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title: RULES OF THE SENATE

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# RULES OF THE SENATE

#### RULE I—APPOINTMENT OF A SENATOR TO THE CHAIR
1. In the absence of the Vice President, the Senate shall choose a President pro tempore, who shall hold the office and execute the duties thereof during the pleasure of the Senate and until another is elected or his term of office as a Senator expires. 
2. In the absence of the Vice President, and pending the election of a President pro tempore, the Acting President pro tempore or the Secretary of the Senate, or in his absence the Assistant Secretary, shall perform the duties of the Chair. 
3. The President pro tempore shall have the right to name in Open Senate, or, if absent, in writing, a Senator to perform the duties of the Chair, including the signing of duly enrolled bills and joint resolutions but such substitution shall not extend beyond an adjournment, except by unanimous consent; and the Senator so named shall have the right to name in open session, or, if absent, in writing, a Senator to perform the duties of the Chair, but not to extend beyond an adjournment, except by unanimous consent.

#### RULE II—PRESENTATION OF CREDENTIALS AND QUESTIONS OF PRIVILEDGE
1. The presentation of the credentials of Senators elect or of Senators designate and other questions of privilege shall always be in order, except during the reading and correction of the Journal, while a question of order or a motion to adjourn is pending, or while the Senate is voting or ascertaining the presence of a quorum; and shall questions and motions arising or made upon the presentation of such credentials shall be proceeded with until disposed of.

#### RULE III—OATHS
The oaths or affirmations required by the Constitution and prescribed by law shall be taken and subscribed by each Senator, in open Senate, before entering upon his duties.

##### OATHS REQUIRED BY THE CONSTITUTION AND BY LAW TO BE TAKEN BY SENATORS
"I, A__ B__, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God."

#### RULE IV—COMMENCEMENT OF DAILY SESSIONS
1. The Presiding Officer having taken the chair, following the prayer by the Chaplain, or some other person as the Senate may designate, and after the Presiding Officer, or a Senator designated by the Presiding Officer, leads the Senate from the dais in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States, and a Quorum being present, the Journal of the preceding day shall be read unless by nondebatable motion the reading shall be waived, the question being, “Shall the Journal stand approved to date?”, and any mistake made in the entries corrected. Except as provided in subparagraph (b) the reading of the Journal shall not be suspended unless by unanimous consent; and when any motion shall be made to amend or correct the same, it shall be deemed a privileged question, and proceeded with until disposed of.
2. Whenever the Senate is proceeding under paragraph 2 of rule XXII, the reading of the Journal shall be dispensed with and shall be considered approved to date.
3. The proceedings of the Senate shall be briefly and accurately stated on the Journal. Messages of the President in full; titles of bills and resolutions, and such parts as shall be affected by proposed amendments; every vote, and a brief statement of the contents of each petition, memorial, or paper presented to the Senate, shall be entered.
4. The legislative, executive, and confidential legislative proceedings, and the proceedings when sitting as a Court of Impeachment, shall each be recorded in a separate book.

#### RULE V—SUSPENSION AND AMENDMENT OF THE RULES
1. No motion to suspend, modify, or amend any rule, or any part thereof, shall be in order, except on one day's notice in writing, specifying precisely the rule or part proposed to be suspended, modified, or amended, and the purpose thereof. Any rule may be suspended without notice by the unanimous consent of the Senate, except as otherwise provided by the rules.
2. The rules of the Senate shall continue from one Congress to the next Congress unless they are changed as provided in these rules.

#### RULE VI—QUORUM – ABSENT SENATORS MAY BE SENT FOR
1. A quorum shall consist of a majority of the Senators duly chosen and sworn.
2. No Senator shall absent himself from the service of the Senate without leave.
3. If, at any time during the daily sessions of the Senate, a question shall be raised by any Senator as to the presence of a quorum, the Presiding Officer shall forthwith direct the Secretary to call the roll and shall announce the result, and these proceedings shall be without debate.
4. Whenever upon such roll call it shall be ascertained that a quorum is not present, a majority of the Senators present may direct the Sergeant at Arms to request, and, when necessary, to compel the attendance of the absent Senators, which order shall be determined without debate; and pending its execution, and until a quorum shall be present, no debate nor motion, except to adjourn, or to recess pursuant to a previous order entered by unanimous consent, shall be in order.

#### RULE VII—MORNING BUSINESS
1. On each legislative day after the Journal is read, the Presiding Officer on demand of any Senator shall lay before the Senate messages from the President, reports and communications from the heads of Departments, and other communications addressed to the Senate, and such bills, joint resolutions, and other messages from the House of Representatives as may remain upon his table from any previous day's session undisposed of. The Presiding Officer on demand of any Senator shall then call for, in the following order:

| Order(s) | 
| -------- | 
| a. The presentation of petitions and memorials.
b. Reports of committees.
c. The introduction of bills and joint resolutions.
d. The submission of other resolutions.| 

All of which shall be received and disposed of in such order, unless unanimous consent shall be otherwise given, with newly offered resolutions being called for before resolutions coming over from a previous legislative day are laid before the Senate.

