[Constitution, Jefferson's Manual, and the Rules of the House of Representatives, 112th Congress] [112nd Congress] [House Document 111-157] [Rules of the House of Representatives] [Pages 409-429] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov] [[Page 409]] Rule IX questions of privilege
Sec. 698. Definition of questions of privilege. | 1. Questions of privilege shall be, first, those affecting the rights of the House collectively, its safety, dignity, and the integrity of its proceedings; and second, those affecting the rights, reputation, and conduct of Members, Delegates, or the Resident Commissioner, individually, in their representative capacity only. |
Sec. 699. Precedence of questions of privilege. | 2. (a)(1) A resolution reported as a question of the privileges of the House, or offered from the floor by the Majority Leader or the Minority Leader as a question of the privileges of the House, or offered as privileged under clause 1, section 7, article I of the Constitution, shall have precedence of all other questions except motions to adjourn. A resolution offered from the floor by a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner other than the Majority Leader or the Minority Leader as a question of the privileges of the House shall have precedence of all other questions except motions to adjourn only at a time or place, designated by the Speaker, in the legislative schedule within two legislative days after the day on which the proponent announces to the House an intention to offer the resolution and the form of the resolution. Oral announcement of the form of the resolution may be dispensed with by unanimous consent. |
Sec. 700. Questions of privileges of the House. | The body of precedent relating to questions of the privileges of the House includes rulings that span the adoption of this rule. The rule was adopted ``to prevent the large consumption of time which resulted from Members getting the floor for all kinds of speeches under the pretext of raising a question of privilege'' (III, 2521). In a landmark decision on constitutional assertions of privilege, Speaker Gillett placed significant reliance on the history of rule IX by observing that it ``was obviously adopted for the purpose of hindering the extension of constitutional or other privilege'' (VI, 48). |
Sec. 701. Questions relating to organization. | The privileges of the House include questions relating to its organization (I, 22-24, 189, 212, 290), and the title of its Members to their seats (III, 2579- 2587), which may be raised as questions of the privileges of the House even though the subject has been previously referred to committee (I, 742; III, 2584; VIII, 2307). Such resolutions include those: (1) to declare prima facie right to a seat, or to declare a vacancy, where the House has referred the questions of prima facie and final rights to a committee for investigation (H. Res. 1, Jan. 3, 1985, p. 381; H. Res. 52, Feb. 7, 1985, |
Sec. 702. Questions relating to constitutional prerogatives. | The privileges of the House, as distinguished from that of the individual Member, include questions relating to its constitutional prerogatives in respect to revenue legislation and appropriations (see, e.g., II, 1480-1501; VI, 315; Nov. 8, 1979, p. 31517; Oct. 1, 1985, p. 25418; June 16, 1988, p. 14780; June 21, 1988, p. 15425; Aug. 12, 1994, p. 21655). For a more thorough record of revenue bills returned to the Senate, see Sec. 102, supra. Such a question of privilege may be raised at any time when the House is in possession of the papers (June 20, 1968, Deschler, ch. 13, Sec. 14.2; Aug. 19, 1982, p. 22127), but not otherwise (Apr. 6, 1995, p. 10701). Such a question of privilege includes a resolution asserting that a conference report accompanying a House bill originated revenue provisions in derogation of the sole constitutional prerogative of the House and resolving that such bill be recommitted to conference (July 27, 2000, p. 16565). The constitutional prerogatives of the House also include its function with respect to: (1) impeachment and matters incidental thereto (see Sec. 604, supra); (2) bills ``pocket vetoed'' during an intersession adjournment (Nov. 21, 1989, p. 31156); (3) its power to punish for contempt, whether of its own Members (II, 1641-1665), of witnesses who are summoned to give information (II, 1608, 1612; III, 1666-1724), or of other persons (II, 1597-1640); (4) questions relating to legal challenges involving the prerogatives of the House (Jan. 29, 1981, p. 1304; Mar. 30, 1982, p. 5890), includ |
