(b) reduces or otherwise limits the accruing balances3

of the Highway Trust Fund,4

for any purpose other than for those activities authorized5

for the highway or mass transit categories.; and6

(B) in clause 3, strike the caption.7

(5) LIMITATION ON INCREASES IN DIRECT8

SPENDING IN RECONCILIATION INITIATIVES.In9

rule XXI, amend clause 7 to read as follows:10

7. It shall not be in order to consider a concurrent11

resolution on the budget, or an amendment thereto, or a12

conference report thereon that contains reconciliation di-13

rectives under section 310 of the Congressional Budget14

Act of 1974 that specify changes in law such that the rec-15

onciliation legislation reported pursuant to such directives16

would cause an increase in net direct spending (as such17

term is defined in clause 10) for the period covered by18

such concurrent resolution..19

(e) OTHER CHANGES TO HOUSE OPERATIONS.20

(1) TWO-MINUTE VOTING.In clause 6 of rule21

XVIII22

(A) in paragraph (f), strike five minutes23

and insert not less than two minutes; and24


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(B) in paragraph (g), strike five minutes1

and insert not less than two minutes.2

(2) USE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES ON THE3

FLOOR.In clause 5 of rule XVII, amend the penul-4

timate sentence to read as follows: A person on the5

floor of the House may not smoke or use a mobile6

electronic device that impairs decorum.7

(3) UPDATING RULES GOVERNING THE8

MEDIA.9

(A) In clause 2 of rule VI, strike the pe-10

nultimate sentence, and amend the last sen-11

tence to read as follows: The Speaker may12

admit to the floor, under such regulations as13

the Speaker may prescribe, not more than one14

representative of each press association.15

(B) In clause 3 of rule VI, strike the last16

sentence and insert The Speaker may admit to17

the floor, under such regulations as the Speaker18

may prescribe, not more than one representa-19

tive of each media outlet.20

(C) In clause 4(f)(7) of rule XI, strike the21

first sentence.22

(4) VOTING BY DELEGATES AND THE RESIDENT23

COMMISSIONER IN THE COMMITTEE OF THE24

WHOLE.25


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(A) In clause 3(a) of rule III, strike the1

first sentence.2

(B) In rule XVIII3

(i) in clause 1, strike , Delegate, or4

the Resident Commissioner; and5

(ii) in clause 6, strike paragraph (h).6

(5) MOTIONS TO STRIKE IN THE COMMITTEE7

OF THE WHOLE.In rule XVIII, strike clause 118

(and redesignate the succeeding clause accordingly).9

(6) CLARIFYING JURISDICTION OVER CERTAIN10

CEMETERIES.In clause 1(c) of rule X, add the fol-11

lowing subparagraph:12

(16) Cemeteries administered by the De-13

partment of Defense..14

(7) DESIGNATING COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION15

AND THE WORKFORCE.In rule X16

(A) in clause 1(e), strike Committee on17

Education and Labor and insert Committee18

on Education and the Workforce; and19

(B) in clause 3(d), strike Committee on20

Education and Labor and insert Committee21

on Education and the Workforce.22

(8) DESIGNATING COMMITTEE ON ETHICS.23

(A) In the standing rules, strike Com-24

mittee on Standards of Official Conduct each25


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place it appears and insert (in each instance)1

Committee on Ethics.2

(B) In clause 1 of rule X, insert paragraph3

(q) after paragraph (f) (and redesignate the4

succeeding paragraphs accordingly).5

(C) In the standing rules, strike clause6

1(j)(1) of rule X each place it appears and in-7

sert (in each instance) clause 1(k)(1) of rule8

X.9

(9) DESIGNATING THE COMMITTEE ON10

SCIENCE, SPACE, AND TECHNOLOGY.In rule X11

(A) in clause 1(p), as redesignated, strike12

Committee on Science and Technology and13

insert Committee on Science, Space, and14

Technology; and15

(B) in clause 3(k), strike Committee on16

Science and Technology and insert Com-17

mittee on Science, Space, and Technology.18

(10) ELIMINATING THE SELECT INTELLIGENCE19

OVERSIGHT PANEL.In clause 4(a) of rule X, strike20

subparagraph (5).21

(11) ADJUSTING THE SIZE OF THE PERMANENT22

SELECT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE.In clause23

11(a)(1) of rule X, strike 22 and insert 20 and24

strike 13 and insert 12.25


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(12) RESTORING THE TERM LIMIT RULE FOR1