2. Until the morning business shall have been concluded, and so announced from the Chair, or until ten minutes after the Senate convenes at the beginning of a new legislative day, no motion to proceed to the consideration of any bill, resolution, report of a committee, or other subject upon the Calendar shall be entertained by the Presiding Officer, unless by unanimous consent: Provided, however, That on Mondays which are the beginning of a legislative day the Calendar shall be called under rule VIII, and until fifteen minutes after the Senate convenes no motion shall be entertained to proceed to the consideration of any bill, resolution, or other subject upon the Calendar except the motion to continue the consideration of a bill, resolution, or other subject against objection as provided in rule VIII, or until the call of the Calendar has been completed.
3. The Presiding Officer may at any time lay, and it shall be in order at any time for a Senator to move to lay, before the Senate, any bill or other matter sent to the Senate by the President or the House of Representatives for appropriate action allowed under the rules and any question pending at that time shall be suspended for this purpose. Any motion so made shall be determined without debate.
4. Petitions or memorials shall be referred, without debate, to the appropriate committee according to subject matter on the same basis as bills and resolutions, if signed by the petitioner or memorialist. A question of receiving or reference may be raised and determined without debate. But no petition or memorial or other paper signed by citizens or subjects of a foreign power shall be received, unless the same be transmitted to the Senate by the President.
5. Only a brief statement of the contents of petitions and memorials shall be printed in the Congressional Record; and no other portion of any petition or memorial shall be printed in the Record unless specifically so ordered by vote of the Senate, as provided for in paragraph 4 of rule XI, in which case the order shall be deemed to apply to the body of the petition or memorial only; and names attached to the petition or memorial shall not be printed unless specially ordered.
6. Senators having petitions, memorials, bills, or resolutions to present after the morning hour may deliver them in the absence of objection to the Presiding Officer's desk, endorsing upon them their names, and with the approval of the Presiding Officer, they shall be entered on the Journal with the names of the Senators presenting them and in the absence of objection shall be considered as having been read twice and referred to the appropriate committees.

#### RULE VIII—ORDER OF BUSINESS
1. At the conclusion of the morning business at the beginning of a new legislative day, unless upon motion the Senate shall at any time otherwise order, the Senate shall proceed to the consideration of the Calendar of Bills and Resolutions, and shall continue such consideration until ten minutes after the Senate convenes on such day (the end of the morning period); and bills and resolutions that are not objected to shall be taken up in their order, and each Senator shall be entitled to speak once and for two minutes only upon any question; and an objection may be interposed at any stage of the proceedings, but upon motion the Senate may continue such consideration; and this order shall commence immediately after the call for "other resolutions", or after disposition of resolutions coming "over under the rule", and shall take precedence of the unfinished business and other special orders. But if the Senate shall proceed on motion with the consideration of any matter notwithstanding an objection, the foregoing provisions touching debate shall not apply.
2. All motions made during the first ten minutes of a new legislative day to proceed to the consideration of any matter shall be determined without debate, except motions to proceed to the consideration of any motion, resolution, or proposal to change any of the Standing Rules of the Senate shall be debatable. Motions made after the first ten minutes of a new legislative day to proceed to the consideration of bills and resolutions are debatable.

#### RULE IX—MESSAGES
1. Messages from the President of the United States or from the House of Representatives may be received at any stage of proceedings, except while the Senate is voting or ascertaining the presence of a quorum, or while the Journal is being read, or while a question of order or a motion to adjourn is pending.
2. Messages shall be sent to the House of Representatives by the Secretary or the Presiding officer, who shall previously certify the determination of the Senate upon all bills, joint resolutions, and other resolutions which may be communicated to the House, or in which its concurrence may be requested; and the Secretary or the Presiding officer shall also certify and deliver to the President of the United States all resolutions and other communications which may be directed to him by the Senate.

#### RULE X—SPECIAL ORDERS
1. Any subject may, by a vote of two-thirds of the Senators present, be made a special order of business for consideration and when the time so fixed for its consideration arrives the Presiding Officer shall lay it before the Senate, unless there be unfinished business in which case it takes its place on the Calendar of Special Orders in the order of time at which it was made special, to be considered in that order when there is no unfinished business.
2. All motions to change such order, or to proceed to the consideration of other business, shall be decided without debate.

#### RULE XI—PAPERS – WITHDRAWAL, PRINTING, READING OF, AND REFERENCE
1. No memorial or other paper presented to the Senate, except original treaties finally acted upon, shall be withdrawn from its files except by order of the Senate.
2. The Secretary of the Senate, or President pro tempore shall obtain at the close of each Congress all the noncurrent records of the Senate and of each Senate committee and transfer them to the Librarian of Congress for preservation, subject to the orders of the Senate.
3. When the reading of a paper is called for, and objected to, it shall be determined by a vote of the Senate, without debate.
4. Every bill and joint resolution introduced or reported from a committee, and all bills and joint resolutions received from the House of Representatives, and all reports of committees, shall be recorded in the Legislative Journal, unless, for the dispatch of the business of the Senate, such recording may be dispensed with.

