House procedures are based not solely on the code of Rules the chamber adopts at the start of each Congress, but also on constitutional mandates, published precedents reflecting authoritative rulings and interpretations of the foregoing authorities, procedural principles set forth in the manual of practice prepared by Jefferson, “rule-making” statutes, and practices that have developed without being formally adopted.. Rules adopted by committees and by the party conferences also serve as sources of parliamentary practice in the House. This report describes the coverage, format, and availability of documents that set forth these procedural authorities, and notes principles of House procedural practice that bear on appropriate use of these sources. Summaries and appendices provide citations to print and electronic versions, and list related CRS products.
The main procedural authorities of the House are set forth in the House Manual (“House Rules and Manual” or, colloquially, “Jefferson’s Manual”), published in each Congress and distributed to House offices. They include the Constitution, applicable portions of Jefferson’s Manual, the adopted Rules of the House, and provisions of statute that have procedural effects, often governing proceedings on specified measures. In the House Manual, provisions of each authority are accompanied by the parliamentarian’s annotations of precedents interpreting those provisions. Budget resolutions may also contain provisions with procedural effect.
The current practice of the House is summarized by topic, with references to pertinent rules and precedents, in House Practice, prepared by the Office of the Parliamentarian and provided to all House offices. Precedents from 1936 to 1976 or later are set forth in full, or topical chapters, in the 16 volumes (so far) of Deschler-Brown Precedents. Currently applicable precedents, including some later than 1976, are digested in Procedure in the House, a single volume with a similar chapter structure. Precedents before 1936 are set forth in the 11 volumes (with indexes) of Hinds’ and Cannon’s Precedents, with their own topical order. The older works among these are out of print, but copies are available for House offices.
Other authorities include policies announced by Speakers in implementing certain rules, and “memorandums of understanding” reached by committees about areas of potentially shared jurisdiction. Some of these policies and memorandums are published in the Congressional Record. Also, House Rules require each committee to adopt and publish rules, which the Committee on Rules compiles in a single document in each Congress. Rules adopted by each party conference are in general made available only to its members. Finally, this report also mentions two brief procedural guides published under the auspices of House committees.
This report assumes a basic familiarity with House procedure. It will be updated to reflect the appearance of new editions of the documents discussed and to address substantial changes in their content and availability. Information about Senate parliamentary reference sources is covered in CRS Report RL30788, Parliamentary Reference Sources: Senate, by Richard S. Beth and Megan Suzanne Lynch.
Contents
Introduction
Principles of House Parliamentary Procedure
- House Procedures Are Determined by Multiple Authorities
Constitutional Rule-Making Authority of the House
House Rules Are Generally Not Self-Enforcing
The House Rarely Disregards Its Precedents
The House Adheres to Many Informal Practices
The House Manual and Authorities It Contains
- House Manual
- Organization and Indexing
Parliamentarian’s Annotations
Summary of Changes to House Rules
The Constitution
Jefferson’s Manual
Rules of the House
- Recodification
Procedural Provisions of Statute
- Legislative Reorganization Acts
Expedited Procedures
Budget Process Statutes
Procedural Provisions in Budget Resolutions
Official Compilations of Precedents of the House
- House Practice
Deschler’s Precedents
Hinds’ and Cannon’s Precedents
Procedure in the House
Cannon’s Procedure
Additional Authorities
- Speaker’s Policies
Memorandums of Understanding Regarding
- Committee Jurisdiction
Rules of Internal Organizations of the House
- Committee Rules of Procedure
Party Caucus or Conference Rules
Other Congressional Publications on Procedure
- Floor Procedures Manual
How Our Laws Are Made
Enactment of a Law
Appendix A
- Bibliography of House Parliamentary
Reference Sources
Official Reference Sources
Publications of Committees and Offices of the House
CRS Products
Appendix B.
- House Parliamentary Reference Information
Available Through the Internet
Legislative Information System of the U.S. Congress (LIS)
CRS Guides to Congressional Processes
House Committee on Rules
GPO Access
Other Library of Congress Sites
Other House of Representatives Sites
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Parliamentary Reference Sources: House of Representatives
