Senate Procedure

RECONSIDERATION

Under the rules of the Senate when a question has been decided by the Senate, any Senator voting with the prevailing side or who did not vote may on the day such action is taken, or on either of the next two days of actual session thereof, move to reconsider that action. After that time, it takes unanimous consent to enter such a motion.

Only one motion to reconsider a said matter may be moved. If the vote on the passage of a bill is reconsidered, however, and the bill is amended, then another motion to reconsider that bill would be in order. If a bill were passed and that vote was reconsidered and then the bill was defeated, that action could be reconsidered.

When a motion to reconsider is made immediately after an action is taken, the motion to reconsider becomes the pending question and a motion to table the motion to reconsider would be in order upon recognition, and if carried, that locks up that action, unless by unanimous consent the Senate orders otherwise.

If after an action is taken other business has intervened and the matter is no longer before the Senate, or, while other business is pending, a Senator may enter a motion to reconsider if within the prescribed time. Under such circumstances, it would then require a motion to proceed to the consideration of the motion to reconsider before action thereon could be taken. Once a motion is correctly entered, it has the effect of staying the said action taken by the Senate; that is, if the Senate passes a bill and a motion to reconsider is entered before that bill is messaged to the House, that bill is "stopped in its tracks" until the motion to reconsider is disposed of.

If a measure on which the Senate has taken action has gone out of its jurisdiction, say, for example, has been sent to the House, when a motion to reconsider is entered, an additional motion at that time to request the return of the bill is required because the Senate cannot take action on any proposition which is not in its possession.

Rule XIII

[Procedure on Motion To Reconsider]

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, or upon reconsideration 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

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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 XXXVIII, Paragraphs 3 and 4

[Reconsideration of Nomination]

3. When a nomination is confirmed of 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.

Adoption of Motion:

The motion to reconsider a proposition having been agreed to, that proposition is then before the Senate again for disposition.'

Amendments Between Houses, Reconsideration of:

See also "Reconsider," p. 96.

Where the Senate passes a House bill with amendments and asks for a conference, a motion to reconsider the vote on the passage of the bill is in order, the papers being in possession of the Senate, and even after the House agrees to a conference requested by the Senate."

1 See Mar. 30, 1914, 63-2, Record, pp. 5773–74.

Jan. 10 and 11, 1934, 73–2, Journal, p. 34, Record, p. 417.

* July 18, 1947, 80-1, Record, p. 9250–51.

Amendments to a Bill, Reconsideration of:

See also "Third Reading," pp. 177–178.

A motion to reconsider amendments, including committee amendments,* may be entered at any time even subsequent to the consideration of individual amendments, if within the defined limit of time," but the motion cannot be considered when another amendment is pending,' nor does it come up for consideration automatically; it may be brought up on motion at any time when no other matter is pending."

It is in order to move to reconsider the vote by which an amendment was rejected or adopted at any time another amendment is not pending until the third reading of the said bill as long as the bill is before the Senate, and unanimous consent is not required.1o

A motion to reconsider a vote on the adoption of an amendment is not in order when another amendment is pending."

It would take unanimous consent to make it in order to consider such a motion while the Senate has before it another amendment; such a motion could be entered if within the required time."2

A motion to reconsider the vote by which an amendment was adopted or defeated immediately after that vote is taken, is in order, if no other business has intervened and is pending; a motion to table the motion to reconsider would then be in order.13

The reconsideration of a vote agreeing to an amendment to a bill after its passage is not in order unless the vote on the final passage of the bill is first reconsidered." Likewise, after the third reading of the bill, a motion to reconsider the vote agreeing to an amendment is not in order until the vote

* See June 18, 1960, 86–2, Record, p. 13244.

5 Oct. 4, 1971, 92-1, Record, p. 34681; see May 9, 1924, 68-1, Record, p. 8200. 6 Rule XIII.

* July 7, 1954, 83-2, Record, p. 9917; Sept. 16, 1968, 90-2, Record, p. 26909; Feb. 26, 1973, 93–1, Record (daily), pp. S 3356-57; see also June 2, 1947, 80-1, Record, p. 6126; Nov. 29, 1943, 78-1, Record, pp. 10081, 10082.

8 Nov. 30, 1943, 78–1, Record, p. 10109.

Feb. 26, 1973, 93-1, Record, (daily), pp. S3356-57; see June 2, 1947, 80-1, Record, p. 6126.

13 See June 29, 1965, 89-1, Record, p. 15108.

ordering the engrossment and third reading has. first been reconsidered. If the rejection of a joint resolution is reconsidered, an amendment to it is not in order unless the votes ordering the engrossment and third reading are also reconsidered.16

The vote on an amendment may be reconsidered, the amendment rejected, and a motion to reconsider that vote may be tabled;" but if one such motion is entered and laid on the table, another is not in order except by unanimous consent.18

By unanimous consent an amendment or amendments may be reconsidered separately or en bloc after the time limit for entering the motion to reconsider has expired.1o When an amendment is reconsidered it is before the Senate de novo.20

The Senate having agreed to reconsider a resolution for an investigation, the Presiding Officer held in order an amendment in the nature of a substitute reversing the previous action of the Senate on a perfecting amendment authorizing the investigation to be made by a standing committee instead of a select committee.21

For the effect of a motion to strike out an amendment already agreed to, together with other portions of the bill, without reconsidering the vote on the amendment agreed to, see "Amendments," "Strike Out, etc.," pp. 52–54.

A committee amendment may be reconsidered under a unanimous consent request for the specific purpose of offering a certain amendment only."

Amendments to Motion To Reconsider:

A motion to reconsider is not amendable and an amendment thereto providing that a bill shall be taken up at a certain time and proceeded with until disposed of is not in order,23 nor is a substitute for a motion to reconsider in order.24

15 Mar. 19, 1934, 73-2, Record, p. 4818.

15 May 22, 1934, 73–2, Record, p. 9241.

"Mar. 21 and 22, 1939, 76–1, Journal, pp. 182–185.

18 See Mar. 7, 1940, 76-3, Record, p. 2474.

Oct. 10, 1942, 77-2, Record, p. 8031; see also Apr. 17, 1950, 81-2, Record, pp. 5268, 5273.

Calendar Call, Motions To Reconsider During:

A motion to reconsider does not come up on a call of the Calendar 25 nor is a motion to proceed to the consideration of a motion to reconsider in order while the Senate is considering unobjected-to bills on the Calendar.

In 1954, it was held that a motion to reconsider the vote by which a joint resolution failed to pass is not subject to debate at the time it is entered when the Senate is considering a call of the Calendar, but a Senator could use the five minutes he is entitled to on a bill to discuss the same."

The consideration of a motion to reconsider the vote on the passage of a bill, which, at the time of such passage was not stricken from the Calendar, is not in crder when such a bill is reached on the Calendar call.28

Cloture:

See "Reconsideration of Proposition Acted on Under Cloture,” p. 219.

Conference Reports, Reconsideration of:

See "Concur," pp. 89-90; "Reconsider," pp. 316–317:

Conference Requested-Bill Reconsidered:

See "Amendments Between Houses, Reconsideration of," p. 697. Consideration of Bill Reconsidered:

A motion to reconsider the vote taking up a bill having been agreed to, the question then recurs on the original motion to proceed to its consideration."

Consideration of Motion To Reconsider:

Libros

Senate Procedure: Precedents and Practices