#### RULE XII—VOTING PROCEDURE
1. When the yeas and nays are ordered, the names of Senators shall be called alphabetically; and each Senator shall, without debate, declare his assent or dissent to the question, unless excused by the Senate; and no Senator shall be permitted to vote after the decision shall have been announced by the Presiding Officer, but may for sufficient reasons, with unanimous consent, change or withdraw his vote. No motion to suspend this rule shall be in order, nor shall the Presiding Officer entertain any request to suspend it by unanimous consent.
2. When a Senator declines to vote on call of his name, he shall be required to assign his reasons therefor, and having assigned them, the Presiding Officer shall submit the question to the Senate: "Shall the Senator for the reasons assigned by him, be excused from voting?" which shall be decided without debate; and these proceedings shall be had after the roll call and before the result is announced; and any further proceedings in reference thereto shall be after such announcement.
3. A Member, notwithstanding any other provisions of this rule, may decline to vote, in committee or on the floor, on any matter when he believes that his voting on such a matter would be a conflict of interest.
4. No request by a Senator for unanimous consent for the taking of a final vote on a specified date upon the passage of a bill or joint resolution shall be submitted to the Senate for agreement thereto until after a quorum call ordered for the purpose by the Presiding Officer, it shall be disclosed that a quorum of the Senate is present; and when a unanimous consent is thus given the same shall operate as the order of the Senate, but any unanimous consent may be revoked by another unanimous consent granted in the manner prescribed above upon one day's notice.

#### RULE XIII—RECONSIDERATION
1. When a question has been decided by the Senate, any Senator voting with the prevailing side or who has not voted may, on the same day or on either of the next two days of actual session thereafter, move a reconsideration; and if the Senate shall refuse to reconsider such a motion entered, or if such a motion is withdrawn by leave of the Senate, or if upon reconsideration the Senate shall affirm its first decision, no further motion to reconsider shall be in order unless by unanimous consent. Every motion to reconsider shall be decided by a majority vote, and may be laid on the table without affecting the question in reference to which the same is made, which shall be a final disposition of the motion.
2. When a bill, resolution, report, amendment, order, or message, upon which a vote has been taken, shall have gone out of the possession of the Senate and been communicated to the House of Representatives, the motion to reconsider shall be accompanied by a motion to request the House to return the same; which last motion shall be acted upon immediately, and without debate, and if determined in the negative shall be a final disposition of the motion to reconsider.

#### RULE XIV—JOINT RESOLUTIONS, RESOLUTIONS, AND PREAMBLES THERETO
1. Whenever a bill or joint resolution shall be offered, its introduction shall, if objected to, be postponed for one sitting day.
1. Every bill, joint resolution, or resolution, shall receive not less than one reading previous to its passage, and the Presiding Officer shall give notice at such reading: Provided, That each reading may be by title only, unless the Senate in any case shall otherwise order.
2. When a bill or resolution is accompanied by a preamble, the question shall first be put on the bill or resolution and then on the preamble, which may be withdrawn by a mover before an amendment of the same, or ordering of the yeas and nays; or it may be laid on the table without prejudice to the bill or resolution, and shall be a final disposition of such preamble.

#### RULE XV—AMENDMENTS AND MOTIONS
1. 

| Whereas— | 
| -------- | 
| a. An amendment and any instruction accompanying a motion to recommit shall be reduced to writing and read and identical copies shall be provided by the Senator offering the amendment or instruction to the desks of the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader before being debated.
b. A motion shall be reduced to writing, if desired by the Presiding Officer or by any Senator, and shall be read before being debated.| 

2. Any motion, amendment, or resolution may be withdrawn or modified by the mover at any time before a decision, amendment, or ordering of the yeas and nays, except a motion to reconsider, which shall not be withdrawn without leave.
3. If the question in debate contains several propositions, any Senator may have the same divided, except a motion to strike out and insert, which shall not be divided; but the rejection of a motion to strike out and insert one proposition shall not prevent a motion to strike out and insert a different proposition; nor shall it prevent a motion simply to strike out; nor shall the rejection of a motion to strike out prevent a motion to strike out and insert. But pending a motion to strike out and insert, the part to be stricken out and the part to be inserted shall each be regarded for the purpose of amendment as a question, and motions to amend the part to be stricken out shall have precedence.
4. When an amendment proposed to any pending measure is laid on the table, it shall not carry with it, or prejudice, such measure.
5. It shall not be in order to consider any proposed committee amendment (other than a technical, clerical, or conforming amendment) which contains any significant matter not within the jurisdiction of the committee proposing such amendment.

#### RULE XVI—APPROPRIATIONS AND MAENDMENTS TO GENERAL APPROPRIATIONS BILLS
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XVII—REFERENCE TO COMMITTEES; MOTIONS TO DISCHARGE; REPORTS OF COMMITTEES; AND HEARINGS AVAILABLE
1. Except as provided in paragraph 3, in any case in which a controversy arises as to the jurisdiction of any committee with respect to any proposed legislation, the question of jurisdiction shall be decided by the presiding officer, without debate, in favor of the committee which has jurisdiction over the subject matter which predominates in such proposed legislation; but such decision shall be subject to an appeal.
2. A motion simply to refer shall not be open to amendment, except to add instructions.
3. 

| Whereas— | 
| -------- | 
| a. Upon motion by both the majority leader or his designee and the minority leader or his designee, proposed legislation may be referred to two or more committees jointly or sequentially. Notice of such motion and the proposed legislation to which it relates shall be printed in the Congressional Record. The motion shall be privileged, but it shall not be in order until the Congressional Record in which the notice is printed has been available to Senators for at least twenty-four hours. No amendment to any such motion shall be in order except amendments to any instructions contained therein. Debate on any such motion, and all amendments thereto and debatable motions and appeals in connection therewith, shall be limited to not more than ten minutes, the time to be equally divided between, and controlled by, the majority leader and the minority leader or their designees.
b. Proposed legislation which is referred to two or more committees jointly may be reported only by such committees jointly and only one report may accompany any proposed legislation so jointly reported.
c. A motion to refer any proposed legislation to two or more committees sequentially shall specify the order of referral.
d. Any motion under this paragraph may specify the portion or portions of proposed legislation to be considered by the committees, or any of them, to which such proposed legislation is referred, and such committees or committee shall be limited, in the consideration of such proposed legislation, to the portion or portions so specified.
e. Any motion under this subparagraph may contain instructions with respect to the time allowed for consideration by the committees, or any of them, to which proposed legislation is referred and the discharge of such committees, or any of them, from further consideration of such proposed legislation. |

4. 

| Whereas— |
| -------- | 
| a. All reports of committees and motions to discharge a committee from the consideration of a subject, and all subjects from which a committee shall be discharged, shall lie over one day for consideration, unless by unanimous consent the Senate shall otherwise direct.

