Senate Rule XIV Procedures for Placing Measures Directly on the Senate Calendar

^Pr^ep^ar^{ed f}^o^r^M^e^m^b^ers^an^d^Com^mⁱ^t^t^ees^of^C^ong^r^e^ss

hen a Senator introduces a bill or joint resolution, the measure is often referred to
committee, pursuant to provisions of Senate Rules XIV, XVII, and XXV. When the
House informs the Senate that it has passed a bill or joint resolution that was W

introduced in the House, the measure is also often similarly referred to a Senate committee.
(Senate rules contain procedures for processing concurrent and simple resolutions, which are not
covered in this report. See especially Rule XIV, para. 6.)
Senate Rule XIV, para. 2 requires that bills and resolutions have three readings before passage,
and that they be read twice before being referred to committee. (The “third reading” occurs before
a vote on final passage.) Although a Senator may demand that the readings occur on three
different legislative days under paragraph 2, bills and joint resolutions may be read twice on the
same day “for reference” (referral) if there is no objection (Rule XIV, para. 3). Most bills and
resolutions are read twice (understood in practice to occur by unanimous consent) and referred to
committee on the same day that they are introduced by a Senator or received from the House.
The Senate may, however, use provisions of Senate Rule XIV to bypass potential referral of a bill
or joint resolution to a Senate committee, and have the measure placed directly on the Senate
Calendar of Business. The calendar’s General Orders section lists measures eligible for Senate
floor consideration.
Broadly, the two purposes of preventing the referral of a bill or joint resolution to a committee
and placing it directly on the calendar are: (1) to facilitate the full Senate’s opportunity to
consider the measure; or (2) to bypass a committee’s potential inaction or, to the sponsor,
potential hostile action. While placing a bill or joint resolution directly on the calendar does not
guarantee that the full Senate will ever consider it, the measure is available for floor consideration
and certain procedural steps, such as committee reporting, and procedural requirements, such as
the two-day availability of a committee report, may be obviated.
Senate Rule XIV, para. 4, states: “... and every bill and joint resolution introduced on leave, and
every bill and joint resolution of the House of Representatives which shall have received a first
and second reading without being referred to a committee, shall, if objection be made to further
proceeding thereon, be placed on the Calendar.” Therefore, through objection, a bill or joint
resolution after two readings is prevented from being referred to committee and is placed directly
on the calendar. It is usually the majority leader, or his designee, acting on his own or at the
request of any other Senator, who objects to “further proceeding”—committee referral—on the
measure.
For example, this procedure was used to place directly on the calendar S. 287. On January 12,
2007, while the Senate was debating another measure, the presiding officer recognized the
majority leader for this colloquy:
^{Mr. R}^E^ID^{. I u}ⁿ^d^ers^t^an^{d S}^.^287,ⁱⁿ^t^r^odu^{ced earl}ⁱ^e^{r t}^oday^by^S^eⁿ^a^t^o^r^K^eⁿⁿ^e^dy^an^d^o^t^h^e^r^s^,ⁱ^s^a^t
^th^{e d}^e^sk^{. I}^as^k^f^o^r^its^fⁱ^r^s^{t r}^eadⁱⁿ^g^.
^T^h^{e P}^R^ESI^D^I^{NG OFFI}^CER.^T^h^{e cler}^k^w^{ill r}^e^p^o^r^{t th}^{e b}^{ill b}^y^title.
^(A^{bill (S. 287) to}^proh^{ibit th}^{e u}^s^{e of}^fuⁿ^d^s^f^o^r^an^es^calatioⁿ^of^{United States}^m^ilitar^y^f^o^rces
ⁱⁿ^{Iraq abov}^{e t}^h^{e n}^u^m^b^ers^e^xⁱ^s^tⁱⁿ^g^as^o^f^Jan^u^a^r^y^{9, 2007.)}

^{Mr. R}^E^{ID. I n}^o^w^as^k^f^o^{r its}^s^e^con^d^readin^g^bu^{t obj}^{ect to m}^y^o^wⁿ^requ^es^t.
^T^h^{e P}^R^{ESIDING OF}^FICE^R.^Ob^j^ectioⁿ^is^h^eard^.^T^h^{e b}^ill^wⁱ^{ll receiv}^e^it^s^secoⁿ^d^readⁱⁿ^g^oⁿ
^th^{e n}^e^x^t^le^gⁱ^s^l^ativ^{e d}^a^y^.
In the next edition of the calendar on January 16, this action was recorded in the section Bills and
Joint Resolutions Read the First Time. The measure was held at the desk.
Since objection had been heard to the second reading, the presiding officer recognized Senator
Ken Salazar, the majority leader’s designee, the next legislative day, January 16, during the
Senate’s conduct of morning business:
^{Mr. SALAZAR}^.^Mr.^P^r^es^iden^{t, I u}ⁿ^d^ers^t^an^{d S. 287}^is^{at th}^{e des}^k^an^{d du}^{e f}^o^{r a s}^econ^d
^readin^g^.
^T^h^{e P}^R^ESI^D^I^{NG OFFI}^CER.^T^h^{e Sen}^a^to^r^{is co}^r^r^ect.^T^h^{e cler}^k^w^{ill state t}^h^{e b}^{ill b}^y^ti^tle.
^(T^h^e^legⁱ^s^l^ati^v^{e clerk}^{read as}^f^o^llo^w^s^:^A^bill^{(S. 287) to pr}^oh^{ibit th}^e^u^s^{e of}^fuⁿ^d^s^f^o^{r an}
^es^calation^o^f^Uⁿ^ited^States^mⁱ^l^itar^y^f^o^rcesⁱⁿ^{Iraq abov}^{e th}^e^num^bers^exⁱ^s^tiⁿ^g^as^o^f^J^a^nu^ar^y
^{9, 20}^07.)
^Mr^{. SALAZAR. Mr}^{. P}^r^esid^en^{t, I}^o^b^j^e^{ct to}^an^y^f^u^r^t^h^e^r^p^r^o^cee^dⁱⁿ^g^wⁱ^t^h^r^e^sp^{ect to}^th^{e b}^{ill [}ⁱⁿ
^{order t}^o^{place it on}^th^{e calen}^{dar u}ⁿ^d^{er th}^{e prov}^is^ioⁿ^s^of^r^u^le^XIV].
^T^h^{e P}^R^{ESIDING OFFICER.}^Ob^j^ectioⁿ^{is h}^eard^.^T^h^{e b}^{ill w}ⁱ^{ll b}^e^p^l^aced^oⁿ^th^{e calen}^d^a^r.
S. 287 had received its second reading, but there was objection to further proceeding on it. The
presiding officer, under Rule XIV, ordered that the bill be placed on the Senate Calendar. In the
calendar beginning January 17, S. 287 appeared in the section General Orders, with other
measures available for floor consideration.
Bills and joint resolutions are also sometimes placed on the calendar by unanimous consent. (For
more information, see CRS Report RS22299, Routes to the Senate Floor: Rule XIV and
Unanimous Consent, by Michael L. Koempel.)
^Mich^{ael L}^.^Koe^m^pel
^Senⁱ^o^r^Sp^{ecialist i}ⁿ^Am^er^icaⁿ^Natioⁿ^a^{l Go}^v^e^rⁿ^m^eⁿ^t
^m^k^oe^m^p^el^@^c^rs^.l^oc.g^ov^{, 7-}⁰¹⁶⁵