9.2 Amendments and voting procedures

Amendments and voting procedures are crucial elements of congressional decision-making. They allow lawmakers to modify bills, shape policy, and express their positions on legislation. Understanding these processes is key to grasping how Congress turns ideas into laws.

The amendment process differs between the House and Senate, reflecting their distinct rules and cultures. In the House, amendments are tightly controlled, while the Senate allows more flexibility. Voting procedures also vary, with the House using electronic voting and the Senate relying on voice or roll-call votes.

Amendment Process in Congress

House Amendment Process

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• Amendments can be proposed in the House during floor consideration of a bill
• Members submit amendments to the Rules Committee, which decides which amendments will be considered on the floor (structured rule)
• The Rules Committee specifies the amendments that will receive votes and the time for debate
• Amendments adopted in the Committee of the Whole are not final until approved by the full House when it rises and reports back

Senate Amendment Process

• Amendments can be offered in the Senate during floor debate on a bill
• Senators do not need to submit amendments in advance and can offer them verbally on the floor
• Senate amendments are not subject to the same germaneness rules as in the House, meaning they do not have to be directly relevant to the subject of the bill being considered
• The order of amendment votes in the Senate is determined by the amendment tree

Reconciling Differences Between Chambers

• If one chamber passes a bill with amendments that the other chamber has not agreed to, the bill must go to a conference committee to reconcile the differences
• The conference committee works to resolve disagreements between the House and Senate versions of the bill
• Once the conference committee reaches an agreement, the reconciled bill must pass both chambers in identical form before being sent to the President for signature or veto

Types of Amendments and Their Purposes

Amendments in Committee and on the Floor

• Committee amendments are offered in committee markup sessions and, if adopted, become part of the bill's text before it reaches the floor
• Floor amendments are offered by individual members during floor consideration of a bill and can be used to make substantive changes, strike language, or add new provisions
• Second-degree amendments make changes to a pending amendment, as opposed to the underlying bill, allowing for further refinement or modification of proposed changes

Substitute and Managers' Amendments

• Substitute amendments replace the entire text of a bill or amendment with new language, often used to make significant changes or offer an alternative approach (complete overhaul)
• Managers' amendments are offered by the bill's sponsors or floor managers to make technical corrections or incorporate feedback received after a bill's introduction
• Amendments in the nature of a substitute replace the entire text of a bill while retaining its bill number, allowing for a complete overhaul without introducing a new bill

Voting Procedures in Congress

House Voting Procedures

• The House uses an electronic voting system where members insert personalized cards and vote "yea," "nay," or "present" using buttons on the House floor
• Most amendment votes in the House occur under a structured rule reported by the Rules Committee, which specifies the amendments that will receive votes and the time for debate
• The House requires a simple majority of those present and voting for an amendment to be adopted, assuming a quorum is present
• Recorded votes are tallied by the Clerk of the House and announced by the presiding officer

Senate Voting Procedures

• Amendment votes in the Senate typically occur during floor consideration of a bill, with the order of votes determined by the amendment tree
• Senators vote from their desks on the Senate floor by voice vote or, if requested, a recorded roll-call vote where each Senator's name is called alphabetically
• The Senate requires a simple majority of those present and voting for an amendment to be adopted, assuming a quorum is present
• Recorded votes are tallied by the Secretary of the Senate and announced by the presiding officer

House Committee of the Whole and Amendments

Purpose and Procedures

• The Committee of the Whole is a procedural device used by the House to expedite floor consideration of legislation, particularly for bills that are likely to be amended
• When the House resolves into the Committee of the Whole, it operates under more flexible procedures, such as a lower quorum requirement (100 members instead of 218)
• The Committee of the Whole allows for more efficient consideration of multiple amendments while preserving the ability of the full House to make final decisions on a bill's text

Offering Amendments in the Committee of the Whole

• Members can offer amendments that have not been pre-printed in the Congressional Record or approved by the Rules Committee when the House is in the Committee of the Whole
• Amendments are debated and voted on under the five-minute rule, which allows each member to speak for five minutes on an amendment
• Amendments adopted in the Committee of the Whole are not final until the House approves them when it rises and reports back to the full House for a final vote