5. Any measure or matter reported by any standing committee shall not be considered in the Senate unless the report of that committee upon that measure or matter has been available to Members for at least one calendar day (excluding Sundays) prior to the consideration of that measure or matter. If hearings have been held on any such measure or matter so reported, the committee reporting the measure or matter shall make every reasonable effort to have such hearings printed and available for distribution to the Members of the Senate prior to the consideration of such measure or matter in the Senate—



| This paragraph: | 
| -------- | 
| a. May be waived by joint agreement of the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader of the Senate; and
b. Shall not to apply to: any measure for the declaration of war, or the declaration of a national emergency, by the Congress, and, any executive decision, determination, or action which would become, or continue to be, effective unless disapproved or otherwise invalidated by one or both Houses of Congress.| 

#### RULE XVIII—BUSINESS CONTINUED FROM SESSION TO SESSION
At the second or any subsequent session of a Congress the legislative business of the Senate which remained undetermined at the close of the next preceding session of that Congress shall be resumed and proceeded with in the same manner as if no adjournment of the Senate had taken place.

#### RULE XIX—DEBATE
1. 

| Whereas— | 
| -------- | 
| a. When a Senator desires to speak, he shall rise and address the Presiding Officer, and shall not proceed until he is recognized, and the Presiding Officer shall recognize the Senator who shall first address him. No Senator shall interrupt another Senator in debate without his consent, and to obtain such consent he shall first address the Presiding Officer, and no Senator shall speak more than twice upon any one question in debate on the same legislative day without leave of the Senate, which shall be determined without debate.
b. At the conclusion of the morning business at the beginning of a new legislative day or after the unfinished business or any pending business has first been laid before the Senate on any calendar day, and until after the duration of fifteen minutes of actual session after such business is laid down except as determined to the contrary by unanimous consent or on motion without debate, all debate shall be germane and confined to the specific question then pending before the Senate.| 

2. No Senator in debate shall, directly or indirectly, by any form of words impute to another Senator or to other Senators any conduct or motive unworthy or unbecoming a Senator.
3. No Senator in debate shall refer offensively to any inferior jurisdiction of the United States.
4. If any Senator, in speaking or otherwise, in the opinion of the Presiding Officer transgress the rules of the Senate the Presiding Officer shall, either on his own motion or at the request of any other Senator, call him to order; and when a Senator shall be called to order he shall take his seat, and may not proceed without leave of the Senate, which, if granted, shall be upon motion that he be allowed to proceed in order, which motion shall be determined without debate. Any Senator directed by the Presiding Officer to take his seat, and any Senator requesting the Presiding Officer to require a Senator to take his seat, may appeal from the ruling of the Chair, which appeal shall be open to debate.
5. If a Senator be called to order for words spoken in debate, upon the demand of the Senator or of any other Senator, the exceptionable words shall be taken down in writing, and read at the table for the information of the Senate.
6. Whenever confusion arises in the Chamber or the galleries, or demonstrations of approval or disapproval are indulged in by the occupants of the galleries, it shall be the duty of the Chair to enforce order on his own initiative and without any point of order being made by a Senator.
7. No Senator shall introduce to or bring to the attention of the Senate during its sessions any occupant in the galleries of the Senate. No motion to suspend this rule shall be in order, nor may the Presiding Officer entertain any request to suspend it by unanimous consent.
8. Former Presidents of the United States shall be entitled to address the Senate upon appropriate notice to the Presiding Officer who shall thereupon make the necessary arrangements.

#### RULE XX—QUESTIONS OF ORDER
1. A question of order may be raised at any stage of the proceedings, except when the Senate is voting or ascertaining the presence of a quorum, and, unless submitted to the Senate, shall be decided by the Presiding Officer without debate, subject to an appeal to the Senate. When an appeal is taken, any subsequent question of order which may arise before the decision of such appeal shall be decided by the Presiding Officer without debate; and every appeal therefrom shall be decided at once, and without debate; and any appeal may be laid on the table without prejudice to the pending proposition, and thereupon shall be held as affirming the decision of the Presiding Officer.
2. The Presiding Officer may submit any question of order for the decision of the Senate.

#### RULE XXI—SESSION WITH CLOSED DOORS
1. On a motion made and seconded to close the doors of the Senate, on the discussion of any business which may, in the opinion of a Senator, require secrecy, the Presiding Officer shall direct the galleries to be cleared; and during the discussion of such motion the doors shall remain closed.
2. When the Senate meets in closed session, any applicable provisions of rules XXIX and XXXI, including the confidentiality of information shall apply to any information and to the conduct of any debate transacted.

