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91_HR0034
LRB9102130REfg
1 HOUSE RESOLUTION
2 RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
3 NINETY-FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
4 the following are adopted as the Rules of the House of
5 Representatives of the Ninety-first General Assembly:
6 ARTICLE I
7 ORGANIZATION
8 (House Rule 1)
9 1. Election of the Speaker.
10 (a) At the first meeting of the House of each General
11 Assembly, the Secretary of State shall convene the House at
12 12:00 noon, designate a Temporary Clerk of the House, and
13 preside during the nomination and election of the Speaker.
14 As the first item of business each day before the election of
15 the Speaker, the Secretary of State shall order the Temporary
16 Clerk to call the roll of the members to establish the
17 presence of a quorum as required by the Constitution. If a
18 majority of those elected are not present, the House shall
19 stand adjourned until the next calendar day, excepting
20 weekends, at the hour prescribed in Rule 29. If a quorum of
21 members elected is present, the Secretary of State shall then
22 call for nominations of members for the Office of Speaker.
23 All nominations require a second. When the nominations are
24 completed, the Secretary of State shall direct the Temporary
25 Clerk to call the roll of the members to elect the Speaker.
26 (b) The election of the Speaker requires the affirmative
27 vote of a majority of those elected. Debate is not in order
28 following nominations and preceding or during the vote.
29 (c) No legislative measure may be considered and no
30 committees may be appointed or meet before the election of
31 the Speaker.
32 (d) When a vacancy in the Office of Speaker occurs, the
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1 foregoing procedure shall be employed to elect a new Speaker;
2 when the Secretary of State is of a political party other
3 than that of the majority caucus, however, the Majority
4 Leader shall preside during the nomination and election of
5 the successor Speaker. No legislative measures, other than
6 for the nomination and election of a successor Speaker, may
7 be considered by the House during a vacancy in the Office of
8 Speaker.
9 (House Rule 2)
10 2. Election of the Minority Leader.
11 (a) The House shall elect a Minority Leader in a manner
12 consistent with the laws of Illinois. The Minority Leader is
13 the leader of the numerically strongest political party other
14 than the party to which the Speaker belongs.
15 (b) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
16 vote of 71 members elected.
17 (House Rule 3)
18 3. Majority and Minority Leadership.
19 (a) The Speaker and the Minority Leader shall appoint
20 from within their respective caucuses the members of the
21 Majority and Minority Leaderships as allowed by law.
22 (b) Appointments are effective upon being filed with the
23 Clerk and remain effective at the pleasure of the Speaker and
24 Minority Leader, respectively, or until a vacancy occurs by
25 reason of resignation or because a leader has ceased to be a
26 Representative. Successor leaders shall be appointed in the
27 same manner as their predecessors. Leaders have those powers
28 delegated to them by the Speaker or Minority Leader, as the
29 case may be.
30 (House Rule 4)
31 4. The Speaker.
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1 (a) The Speaker has those powers conferred upon him or
2 her by the Constitution, the laws of Illinois, and any
3 motions or resolutions adopted by the House or jointly by the
4 House and Senate.
5 (b) Except as otherwise provided by law, the Speaker is
6 the chief administrative officer of the House and has those
7 powers necessary to carry out those functions. The Speaker
8 may delegate administrative duties as he or she deems
9 appropriate.
10 (c) The duties of the Speaker include the following:
11 (1) To preside at all sessions of the House,
12 although the Speaker may call on any member to preside
13 temporarily as Presiding Officer.
14 (2) To open the session at the time at which the
15 House is to meet by taking the chair and calling the
16 members to order. The Speaker may call on any member to
17 open the session as Presiding Officer.
18 (3) To announce the business before the House in
19 the order upon which it is to be acted. The Presiding
20 Officer shall perform this duty during the period that he
21 or she is presiding.
22 (4) To recognize those members entitled to the
23 floor.
24 (5) To state and put to a vote all questions that
25 are regularly moved or that necessarily arise in the
26 course of the proceedings, and to announce the result of
27 the vote.
28 (6) To preserve order and decorum.
29 (7) To decide all points of order, subject to
30 appeal, and to speak on these points in preference to
31 other members.
32 (8) To inform the House when necessary, or when any
33 question is raised, on any point of order or practice
34 pertinent to the pending business.
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1 (9) To sign or authenticate all acts, proceedings,
2 or orders of the House. All writs, warrants, and
3 subpoenae issued by order of the House, or any of its
4 committees, shall be signed by the Speaker and attested
5 by the Clerk.
6 (10) To sign all bills passed by both chambers of
7 the General Assembly to certify that the procedural
8 requirements for passage have been met.
9 (11) To have general supervision, including the
10 duty to protect the security and safety, of the House
11 Chamber, galleries, and adjoining and connecting hallways
12 and passages, including the power to clear them when
13 necessary. The House Chamber shall not be used without
14 permission of the Speaker.
15 (12) To have general supervision of the Clerk and
16 his or her assistants, the Doorkeeper and his or her
17 assistants, the majority caucus staff, the
18 parliamentarians, and all employees of the House except
19 the minority caucus staff.