COMMITTEE CHAIRS.In clause 5 of rule X, redesig-2

nate paragraph (c) as subparagraph (c)(1) and add3

the following new subparagraph:4

(2) Except in the case of the Committee5

on Rules, a member of a standing committee6

may not serve as chair of the same standing7

committee, or of the same subcommittee of a8

standing committee, during more than three9

consecutive Congresses (disregarding for this10

purpose any service for less than a full session11

in a Congress)..12

(13) COMMITTEE ACTIVITY REPORTS.In13

clause 1 of rule XI, amend paragraph (d) to read as14

follows:15

(d)(1) Not later than the 30th day after June16

1 and December 1, a committee shall submit to the17

House a semiannual report on the activities of that18

committee.19

(2) Such report shall include20

(A) separate sections summarizing the21

legislative and oversight activities of that com-22

mittee under this rule and rule X during the23

applicable period;24


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(B) in the case of the first such report,1

a summary of the oversight plans submitted by2

the committee under clause 2(d) of rule X;3

(C) a summary of the actions taken and4

recommendations made with respect to the5

oversight plans specified in subdivision (B);6

(D) a summary of any additional over-7

sight activities undertaken by that committee8

and any recommendations made or actions9

taken thereon; and10

(E) a delineation of any hearings held11

pursuant to clauses 2(n), (o), or (p) of this12

rule.13

(3) After an adjournment sine die of a regular14

session of a Congress, or after December 15, which-15

ever occurs first, the chair of a committee may file16

the second or fourth semiannual report described in17

subparagraph (1) with the Clerk at any time and18

without approval of the committee, provided that19

(A) a copy of the report has been avail-20

able to each member of the committee for at21

least seven calendar days; and22

(B) the report includes any supplemental,23

minority, or additional views submitted by a24

member of the committee..25


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(14) MODIFYING STAFF DEPOSITION AUTHOR-1

ITY.In clause 4(c)(3)(B) of rule X2

(A) in item (i), strike and;3

(B) in item (ii), strike the period and in-4

sert ; and; and5

(C) add at the end the following new item:6

(iii) shall, unless waived by the7

deponent, require the attendance of a8

member of the committee..9

(f) TECHNICAL AND CLARIFYING CHANGES.10

(1) In clause 3(a) of rule III, strike of the11

House.12

(2) In rule IV13

(A) in clause 1, strike The Speaker may14

not entertain a motion for the suspension of15

this clause.; and16

(B) in clause 2(b), after clause insert17

or clauses 1, 3, 4, or 5.18

(3) In clause 3(o)(2) of rule XI, after inves-19

tigation insert when.20

(4) In clause 7 of rule XII, strike primary21

sponsor each place it appears and insert (in each22

instance) sponsor.23


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(5) In clause 6(c) of rule XIII, strike Senate1

bill or resolution and insert Senate bill or joint2

resolution.3

(6) In clause 2(c) of rule XV4

(A) strike Clerk shall make signatures5

and insert Clerk shall make the signatories;6

and7

(B) strike published with the signatures8

and insert published with the signatories.9

(7) In clause 6(c) of rule XXIII, strike a cam-10

paign accounts and insert a campaign account.11

(8) In clause 13 of rule XXIII, strike Clerk12

shall make signatures and insert Clerk shall make13

the signatories.14

SEC. 3. SEPARATE ORDERS.15

(a) BUDGET MATTERS.16

(1) During the One Hundred Twelfth Congress,17

references in section 306 of the Congressional Budg-18

et Act of 1974 to a resolution shall be construed in19

the House of Representatives as references to a joint20

resolution.21


in the case of a reported bill or joint resolution con-23

sidered pursuant to a special order of business, a24

point of order under section 303 of the Congres-25


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sional Budget Act of 1974 shall be determined on1