#### RULE XXII—PRECEDENCE OF MOTIONS
1. When a motion is pending, no motion shall be received but— 

| A motion | 
| -------- | 
| a. To adjourn.
b. To adjourn to a day certain, or that when the Senate adjourn it shall be to a day certain.
c. To take a recess.
d. To proceed to the consideration of executive business.
e. To lay on the table.
f. To postpone indefitely.
g. To postpone to a day certain.
h. To commit. 
i. To amend.| 

Which several motions shall have precedence as they stand arranged; and the motions relating to adjournment, to take a recess, to proceed to the consideration of executive business, to lay on the table, shall be decided without debate.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of rule II or rule IV or any other rule of the Senate, at any time a motion signed by a Senator, to bring to a close the debate upon any measure, motion, other matter pending before the Senate, or the unfinished business, is presented to the Senate, the Presiding Officer, or clerk at the direction of the Presiding Officer, shall at once state the motion to the Senate, and sometime after the Senate meets on the following calendar day but one, or the same, he shall lay the motion before the Senate and direct that the clerk call the roll, and upon the ascertainment that a quorum is present, the Presiding Officer shall, without debate, submit to the Senate by a yea-and-nay vote the question:

"Is it the sense of the Senate that the debate shall be brought to a close?" And if that question shall be decided in the affirmative by three-fifths of the Senators duly chosen and sworn -- except on a measure or motion to amend the Senate rules, in which case the necessary affirmative vote shall be two-thirds of the Senators present and voting -- then said measure, motion, or other matter pending before the Senate, or the unfinished business, shall be the unfinished business to the exclusion of all other business until disposed of."

Thereafter no Senator shall be entitled to speak in all more than five minutes on the measure, motion, or other matter pending before the Senate, or the unfinished business, the amendments thereto, and motions affecting the same, and it shall be the duty of the Presiding Officer to keep the time of each Senator who speaks. Except by unanimous consent, no amendment shall be proposed after the vote to bring the debate to a close, unless it had been submitted in writing to the Senate by no less than one hour previous to the session on the day of the filing of the cloture motion if an amendment in the first degree, and unless it had been so submitted at least one hour prior to the beginning of the cloture vote if an amendment in the second degree. No dilatory motion, or dilatory amendment, or amendment not germane shall be in order. Points of order, including questions of relevancy, and appeals from the decision of the Presiding Officer, shall be decided without debate.

After no more than one hour of consideration of the measure, motion, or other matter on which cloture has been invoked, the Senate shall proceed, without any further debate on any question, to vote on the final disposition thereof to the exclusion of all amendments not then actually pending before the Senate at that time and to the exclusion of all motions, except a motion to table, or to reconsider and one quorum call on demand to establish the presence of a quorum (and motions required to establish a quorum) immediately before the final vote begins. The one hour may be increased by the adoption of a motion, decided without debate, by a threefifths affirmative vote of the Senators duly chosen and sworn, and any such time thus agreed upon shall be equally divided between and controlled by the Majority and Minority Leaders or their designees. However, only one motion to extend time, specified above, may be made in any one calendar day.

No Senator shall call up more than two amendments until every other Senator shall have had the opportunity to do likewise.

Notwithstanding other provisions of this rule, a Senator may yield all or part of his five minutes to the majority or minority floor managers of the measure, motion, or matter or to the Majority or Minority Leader, but each Senator specified shall not have more than two hours so yielded to him and may in turn yield such time to other Senators.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this rule, any Senator who has not used or yielded at least two minutes, is, if he seeks recognition, guaranteed up to five minutes, inclusive, to speak only.

After cloture is invoked, the reading of any amendment, including House amendments, shall be dispensed with when the proposed amendment has been identified and has been available in digital form at the desk of the Members for not less than twenty four hours.

3. If a cloture motion on a motion to proceed to a measure or matter is presented in accordance with this rule and is signed by a Senator, one hour after the Senate meets on the following calendar day, the Presiding Officer, or the clerk at the direction of the Presiding Officer, shall lay the motion before the Senate. If cloture is then invoked on the motion to proceed, the question shall be on the motion to proceed, without further debate.

#### RULE XXIII—PRIVILEDGE OF THE FLOOR
1. Other than the Vice President and Senators, no person shall be admitted to the floor of the Senate while in session—


| Except as follows:| 
| -------- | 
| a. The President of the United States and his private secretary.
b. The President elect and Vice President elect of the United States.
c. ExPresidents and exVice Presidents of the United States.
d. Judges of the Supreme Court
e. Ex-Senators and Senators elect, except as provided in paragraph 2. 
f. The officers and employees of the Senate in the discharge of their official duties.
g. Ex-Secretaries and ex-Sergeants at Arms of the Senate, except as provided in paragraph 2.
h. Members of the House of Representatives and Members elect.
i. Ex-Speakers of the House of Representatives, except as provided in paragraph 2. 
j. The Sergeant at Arms of the House and his chief deputy and the Clerk of the House and his deputy.
k. Heads of the Executive Departments.
l. Ambassadors and Ministers of the United States.
m. Members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
n. The General Commanding the Army.
o. The Senior Admiral of the Navy on the active list.
p. Members of National Legislatures of foreign countries and Members of the European Parliament.
q. The Librarian of Congress and the Assistant Librarian in charge of the Law Library.
r. The Architect of the Capitol.
s. The Chaplain of the House of Representatives.
t. The Parliamentarian Emeritus of the Senate. | 

Members of the staffs of committees of the Senate and joint committees of the Congress when in the discharge of their official duties and employees in the office of a Senator when inthe discharge of their official duties (but in each case subject to such rules or regulations as may be prescribed by the Committee on Ethics, Rules and Administration). Senate committee staff members and employees in the office of a Senator must be on the payroll of the Senate and members of joint committee staffs must be on the payroll of the Senate or the House of Representatives.

