NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Rules committee

The Committee on Rules, or (more commonly) Rules Committee, is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. Rather than being responsible for a specific area of policy, as most other committees are, it is in charge of determining under what rule other bills will come to the floor. As such, it is one of the most powerful committees, and often described as "an arm of the leadership". This is a list of U.S. Congressional committees (standing committees, joint committees and special committees) that are currently operating the United States House of Representatives, the lower house of the United States Congress. ... Seal of the House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Congress of the United States, the other being the Senate. ... A bill is a law introduced within a legislature to be read as part of procedure to become a law. ...

Role of the Rules Committee

When a bill is reported out of one of the other committees, it does not go straight to the House floor, because the House, unlike the United States Senate, does not have unlimited debate and discussion on a bill. Instead, what may be said and done to a bill is strictly limited. This limitation is performed by the Rules Committee. Seal of the Senate The United States Senate is one of the two houses of the Congress of the United States, the other being the House of Representatives. ...

When a bill is reported out of another committee, it first goes to the Rules Committee before it can be debated on the House floor (in what is known as The Committee of the Whole of the House on the State of the Union, or the Committee of the Whole). The Rules Committee decides what will be allowed during the debate on the bill. For instance, there might be a limit on the number or types of amendments (proposed changes to the bill). Amendments might only be allowed to specific sections of the bill, or no amendments might be allowed at all.

Besides control over amendments, the rule issued by the Rules Committee also determines the amount of speaking time assigned on each bill. If the leadership wants a bill pushed forward quietly, for instance, there might be no debate time scheduled; if they want attention, they might allow time for lengthy speeches in support of the bill. Between control over amendments and debate, the Rules Committee exerts vast power in the House. As such, it is tightly controlled by the majority party. A political party is a political organization that subscribes to a certain ideology and seeks to attain political power within a government. ...

History

The Rules Committee was formed on April 2, 1789, during the first Congress. However, it had nowhere near the powerful role it has today. Instead, it merely proposed general rules for the House to follow when debating bills (rather than passing a special rule for each bill), and was dissolved after proposing these general rules. These general rules still have a great impact on the tone of the House floor today. 2 April is the 92nd day of the year (93rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 273 days remaining. ... 1789 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

The Rules Committee, for a long time, lay dormant. For the first fifty years of its existence, it accomplished little beyond simply reaffirming these rules, and its role was very noncontroversial. On June 16, 1841, it made a major policy change, reducing from 2/3 to 1/2 the fraction of votes needed in the House to close debate and vote on a bill. June 16 is the 167th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (168th in leap years), with 198 days remaining. ... 1841 is a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... In common usage a fraction is any part of a unit. ...

In 1880, the modern Rules Committee began to emerge from the reorganization of the House Committees. The first chairman of the Rules Committee, Speaker of the House Samuel J. Randall (D-PA) firmly established that the Rules Committee could change the rules of the House at any time (i.e. for specific bills), and that all rules changes could only emanate from the Rules Committee. When the Republican party took over the House in the election of 1880, they quickly realized the power that the Rules Committee possessed. One member, Thomas Reed (R-ME), used a seat on the Rules Committee to vault himself to the Speakership, and gained so much power that he was referred to as "Czar Reed". 1880 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The term Speaker is usually the title given to the presiding officer of a countrys lower house of parliament or congress (ie: the House of Commons or House of Representatives). ... Samuel Jackson Randall (October 10, 1828–April 13, 1890) was a prominent U.S. politician during the late 19th century. ... The Democratic Party is one of the two major United States political parties. ... State nickname: The Keystone State Other U.S. States Capital Harrisburg Largest city Philadelphia Governor Ed Rendell Official languages None Area 119,283 kmÂ² (33rd) - Land 116,074 kmÂ² - Water 3,208 kmÂ² (2. ... This article is about the modern United States Republican Party. ... 1880 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Thomas Brackett Reed (October 18, 1839 - December 7, 1902) was a U.S. Representative from Maine. ... State nickname: The Pine Tree State Other U.S. States Capital Augusta Largest city Portland Governor John Baldacci Official languages None Area 86,542 kmÂ² (39th) - Land 80,005 kmÂ² - Water 11,724 kmÂ² (13. ... Tsar, (Bulgarian цар�, Russian царь; often spelled Czar or Tzar in English), was the title used for the autocratic rulers of the First and Second Bulgarian Empires since 913, in Serbia in the middle of the 14th century, and in Russia from 1547 to 1917. ...