the basis of the text made in order as an original bill2

or joint resolution for the purpose of amendment or3

to the text on which the previous question is ordered4

directly to passage, as the case may be.5


a provision in a bill or joint resolution, or in an7

amendment thereto or a conference report thereon,8

that establishes prospectively for a Federal office or9

position a specified or minimum level of compensa-10

tion to be funded by annual discretionary appropria-11

tions shall not be considered as providing new enti-12

tlement authority within the meaning of the Con-13

gressional Budget Act of 1974.14

(4)(A) During the One Hundred Twelfth Con-15

gress, except as provided in subparagraph (C), a mo-16

tion that the Committee of the Whole rise and re-17

port a bill to the House shall not be in order if the18

bill, as amended, exceeds an applicable allocation of19

new budget authority under section 302(b) of the20

Congressional Budget Act of 1974, as estimated by21

the Committee on the Budget.22

(B) If a point of order under subparagraph23

(A) is sustained, the Chair shall put the ques-24

tion: Shall the Committee of the Whole rise25


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and report the bill to the House with such1

amendments as may have been adopted not-2

withstanding that the bill exceeds its allocation3

of new budget authority under section 302(b) of4

the Congressional Budget Act of 1974?. Such5

question shall be debatable for 10 minutes6

equally divided and controlled by a proponent of7

the question and an opponent but shall be de-8

cided without intervening motion.9

(C) Subparagraph (A) shall not apply10

(i) to a motion offered under clause11

2(d) of rule XXI; or12

(ii) after disposition of a question13

under subparagraph (B) on a given bill.14

(D) If a question under subparagraph (B)15

is decided in the negative, no further amend-16

ment shall be in order except17

(i) one proper amendment, which shall18

be debatable for 10 minutes equally divided19

and controlled by the proponent and an op-20

ponent, shall not be subject to amendment,21

and shall not be subject to a demand for22

division of the question in the House or in23

the Committee of the Whole; and24


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(ii) pro forma amendments, if offered1

by the chair or ranking minority member2

of the Committee on Appropriations or3

their designees, for the purpose of debate.4

(b) BUDGET ENFORCEMENT.5

(1) The chair of the Committee on the Budget6

(when elected) shall include in the Congressional7

Record budget aggregates and allocations con-8

templated by section 301 of the Congressional Budg-9

et Act of 1974 and allocations contemplated by sec-10

tion 302(a) of that Act for fiscal year 2011, and the11

period of fiscal years 2011 through 2015.12

(2) The aggregates and allocations specified in13

subsection (1) shall be considered as contained in a14

concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year15

2011 and the submission thereof into the Congres-16

sional Record shall be considered as the completion17

of congressional action on a concurrent resolution on18

the budget for fiscal year 201119

(c) EMERGENCIES AND CONTINGENCIES.20

(1) EMERGENCIES.Until adoption of a con-21

current resolution on the budget for fiscal year22

2012, if a bill or joint resolution is reported, or23

amendment thereto is offered or a conference report24

thereon is filed, that provides new budget authority25


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and outlays or reduces revenue, and such provision1

is designated as an emergency pursuant to this sec-2

tion, the chair of the Committee on the Budget shall3

not count the budgetary effects of such provision for4

purposes of titles III and IV of the Congressional5

Budget Act of 1974 and the Rules of the House of6

Representatives.7

(2) EXEMPTION OF CONTINGENCY OPERATIONS8

RELATED TO THE GLOBAL WAR ON TERRORISM.9

For any bill or joint resolution, or amendment there-10

to or conference report thereon, that makes appro-11

priations for fiscal year 2011 for contingency oper-12

ations directly related to the global war on ter-13

rorism, then the new budget authority or outlays re-14

sulting therefrom shall not count for purposes of ti-15

tles III or IV of the Congressional Budget Act of16

1974.17

(d) DEFICIT-NEUTRAL REVENUE RESERVE.Until18

the adoption of a concurrent resolution on the budget for19

fiscal year 2012, if any bill reported by the Committee20

on Ways and Means, or amendment thereto or conference21

report thereon, decreases revenue, the chair of the Com-22

mittee on the Budget may adjust the allocations, the rev-23

enue levels, and other aggregates referred to in subsection24


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(b)(1), provided that such measure would not increase the1