2. The floor privilege provided in paragraph 1 shall not apply, when the Senate is in session, to an individual covered by this paragraph—


| Who is— | 
| -------- |
| a. a registered lobbyist or agent of a foreign principal; or
b. in the employ of or represents any party or organization for the purpose of influencing, directly or indirectly, the passage, defeat, or amendment of any Federal legislative proposal.| 

The Committee on Ethics, Rules and Administration may promulgate regulations to allow individuals covered by this paragraph floor privileges for ceremonial functions and events designated by the Majority Leader and the Minority Leader.

3. A former Member of the Senate may not exercise privileges to use Senate athletic facilities or Member-only parking spaces if such Member—

| Is— | 
| -------- |
| a. a registered lobbyist or agent of a foreign principal; or
b. in the employ of or represents any party or organization for the purpose of influencing, directly or indirectly, the passage, defeat, or amendment of any Federal legislative proposal.| 

#### RULE XXIV—APPOINTMENT OF COMMITTEES
1. In the appointment of the standing committees, or to fill vacancies thereon, the Senate, unless otherwise ordered, shall by resolution appoint the chairman of each such committee and the other members thereof. On demand of any Senator, a separate vote shall be had on the appointment of the chairman of any such committee and on the appointment of the other members thereof. Each such resolution shall be subject to amendment and to division of the question.
2. On demand of one-fifth of the Senators present, a quorum being present, any vote taken pursuant to paragraph 1 shall be by ballot.
3. Except as otherwise provided or unless otherwise ordered, all other committees, and the chairmen thereof, shall be appointed in the same manner as standing committees.
4. When a chairman of a committee shall resign or cease to serve on a committee, action by the Senate to fill the vacancy in such committee, unless specially otherwise ordered, shall be only to fill up the number of members of the committee, and the election of a new chairman.

#### RULE XXV—STANDING COMMITTEES
1. The following standing committees shall be appointed at the commencement of each Congress, and shall continue and have the power to act until their successors are appointed, with leave to report by bill or otherwise on matters within their respective jurisdictions:

##### (a)(1) COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS
1. Acquisition of land and buildings for embassies and legations in foreign countries.
2. Boundaries of the United States.
3. Diplomatic service.
4. Foreign economic, military, technical, and humanitarian assistance.
5. Foreign loans.
6. International conferences and congresses.
7. Interventions abroad and declarations of war.
8. National security and international aspects of trusteeships of the United States.
9. Relations of the United States with foreign nations.
10. Treaties and executive agreements.
11. United States and its affiliated organizations.
12. Department of State and all subordinate departments, agencies, offices, and other administrative organizations. 

##### (b)(1) COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES
1. Common defense.
2. Department of Defense and all subordinate departments, agencies, offices, and other administrative organizations.
3. Pay, promotion, retiremnent, and other benefits and priviledges of members of the Armed Forces.
4. Strategic and critical materials necessary for common defense.

##### (c}(1) COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY
1. Civil liberties.
2. Constitutional amendments.
3. Federal courts and judges.
4. Department of Justice and all subordinate departments, agencies, offices, and other administrative organizations.
5. Judicial proceedings; civil and criminal.
6. National penitentiaries. 

##### (d)(1) COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT
1. Census and collection of statistics. 
2. Federal civil service.
3. Government information and organization.
4. Intergovernmental relations.
5. Government overreach and abuse.
6. Presidential succession.
7. Department of Homeland Security and all subordinate departments, agencies, offices, and other administrative organizations.

##### (e)(1) COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE
1. The National Intelligence and Intelligence Community of the United States and it's apparatus, and all subordinate departments, agencies, offices, and other administrative organizations
2. National intelligence priorities, programs, and policies.
3. Covert and clandestine activities domestically. 
4. Covert and clandestine activities overseas and abroad.
5. Intelligence abuses.

##### (f)(1) COMMITTEE ON ETHICS, RULES, AND ADMINISTRATION
1. Rules and procedures, Senate rules and regulations, including floor and gallery rules.
2. Federal elections, including the election of the President, Vice President, and elections to the Congress.
3. Disciplinary matters involving Senators.
4. Expulsion or suspension of Senators.

##### (g)(1) COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE AND LABOR
1. Measures relating to labor and public welfare.
2. Equal employment opportunities.
3. Labor standards.
4. Department of Commerce and Labor and all subordinate departments, agencies, offices, and other administrative organizations.
5. Measures relating to businesses and private enterprise.
6. Employee and worker protections.