In the 1890s and 1900s, Reed and his successor, Joseph Gurney Cannon (R-IL) used the Rules Committee to centralize the power of the Speakership. Although their power to place members in committees and perform other functions was limited by a forced rule change in 1910, the Rules Committee retained its power. However, it ceased to function as the personal project of the Speaker, as it had originally; instead, as the seniority system took root, it was captured by a coaltion of conservative Democrats and Republicans. This state of affairs would continue until the 1960s. The 1890s were sometimes referred to as the Mauve Decade, because William Henry Perkins aniline dye allowed the widespread use of that color in fashion, and also as the Gay Nineties, under the then-current usage of the word gay which referred simply to merriment and frivolity, with no... Events and Trends Technology Lawrence Hargrave makes the first stable wing design for a heavier-than-air aircraft Orville and Wilbur Wright make the first documented flight in a powered heavier-than-air aircraft Mass production of automobile Wide popularity of home phonograph Panama Canal is built by the United... U.S. Congresman Joseph Gurney Cannon, smoking a cigar, 1920. ... State nickname: Land of Lincoln, The Prairie State Other U.S. States Capital Springfield Largest city Chicago Governor Rod Blagojevich Official languages English Area 149,998 kmÂ² (25th) - Land 143,968 kmÂ² - Water 6,030 kmÂ² (4. ... 1910 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Conservatism or political conservatism is any of several historically related political philosophies or political ideologies. ... The 1960s, or The Sixties, in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1960 and 1969, but the expression has taken on a wider meaning over the past twenty years. ...

In 1961, Speaker Sam Rayburn (D-TX), acting on the wishes of the new President John F. Kennedy, introduced a bill to enlarge the committee from 12 members to 15, to decrease the power of the conservative bloc. The bill passed, 217 votes to 212. However, it was only partially successful; the Rules Committee continued to block legislation including civil rights and education bills. 1961 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Samuel Taliaferro Rayburn (6 January 1882–16 November 1961) was a United States politician. ... State nickname: Lone Star State Other U.S. States Capital Austin Largest city Houston Governor Rick Perry Official languages None. ... Seal of the President of the United States The President of the United States is the head of state of the United States. ... Order: 35th President Vice President: Lyndon B. Johnson Term of office: January 20, 1961 â€“ November 22, 1963 Preceded by: Dwight D. Eisenhower Succeeded by: Lyndon B. Johnson Date of birth: May 29, 1917 Place of birth: Brookline, Massachusetts Date of death: November 22, 1963 Place of death: Dallas, Texas First... Civil rights or positive rights are those legal rights retained by citizens and protected by the government. ...

In the 1970s, however, the Rules Committee was firmly under the command of the Speaker once again. As before, its primary role is to come up with special rules, to help or hinder the chances of legislation reported to it. This article provides extensive lists of events and significant personalities of the 1970s. ...

External links

See Also

Categories: U.S. House committees A Congressional committee in the parlance of the United States Congress and politics of the United States is a legislative sub-organization that handles a specific duty (rather than the general duties of Congress, making necessary and proper laws). ... Download high resolution version (1520x800, 18 KB) Subject: Flag of the United States. ... Seal of the House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Congress of the United States, the other being the Senate. ... The Committee on Appropriations, or Appropriations Committee (often referred to as simply Appropriations, as in Hes on Appropriations) is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. ... The U.S. House Committee on Armed Services, commonly known as the House Armed Services Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives, the lower house of Congress. ... 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The United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions has jurisdiction over matters relating to health, education, labor, and pensions. ... The U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary (informally Senate Judiciary Committee) is a standing committee of the United States Senate, the upper house of the United States Congress. ... The United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration is responsible for dealing with the rules of the Senate, with administration of congressional buildings, and with credentials and qualifications of members of the Senate, including responsibility for dealing with contested elections. ... The U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship is a standing committee of the United States Senate. ... The United States Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs is responsible for dealing with matters related to veterans. ... 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Contents

History

External links

See Also