deficit over the period of fiscal years 2011 through 2021.2

(e) LIMITATION ONADVANCEAPPROPRIATIONS.3

(1) Except as provided by paragraph (2), any4

general appropriation bill or joint resolution con-5

tinuing appropriations, or amendment thereto or6

conference report thereon, may not provide advance7

appropriations.8

(2) Advance appropriations may be provided9

(A) for fiscal year 2012 for programs,10

projects, activities, or accounts identified in the11

Congressional Record under the heading Ac-12

counts Identified for Advance Appropriations13

in an aggregate amount not to exceed14

$28,852,000,000 in new budget authority, and15

for 2013, an aggregate amount not to exceed16

$28,852,000,000 for accounts separately identi-17

fied under the same heading; and18

(B) for the Department of Veterans Af-19

fairs for the Medical Services, Medical Support20

and Compliance, and Medical Facilities ac-21

counts of the Veterans Health Administration.22

(3) In this subsection, the term advance ap-23

propriation means any new discretionary budget24

authority provided in a general appropriation bill or25


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any new discretionary budget authority provided in1

a joint resolution making continuing appropriations2

for fiscal year 2011 that first becomes available for3

a fiscal year after fiscal 2011.4

(f) COMPLIANCE WITH SECTION 13301 OF THE5

BUDGET ENFORCEMENT OFACT OF 1990.6

(1) IN GENERAL.In the House, notwith-7

standing section 302(a)(1) of the Congressional8

Budget Act of 1974, section 13301 of the Budget9

Enforcement Act of 1990, and section 4001 of the10

Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989, the11

joint explanatory statement accompanying the con-12

ference report on any concurrent resolution on the13

budget shall include in its allocation under section14

302(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 to15

the Committee on Appropriations amounts for the16

discretionary administrative expenses of the Social17

Security Administration and of the Postal Service.18

(2) SPECIAL RULE.For purposes of applying19

section 302(f) of the Congressional Budget Act of20

1974, estimates of the level of total new budget au-21

thority and total outlays provided by a measure shall22

include any off-budget discretionary amounts.23

(g) LIMITATION ON LONG-TERM SPENDING.24


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(1) It shall not be in order to consider a bill or1

joint resolution reported by a committee (other than2

the Committee on Appropriations), or an amend-3

ment thereto or a conference report thereon, if the4

provisions of such measure have the net effect of in-5

creasing mandatory spending in excess of6

$5,000,000,000 for any period described in para-7

graph (2).8

(2)(A) The applicable periods for purposes of9

this clause are any of the first four consecutive 10-10

fiscal-year periods beginning with the first fiscal11

year following the last fiscal year for which the ap-12

plicable concurrent resolution on the budget sets13

forth appropriate budgetary levels.14

(B) In this paragraph, the applicable concur-15

rent resolution on the budget is the one most re-16

cently adopted before the date on which a committee17

first reported the bill or joint resolution described in18

paragraph (a).19

(h) EXEMPTIONS.20

(1) Until the adoption of the concurrent resolu-21

tion on the budget for fiscal year 2012, the chair of22

the Committee on the Budget may adjust an esti-23

mate under clause 4 of rule XXIX to24


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(A) exempt the budgetary effects of meas-1

ures extending the Economic Growth and Tax2

Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001;3

(B) exempt the budgetary effects of meas-4

ures extending the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief5

Reconciliation Act of 2003;6

(C) exempt the budgetary effects of meas-7

ures8

(i) repealing the Patient Protection9

and Affordable Care Act and title I and 310

subtitle B of title II of the Health Care11

and Education Affordability Reconciliation12

Act of 2010;13

(ii) reforming the Patient Protection14

and Affordable Care Act and the Health15

Care and Education Affordability Rec-16

onciliation Act of 2010; or17

(iii) reforming the Patient Protection18

and Affordable Care Act and the Health19

Care and Education Affordability Rec-20

onciliation Act of 2010 and the payment21

rates and related parameters in accordance22

with section 1848 of the Social Security23

Act;24


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(D) exempt the budgetary effects of meas-1