#### RULE XXVI—COMMITTEE PROCEDURE
1. Each standing committee, including any subcommittee of any such committee, is authorized to hold such hearings, to sit and act at such times and places during the sessions, recesses, and adjourned periods of the Senate, to require by subpena or otherwise the attendance of such witnesses and the production of such correspondence, books, papers, and documents, to take such testimony and to make such expenditures out of the contingent fund of the Senate as may be authorized by resolutions of the Senate. Each such committee may make investigations into any matter within its jurisdiction, may report such hearings as may be had by it.
2. Each meeting of a committee, including meetings to conduct hearings, shall be open to the public, except that a meeting or series of meetings by a committee thereof on the same subject may be closed to the public by unanimous consent of the committee thereof, in which the meeting may be closed.
3. Whenever disorder shall arise during a committee meeting that is open to the public, or any demonstration of approval or disapproval is induldged in by any person in attendance of such meeting, it shall be the duty of the Chair to enforce order on his or her own initiative and without any point of order being made by any member of the Committee. When the Chair finds it necessary to maintain order, he shall have the power to clear the room, and the committee may act in a closed session for so long as there is a doubt of the assurance of order. 
4. Each committee shall consist of four members, a majority thereof shall constitute quorum for the transaction of such business as may be considered by said committee, except that no measure or matter or recommendation shall be reported from any committee unless a majority of the committee be present. 
5. Each committee shall keep a record of its actions. Such record shall include a record of the votes on any question on which a recorded vote is demanded. The results of a roll call vote, or any vote thereof, in any meeting of any committee upon any measure, or any amendment thereto, shall be announced in the committee report on that measure unless previously announced by the committee, and such announcement shall include a tabulation of the votes cast in favor of and the votes cast in opposition to each such measure and amendment by each member of the committee who shall be present at the meeting.

#### RULE XXVII—COMMITTEE STAFF
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XXVIII—CONFERENCE COMMITTEES; REPORTS; OPEN MEETINGS
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XXIX—EXECUTIVE SESSIONS
1. When the President of the United States shall meet the Senate in the Senate Chamber for the consideration of Executive business, he shall have a seat on the right of the Presiding Officer. When the Senate shall be convened by the President of the United States to any other place, the Presiding Officer of the Senate and the Senators shall attend at the place appointed, with the necessary officers of the Senate.
2. When acting upon confidential or Executive business, unless the same shall be considered in open Executive session, the Senate Chamber shall be cleared of all persons except the Secretary, the Assistant Secretary, the Principal Legislative Clerk, the Parliamentarian, the Executive Clerk, the Minute and Journal Clerk, the Sergeant at Arms, the Secretaries to the Majority and the Minority, and such other officers as the Presiding Officer shall think necessary; and all such officers shall be sworn to secrecy.
3. All confidential communications made by the President of the United States to the Senate shall be by the Senators and the officers of the Senate kept secret; and all treaties which may be laid before the Senate, and all remarks, votes, and proceedings thereon shall also be kept secret, until the Senate shall, by their resolution, take off the injunction of secrecy.
4. Whenever the injunction of secrecy shall be removed from any part of the proceedings of the Senate in closed Executive or legislative session, the order of the Senate removing the same shall be entered in the Legislative Journal as well as in the Executive Journal, and shall be published in the Congressional Record under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate.
5. Any Senator, officer, or employee of the Senate who shall disclose the secret or confidential business or proceedings of the Senate, including the business and proceedings of the committees, subcommittees, and offices of the Senate, shall be liable, if a Senator, to suffer expulsion from the body; and if an officer or employee, to dismissal from the service of the Senate, and to punishment for contempt.
6. Whenever, by the request of the Senate or any committee thereof, any documents or papers shall be communicated to the Senate by the President or the head of any department relating to any matter pending in the Senate, the proceedings in regard to which are secret or confidential under the rules, said documents and papers shall be considered as confidential, and shall not be disclosed without leave of the Senate.

#### RULE XXX—EXECUTIVE SESSION – PROCEEDINGS ON TREATIES
1. When a treaty shall be laid before the Senate for ratification, it shall be read a first time; and no motion in respect to it shall be in order, except to refer it to a committee, to print it in confidence for the use of the Senate, or to remove the injunction of secrecy.
2. When a treaty is reported from a committee with or without amendment, it shall, unless the Senate unanimously otherwise directs, lie over one day for consideration; after which it may be read a second time, after which amendments may be proposed. At any stage of such proceedings the Senate may remove the injunction of secrecy from the treaty.
3. The decisions thus made shall be reduced to the form of a resolution of ratification, with or without amendments, as the case may be, which shall be proposed on a subsequent day, unless, by unanimous consent, the Senate determine otherwise, at which stage no amendment to the treaty shall be received unless by unanimous consent; but the resolution of ratification when pending shall be open to amendment in the form of reservations, declarations, statements, or understandings.
4. On the final question to advise and consent to the ratification in the form agreed to, the concurrence of twothirds of the Senators present shall be necessary to determine it in the affirmative; but all other motions and questions upon a treaty shall be decided by a majority vote, except a motion to postpone indefinitely, which shall be decided by a vote of twothirds.
5. Treaties transmitted by the President to the Senate for ratification shall be resumed at the second or any subsequent session of the same Congress at the stage in which they were left at the final adjournment of the session at which they were transmitted; but all proceedings on treaties shall terminate with the Congress, and they shall be resumed at the commencement of the next Congress as if no proceedings had previously been had thereon