Sec. 703. Questions relating to official conduct. | The privileges of the House include certain questions relating to the conduct of Members, officers, and employees (see, e.g., I, 284, 285; III, 2628, 2645-2647). Under that standard, the following resolutions have been held to constitute questions of the privileges of the House: (1) directing the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct to investigate illegal solicitation of political contributions in the House Office Buildings by unnamed sitting Members (July 10, 1985, p. 18397); (2) establishing an ad hoc committee to investigate allegations of ``ghost'' employment in the House (Apr. 9, 1992, p. 9029); (3) directing a committee to further investigate the conduct of a Member on which it has reported to the House (Aug. 5, 1987, p. 22458); (4) directing the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct to report to the House the status of an investigation pending before the committee (Nov. 17, 1995, p. 33846; Nov. 30, 1995, p. 35075); (5) appointing an outside counsel (Sept. 19, 1996, p. 23851; Sept. 24, 1996, p. 24525); (6) committing other matters to an outside counsel already appointed by the committee (June 27, 1996, p. 15917); (7) directing the committee to release the report of an outside counsel (Sept. 19, 1996, p. 23852; Sept. 24, 1996, p. 24526); (8) making allegations concerning the propriety of responses by officers of the House to court subpoenas for papers of the House without notice to the House, and directions to a committee to investigate such allegations (Feb. 13, 1980, p. 2768); (9) making allegations of improper representation by counsel of the legal position of Members in a brief filed in the Court and directions for withdrawal of the brief (Mar. 22, 1990, p. 4996); (10) making allegations of unauthorized actions by a committee employee to intervene in judicial proceedings (Feb. 5, 1992, p. 1601); (11) directing the Clerk to notify interested parties that the House regretted the use of official resources to present to the Supreme Court of Florida a legal brief arguing the unconstitutionality of congressional term limits, and that the House had no position on that question (Nov. 4, 1991, p. 29968); (12) alleging a chronology of litigation relating to the immunity of a Member from civil liability for bona fide official acts and expressing the views of the House thereon (May 12, 1988, p. 10574); (13) directing the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct to establish an investigative subcommittee and appoint outside counsel to investigate certain allegations against a Member (Oct. 8, 2004, p. 22734); (14) alleging, among other things, the improper and unilateral firing of nonpartisan staff of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct and directing the Speaker to appoint a bipartisan task force to address the efficacy of that committee so as to restore public confidence in the ethics process (Mar. 15, 2005, pp. 4657, 4658; Apr. 14, 2005, pp. 6399, 6400) and directing the committee to appoint nonpartisan professional staff (June 9, 2005, pp. 12025, 12026); (15) alleging, among other things, the improper and unilateral firing of nonpartisan staff of the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct and illegal activities between a lobbyist and Members, and directing that committee to investigate misconduct of Members and staff with that lobbyist |
Sec. 704. Questions relating to integrity of proceedings. | The privileges of the House include questions relating to the integrity of its proceedings, including the processes by which bills are considered (III, 2597-2601, 2614; IV, 3383, 3388, 3478), such as the constitutional question of the vote required to pass a joint resolution extending the State ratification period of a proposed constitutional amendment (Speaker O'Neill, Aug. 15, 1978, p. 26203). Privileges of the House also include: (1) resignation of a Member from a select or standing committee (Speaker Albert, June 16, 1975, p. 19054; Speaker O'Neill, Mar. 8, 1977, pp. 6579-82); (2) newspaper charges affecting the honor and dignity of the House (VII, 911); (3) the conduct of representatives of the press (II, 1630, 1631; III, 2627; VI, 553). |
Sec. 705. Questions relating to comfort and convenience. | The privileges of the House include questions relating to the comfort and convenience of Members and employees (III, 2629-2636), such as resolutions concerning the proper attire for Members in the Chamber when the temperature is uncomfortably warm (July 17, 1979, p. 19008); as well as questions relating to safety, such as resolutions requiring an investigation into the safety of Members in view of alleged structural deficiencies in the West Front of the Capitol (July 25, 1980, pp. 19762- 64) or an insecure ceiling in the Hall (III, 2685); directing the appointment of a select committee to inquire into alleged fire safety deficiencies in the environs of the House (May 10, 1988, p. 10286); and directing the Sergeant-at-Arms to ensure that House personnel are alerted to the dangers of electronic security breaches on computer and information systems (June 11, 2008, p. _). |
Sec. 706. May not effect change in rules. | A motion to amend the Rules of the House does not present a question of privilege (Speaker Cannon, sustained by the House, thereby overruling the House's decision of March 19, 1910 (VIII, 3376), which held such motion privileged (VIII, 3377)), and a question of the privileges of the House may not be invoked to effect a change in the rules or standing orders of the House or their interpretation (Speaker O'Neill, Dec. 6, 1977, pp. 38470-73; Sept. 9, 1988, p. 23298; July 30, 1992, p. 20339; Jan. 31, 1996, p. 1887), including directions to the Speaker infringing upon the discretionary power of rec |