ures that adjust the Alternative Minimum Tax2

exemption amounts to prevent a larger number3

of taxpayers as compared with tax year 20084

from being subject to the Alternative Minimum5

Tax or of allowing the use of nonrefundable6

personal credits against the Alternative Min-7

imum Tax, or both as applicable;8

(E) exempt the budgetary effects of ex-9

tending the estate, gift, and generation-skipping10

transfer tax provisions of title III of the Tax11

Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthoriza-12

tion, and Job Creation Act of 2010;13

(F) exempt the budgetary effects of meas-14

ures providing a 20 percent deduction in income15

to small businesses; and16

(G) exempt the budgetary effects of meas-17

ures implementing trade agreements.18

(2) A measure may only qualify for an exemp-19

tion under subsection (h)(1)(C)(ii) or (iii) if it does20

not21

(A) increase the deficit over the period of22

fiscal years 2011 through 2021; or23


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(B) increase revenues over the period of1

fiscal years 2011 through 2021, other than2

by3

(i) repealing or modifying the indi-4

vidual mandate (codified as section 5000A5

of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986); or6

(ii) modifying the subsidies to pur-7

chase health insurance (codified as section8

36B of the Internal Revenue Code of9

1986).10

(i) DETERMINATIONS FOR PAYGO ACTS.In deter-11

mining the budgetary effects of any legislation for the pur-12

poses of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act13

of 2010 (including the required designation in PAYGO14

Acts), the chair of the Committee on the Budget may15

make adjustments to take into account the exemptions16

and adjustments set forth in subsection (h).17

(j) SPENDING REDUCTION AMENDMENTS IN APPRO-18

PRIATIONS BILLS.19

(1) During the reading of a general appropria-20

tion bill for amendment in the Committee of the21

Whole House on the state of the Union, it shall be22

in order to consider en bloc amendments proposing23

only to transfer appropriations from an object or ob-24

jects in the bill to a spending reduction account.25


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When considered en bloc under this clause, such1

amendments may amend portions of the bill not yet2

read for amendment (following disposition of any3

points of order against such portions) and are not4

subject to a demand for division of the question in5

the House or in the Committee of the Whole.6

(2) Except as provided in paragraph (1), it7

shall not be in order to consider an amendment to8

a spending reduction account in the House or in the9

Committee of the Whole House on the state of the10

Union.11

(3) It shall not be in order to consider an12

amendment to a general appropriation bill proposing13

a net increase in budget authority in the bill (unless14

considered en bloc with another amendment or15

amendments proposing an equal or greater decrease16

in such budget authority pursuant to clause 2(f) of17

rule XXI).18

(4) A point of order under clause 2(b) of rule19

XXI shall not apply to a spending reduction ac-20

count.21

(5) A general appropriation bill may not be con-22

sidered in the Committee of the Whole House on the23

state of the Union unless it includes a spending re-24

duction account as the last section of the bill. An25


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order to report a general appropriation bill to the1

House shall constitute authority for the chair of the2

Committee on Appropriations to add such a section3

to the bill or modify the figure contained therein.4

(6) For purposes of this subsection, the term5

spending reduction account means an account in6

a general appropriation bill that bears that caption7

and contains only a recitation of the amount by8

which an applicable allocation of new budget author-9

ity under section 302(b) of the Congressional Budg-10

et Act of 1974 exceeds the amount of new budget11

authority proposed by the bill.12

(k) CERTAIN SUBCOMMITTEES.Notwithstanding13

clause 5(d) of rule X, during the One Hundred Twelfth14

Congress15

(1) the Committee on Armed Services may have16

not more than seven subcommittees;17

(2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs may have18

not more than seven subcommittees; and19

(3) the Committee on Transportation and In-20

frastructure may have not more than six subcommit-21

tees.22

(l) EXERCISE FACILITIES FOR FORMER MEMBERS.23

During the One Hundred Twelfth Congress24


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(1) The House of Representatives may not pro-1