20 (13) To determine the number of majority caucus
21 members and minority caucus members to be appointed to
22 all committees, except the Rules Committee created by
23 Rule 15, the Committee on Conflicts of Interest created
24 by Rule 71, and those committees that may be created
25 under Article XII of these Rules.
26 (14) To appoint all Chairpersons, Co-Chairpersons,
27 and Vice-Chairpersons of committees (from either the
28 majority or minority caucus), and to appoint all majority
29 caucus members of committees.
30 (15) To enforce all constitutional provisions,
31 statutes, rules, and regulations applicable to the House.
32 (16) To guide and direct the proceedings of the
33 House subject to the control and will of the members.
34 (17) To direct the Clerk to correct non-substantive
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1 errors in the Journal.
2 (18) To assign meeting places and meeting times to
3 committees and subcommittees.
4 (19) To perform any other duties assigned to the
5 Speaker by these House Rules or jointly by the House and
6 Senate.
7 (20) To decide, subject to the control and will of
8 the members, all questions relating to the priority of
9 business.
10 (21) To issue, in cooperation with the Comptroller
11 and after clearance with the United States Internal
12 Revenue Service, written regulations covering
13 administration of contingent expense allowances of
14 members of the House.
15 (22) To appoint one or more parliamentarians to
16 serve at the pleasure of the Speaker.
17 (d) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
18 vote of 71 members elected.
19 (House Rule 5)
20 5. Powers and Duties of the Minority Leader.
21 (a) The Minority Leader has those powers conferred upon
22 him or her by the Constitution, the laws of Illinois, and any
23 motions or resolutions adopted by the House or jointly by the
24 House and Senate.
25 (b) The Minority Leader shall appoint to all committees
26 the members from the minority caucus and shall designate a
27 Minority Spokesperson for each committee, except that the
28 Speaker may appoint a minority caucus member to be
29 Chairperson of a standing committee or Chairperson or
30 Co-Chairperson of a special committee.
31 (c) The Minority Leader has general supervision of the
32 minority caucus staff.
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1 (House Rule 6)
2 6. Clerk of the House.
3 (a) The House shall elect a Clerk, who may adopt
4 appropriate policies or procedures for the conduct of his or
5 her office. The Speaker is the final arbiter of any dispute
6 arising in connection with the operation of the Office of the
7 Clerk.
8 (b) The duties of the Clerk include the following:
9 (1) To have custody of all bills, papers, and
10 records of the House, which shall not be taken out of the
11 Clerk's custody except in the regular course of business
12 in the House.
13 (2) To endorse on every original bill and each copy
14 its number, the names of sponsors, the date of
15 introduction, and the several orders taken on it. When
16 reproduced, the names of the sponsors shall appear on the
17 front page of the bill in the same order they appeared
18 when introduced.
19 (3) To cause each bill to be reproduced and placed
20 on the desks of the members as soon as it is reproduced,
21 as provided in Rule 39.
22 (4) To keep the Journal of the proceedings of the
23 House and, under the direction of the Speaker, correct
24 errors in the Journal.
25 (5) To keep the transcripts of the debates of the
26 House and make them available to the public under
27 reasonable conditions.
28 (6) To keep the necessary records for the House and
29 its committees and to prepare the House Calendar for each
30 legislative day.
31 (7) To examine all House Bills and Constitutional
32 Amendment Resolutions following Second Reading and before
33 final passage for the purpose of correcting any
34 non-substantive errors, and to report the same back to
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1 the Speaker promptly; to supervise the enrolling and
2 engrossing of bills and resolutions, subject to the
3 direction of the Speaker; and to attest to the passage or
4 adoption of legislative measures, and to note thereon the
5 date of final House action. Any corrections made by the
6 Clerk and approved by the Speaker shall be entered on the
7 Journal.
8 (8) To transmit bills, other documents, and
9 messages to the Senate and secure a receipt therefor, and
10 to receive from the Senate bills, other documents, and
11 messages and give receipt therefor.
12 (9) To file with the Secretary of State debate
13 transcripts and House documents as required by law.
14 (10) To attend every session of the House; record
15 the roll; and read all bills, resolutions, and other
16 papers as directed by the Speaker. Bills shall be read
17 by title only.
18 (11) To supervise the Assistant Clerk, the
19 Doorkeeper, pages, messengers, committee clerks, and
20 other employees of his or her office.
21 (12) To establish the format for all documents,
22 forms, and committee records and tapes prepared by
23 committee clerks.
24 (13) Subject to approval by the Speaker, to
25 establish standards of decorum and other standards
26 regarding written statements filed under Rule 53.
27 (14) To perform other duties assigned by the
28 Speaker.
29 (House Rule 7)
30 7. Assistant Clerk of the House. The House shall, in a
31 manner consistent with the laws of Illinois, elect an
32 Assistant Clerk, who shall perform those duties assigned by
33 the Clerk.