Sec. 707. As distinct from privileged questions. | The clause of the rule giving questions of privilege precedence over all other questions except a motion to adjourn is a recognition of a well-established principle in the House, for it is an axiom of the parliamentary law that such a question ``supersedes the consideration of the original question, and must be first disposed of'' (III, 2522, 2523; VI, 595). As the business of the House began to increase it was found necessary to give certain important matters a precedence by rule, and such matters are called ``privileged questions.'' But as they relate merely to the order of business under the rules, they are to be distinguished from ``questions of privilege'' that relate to the safety or efficiency of the House itself as an organ for action (III, 2718). It is evident, therefore, that a question of privilege takes precedence over a matter merely privileged under the rules (III, 2526-2530; V, 6454; VIII, 3465). Certain matters of business, arising under provisions of the Constitution, have been held to have a privilege that superseded the rules establishing the order of business, as bills providing for census or apportionment (I, 305-308), bills returned with the objections of the President (IV, 3530-3536), propositions of impeachment (see Sec. 604, supra), and questions incidental thereto (III, 2401, 2418; V, 7261; July 22, 1986, p. 17306; Dec. 2, 1987, p. 33720; Jan. 3, 1989, p. 84; Feb. 7, 1989, p. 1726), matters relating to the count of the electoral vote (III, 2573-2578), resolutions relating to adjournment and recess of Congress (V, 6698, 6701-6706; Nov. 13, 1997, p. 26538), and a resolution declaring the Office of the Speaker vacant (VI, 35); but under later decisions certain of these matters that have no other basis in the Constitution or in the rules for privileged status, such as bills relating to census and apportionment, have been held not to present questions of privilege, and the effect of such decisions is to require all questions of privilege to come within the specific provisions of this rule (VI, 48; VII, 889; Apr. 8, 1926, p. 7147) (see Sec. 702, supra). |
Sec. 708. Questions of personal privilege. | The privilege of the Member rests primarily on the Constitution, which grants conditional immunity from arrest (Sec. 90, supra) and an unconditional freedom of debate in the House (III, 2670, Sec. 92, supra). An assault on a Member within the Capitol when the House was not in session, from a cause not connected with the Member's representative capacity, was also held to involve a question of privilege (II, 1624). But there has been doubt as to the right of the House to interfere for the protection of Members in matters not connected with their official duties (II, 1277; III, 2678, footnote). Charges against the conduct of a Member are held to involve privilege when they |
Sec. 709. Precedence of questions of privileges of the House. | The body of precedent relating to the precedence of questions of privilege spans both the adoption of this rule in 1880 and its amendment to require notice in certain cases in 1993. |
Sec. 711. Precedence of questions of personal privilege. | When a Member proposes merely to address the House on a question of personal privilege, and does not offer a resolution affecting the dignity or integrity of the House for action, the practice as to precedence is somewhat different. Thus, a Member rising to a question of personal privilege may not interrupt a call of the yeas and nays (V, 6051, 6052, 6058, 6059; VI, 554, 564), or take from the floor another Member who has been recognized for debate (V, 5002; VIII, 2459, 2528; Sept. 29, 1983, p. 26508; July 23, 1987, p. 20861), but may interrupt the ordinary legislative business (III, 2531). A Member may address the House on a question of personal privilege even after the previous question has been ordered on a pending bill (VI, 561; VIII, 2688). Under modern practice, a question of personal privilege may not be raised in the Committee of the Whole (Sept. 4, 1969, p. 24372; Dec. 13, 1973, p. 41270), the proper remedy being a demand that words be taken down pursuant to clause 4 of rule XVI; yet a breach of privilege occurring in the Committee of the Whole relates to the dignity of the House and is so treated (II, 1657). A question of personal privilege may not be raised while a question of the privileges of the House is pending (Apr. 30, 1985, p. 9808; May 1, 1985, p. 10003). The Chair may require a Member to submit for examination the material upon which the Member would rely before conferring recognition for a question of personal privilege (Jan. 18, 2007, p. 1625). |
Sec. 712. Questions of privilege in relation to quorum. | During a call of the House in the absence of a quorum, only such questions of privilege as relate immediately to those proceedings may be presented (III, 2545). See also Sec. 1024, infra. |