vide access to any exercise facility which is made2

available exclusively to Members and former Mem-3

bers, officers and former officers of the House of4

Representatives, and their spouses to any former5

Member, former officer, or spouse who is a lobbyist6

registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of7

1995 or any successor statute or agent of a foreign8

principal as defined in clause 5 of rule XXV. For9

purposes of this section, the term Member in-10

cludes a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to the11

Congress.12

(2) The Committee on House Administration13

shall promulgate regulations to carry out this sub-14

section.15

(m) NUMBERING OF BILLS.In the One Hundred16

Twelfth Congress, the first 10 numbers for bills (H.R. 117

through H.R. 10) shall be reserved for assignment by the18

Speaker and the second 10 numbers for bills (H.R. 1119

through H.R. 20) shall be reserved for assignment by the20

Minority Leader.21

(n) TRANSITION RULE.Pending the designation of22

a location by the Committee on House Administration23

pursuant to clause 3 of rule XXIX, documents may be24


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made publicly available in electronic form at the following1

locations:2

(1) with respect to consideration by the House,3

the majority website of the Committee on Rules; and4

(2) with respect to consideration by a com-5

mittee, the majority website of the committee.6

SEC. 4. COMMITTEES, COMMISSIONS, AND HOUSE OFFICES.7

(a) HOUSE DEMOCRACY PARTNERSHIP.House Res-8

olution 24, One Hundred Tenth Congress, shall apply in9

the One Hundred Twelfth Congress in the same manner10

as such resolution applied in the One Hundred Tenth Con-11

gress except that the commission concerned shall be12

known as the House Democracy Partnership.13

(b) TOM LANTOS HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION.14

Sections 1 through 7 of House Resolution 1451, One Hun-15

dred Tenth Congress, shall apply in the One Hundred16

Twelfth Congress in the same manner as such provisions17

applied in the One Hundred Tenth Congress, except18

that19

(1) the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission20

may, in addition to collaborating closely with other21

professional staff members of the Committee on22

Foreign Affairs, collaborate closely with professional23

staff members of other relevant committees; and24


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(2) the resources of the Committee on Foreign1

Affairs which the Commission may use shall include2

all resources which the Committee is authorized to3

obtain from other offices of the House of Represent-4

atives.5

(c) OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL ETHICS.Section 16

of House Resolution 895, One Hundred Tenth Congress,7

shall apply in the One Hundred Twelfth Congress in the8

same manner as such provision applied in the One Hun-9

dred Tenth Congress, except that the Office of Congres-10

sional Ethics shall be treated as a standing committee of11

the House for purposes of section 202(I) of the Legislative12

Reorganization Act of 1946 (2 U.S.C. 72a(i)) and ref-13

erences to the Committee on Standards of Official Con-14

duct shall be construed as references to the Committee15

on Ethics.16

(d) EMPANELING INVESTIGATIVE SUBCOMMITTEE OF17

THE COMMITTEE ON ETHICS.The text of House Resolu-18

tion 451, One Hundred Tenth Congress, shall apply in the19

One Hundred Twelfth Congress in the same manner as20

such provision applied in the One Hundred Tenth Con-21

gress, except that references to the Committee on Stand-22

ards of Official Conduct shall be construed as references23

to the Committee on Ethics.24


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SEC. 5. ADDITIONAL ORDERS OF BUSINESS.1

(a) READING OF THE CONSTITUTION.The Speaker2

may recognize a Member for the reading of the Constitu-3

tion on the legislative day of January 6, 2011.4

(b) PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF CERTAIN5

MOTIONS TO SUSPEND THE RULES.It shall be in order6

at any time on the legislative day of January 6, 2011 for7

the Speaker to entertain motions to suspend the rules re-8

lated to reducing the costs of operation of the House of9

Representatives, except that notwithstanding clause 1(c)10

of rule XV such motion shall be debatable for two hours,11

equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an12

opponent.13

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Documents

House rules for 112th House of Representatives