Multiple referral
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Multiple referral is the process through which a bill is referred to a second committee after the first is finished acting. In the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
, proposed
legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred to ...
can be sent to more than one
Congressional committee A congressional committee is a legislative sub-organization in the United States Congress that handles a specific duty (rather than the general duties of Congress). Committee membership enables members to develop specialized knowledge of the ...
due to a 1975 rules change. Reasons for referring legislation to more than one committee can include: a change in the most important issues; complexity of the legislation; or problems fitting the bill into the jurisdiction of only one committee. However, as a result of a January 1995 change of the House rules, legislation may not be sent to multiple committees simultaneously. Under those same rules, the
Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...
must designate one or more primary committees in a joint referral. In a split referral, legislation is divided into sections, with each part sent to the appropriate committee. In a sequential referral, legislation is first sent to one committee, then to the next. In the Senate, multiple referral can occur when jointly motioned by the leaders of both parties (almost never), or when the Senate grants
unanimous consent In parliamentary procedure, unanimous consent, also known as general consent, or in the case of the parliaments under the Westminster system, leave of the house (or leave of the senate), is a situation in which no member present objects to a prop ...
.


References

(*) Sinclair, Barbara (1997). ''Unorthodox Lawmaking: New Legislative Processes in the U.S. Congress''. CQ Press. Terminology of the United States Congress {{US-law-stub