#### RULE XXXI—EXECUTIVE SESSION – PROCEEDINGS ON NOMINATIONS
1. When nominations shall be made by the President of the United States to the Senate, they shall, unless otherwise ordered, be referred to appropriate committees; and the final question on every nomination shall be, "Will the Senate advise and consent to this nomination?" which question shall not be put on the same day on which the nomination is received, nor on the day on which it may be reported by a committee, unless by unanimous consent.
2. All business in the Senate shall be transacted in open session, unless the Senate as provided in rule XXI by a majority vote shall determine that a particular nomination, treaty, or other matter shall be considered in closed executive session, in which case all subsequent proceedings with respect to said nomination, treaty, or other matter shall be kept secret: Provided, That the injunction of secrecy as to the whole or any part of proceedings in closed executive session may be removed on motion adopted by a majority vote of the Senate in closed executive session: Provided further, That any Senator may make public his vote in closed executive session.
3. When a nomination is confirmed or rejected, any Senator voting in the majority may move for a reconsideration on the same day on which the vote was taken, or on either of the next two days of actual executive session of the Senate; but if a notification of the confirmation or rejection of a nomination shall have been sent to the President before the expiration of the time within which a motion to reconsider may be made, the motion to reconsider shall be accompanied by a motion to request the President to return such notification to the Senate. Any motion to reconsider the vote on a nomination may be laid on the table without prejudice to the nomination, and shall be a final disposition of such motion.
4. Nominations confirmed or rejected by the Senate shall not be returned by the Secretary to the President until the expiration of the time limited for making a motion to reconsider the same, or while a motion to reconsider is pending unless otherwise ordered by the Senate.
5. When the Senate shall adjourn or take a recess for more than seven days, all motions to reconsider a vote upon a nomination which has been confirmed or rejected by the Senate, which shall be pending at the time of taking such adjournment or recess, shall fall; and the Secretary shall return all such nominations to the President as confirmed or rejected by the Senate, as the case may be.
6. Nominations neither confirmed nor rejected during the session at which they are made shall not be acted upon at any succeeding session without being again made to the Senate by the President; and if the Senate shall adjourn or take a recess for more than seven days, all nominations pending and not finally acted upon at the time of taking such adjournment or recess shall be returned by the Secretary to the President, and shall not again be considered unless they shall again be made to the Senate by the President.

#### RULE XXXII—THE PRESIDENT FURNISHED WITH COPIES OF RECORDS OF EXECUTIVE SESSIONS
The President of the United States shall, from time to time, be furnished with an authenticated transcript of the public executive records of the Senate, but no further extract from the Executive Journal shall be furnished by the Secretary, or the Presiding officer of the session thereof, except by special order of the Senate; and no paper, except original treaties transmitted to the Senate by the President of the United States, and finally acted upon by the Senate, shall be delivered from the office of the Secretary, or the Presiding officer without an order of the Senate for that purpose.

#### RULE XXXIII—SENATE CHAMBER – SENATE WING OF THE CAPITOL
1. The Senate Chamber shall not be granted for any other purpose than for the use of the Senate; no smoking shall be permitted at any time on the floor of the Senate, or lighted cigars, cigarettes, or pipes be brought into the Chamber.
2. It shall be the duty of the Committee on Ethics, Rules and Administration to make all rules and regulations respecting such parts of the Capitol, its passages and galleries and the Senate Office Buildings, as are or may be set apart for the use of the Senate and its officers, to be enforced under the direction of the Presiding Officer. The Committee shall make such regulations respecting the reporters' galleries of the Senate, together with the adjoining rooms and facilities, as will confine their occupancy and use to bona fide reporters of newspapers and periodicals, and of news or press associations for daily news dissemination through video, photography and text, and similar media of transmission. These regulations shall so provide for the use of such space and facilities as fairly to distribute their use to all such media of news dissemination.

#### RULE XXXIV—PUBLIC FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XXXV—GIFTS
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XXXVI—OUTSIDE EARNED INCOME
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XXXVII—CONFLICT OF INTEREST
1. A Member, officer, or employee of the Senate shall not receive any compensation, nor shall he permit any compensation to accrue to his beneficial interest from any source, the receipt or accrual of which would occur by virtue of influence improperly exerted from his position as a Member, Officer, or employee.
2. No Member, officer, or employee shall engage in any outside business or professional activity or employment for compensation which is inconsistent or in conflict with the conscientious performance of official duties.
3. No Member, officer, or employee shall knowingly use his official position to introduce or aid the progress or passage of legislation, a principal purpose of which is to further only his pecuniary interest, only the pecuniary interest of his immediate family, or only the pecuniary interest of a limited class of persons or enterprises, when he, or his enterprises controlled by them, are members of the affected class.

#### RULE XXXVIII—PROHIBITION OF UNOFFICIAL OFFICE ACCOUNTS
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XXXIX—FOREIGN TRAVEL
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XL—FRANKING PRIVILEGE AND RADIO AND TELEVISION STUDIOS
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XLI—POLITICAL FUND ACTIVITY; DEFINITIONS
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XLII—EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XLIII—REPRESENTATION BY MEMBERS
*Omitted.*

#### RULE XLIV—CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING AND RELATED ITEMS
*Omitted*

#### RULE XLV—VOTING BY PROXY
1. Any member of the Senate excused from proceedings under Rule XII may, unless determined otherwise by a court of the United States, or by law, delegate or direct another member to act as a proxy to vote on their behalf or at their proxy's discretion, as the member may provide.
2. Any member seeking to designate a proxy shall do so not less than one hour previous to that of the scheduled time in which a proceeding of the Senate is to take place, and such designation shall be submitted to the appropriate channel as determined by the President pro tempore.
3. Any member of the Senate who shall designate a proxy shall not be considered in that of a quorum under Rule VI, and no Senator who has designated a proxy shall be considered to be in attendance in any question pertaining to the presence of a quorum. 