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1 (House Rule 8)
2 8. Doorkeeper. The House shall elect a Doorkeeper who
3 shall perform those duties assigned by law, or as ordered by
4 the Speaker, Presiding Officer, or Clerk. Those duties shall
5 include the following:
6 (1) To attend the House during its sessions and
7 execute the commands of the Speaker or Presiding Officer.
8 (2) To maintain order among spectators admitted
9 into the House Chamber, galleries, and adjoining or
10 connecting hallways and passages.
11 (3) To take proper measures to prevent interruption
12 of the House.
13 (4) To remove unruly persons from the House
14 Chamber, galleries, and adjoining and connecting hallways
15 and passages.
16 (5) To ensure that only authorized persons have
17 access to the House Chamber, galleries, and adjoining
18 hallways and passages, subject to the direction of the
19 Speaker.
20 (6) To supervise any Assistant Doorkeepers.
21 (7) To perform other duties assigned by the
22 Speaker.
23 (House Rule 9)
24 9. Schedule.
25 (a) The Speaker shall periodically establish a schedule
26 of days on which the House shall convene in regular,
27 perfunctory, and veto session, with that schedule subject to
28 revision at the discretion of the Speaker.
29 (b) The Speaker may schedule or reschedule deadlines at
30 his or her discretion for any action on any category of
31 legislative measure as the Speaker deems appropriate,
32 including deadlines for the following legislative actions:
33 (1) Final day to request bills from the Legislative
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1 Reference Bureau.
2 (2) Final day for introduction of bills.
3 (3) Final day for standing committees of the House
4 to report House bills, except House appropriation bills.
5 (4) Final day for standing committees of the House
6 to report House appropriation bills.
7 (5) Final day for Third Reading and passage of
8 House bills, except House appropriation bills.
9 (6) Final day for Third Reading and passage of
10 House appropriation bills.
11 (7) Final day for standing committees of the House
12 to report Senate appropriation bills.
13 (8) Final day for standing committees of the House
14 to report Senate bills, except appropriation bills.
15 (9) Final day for special committees to report to
16 the House.
17 (10) Final day for Third Reading and passage of
18 Senate appropriation bills.
19 (11) Final day for Third Reading and passage of
20 Senate bills, except appropriation bills.
21 (12) Final day for consideration of joint action
22 motions and conference committee reports.
23 (c) The Speaker may schedule or reschedule any necessary
24 deadlines for legislative action during any special session
25 of the House. The Speaker may establish a Weekly Order of
26 Business or a Daily Order of Business setting forth the date
27 and approximate time at which specific legislative measures
28 may be considered by the House. The Weekly Order of Business
29 or Daily Order of Business is effective upon being filed by
30 the Speaker with the Clerk and takes the place of the
31 standing order of business for the amount of time necessary
32 for its completion. Nothing in this Rule, however, limits
33 the Speaker's or Presiding Officer's powers under Rule
34 4(c)(3) or Rule 43(a).
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1 (d) The foregoing deadlines, or any revisions to those
2 deadlines, are effective upon being filed by the Speaker with
3 the Clerk. The Clerk shall journalize those deadlines.
4 (e) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
5 vote of 71 members elected.
6 ARTICLE II
7 COMMITTEES
8 (House Rule 10)
9 10. Committees.
10 (a) The committees of the House are: (i) the standing
11 committees listed in Rule 11; (ii) the special committees
12 created under Rule 13; (iii) subcommittees created by
13 standing committees or by special committees; (iv) the Rules
14 Committee created under Rule 15; (v) the Committee on
15 Conflicts of Interest created under Rule 71; (vi) the
16 Election Contest or Qualifications Challenge Committees, if
17 any, created under Article X; and (vii) any committees
18 created under Article XII. Subcommittees may not create
19 subcommittees.
20 (b) Except as otherwise provided in this Rule, all
21 committees, except special committees created under Rule 13,
22 shall have a Chairperson and Minority Spokesperson, who may
23 be of the same political party. Special committees created
24 under Rule 13 that have Co-Chairpersons from different
25 political parties shall not have a Minority Spokesperson.
26 Each committee may have a Vice-Chairperson appointed by the
27 Speaker. Committees of the Whole shall consist of all
28 Representatives. The number of majority caucus members and
29 minority caucus members of all committees, except the Rules
30 Committee created under Rule 15, the Committee on Conflicts
31 of Interest created under Rule 71, and any committees that
32 may be created under Article XII, shall be determined by the
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1 Speaker. The Speaker shall file a notice with the Clerk
2 setting forth the number of majority caucus and minority
3 caucus members of each committee, which shall be journalized.
4 A member may be temporarily replaced on a committee due to
5 illness or if the member is otherwise unavailable. All
6 leaders are non-voting ex-officio members of each standing
7 committee and each special committee, except that the leaders
8 may also be appointed to standing committees or special
9 committees as voting members. The Speaker may also appoint
10 any member of the majority caucus, and the Minority Leader
11 may appoint any member of the minority caucus, as a
12 non-voting ex-officio member of any standing committee or
13 special committee.
14 (c) The Chairperson of a committee has the authority to
15 call the committee to order, designate the order in which
16 bills and resolutions posted for hearing shall be taken up,
17 order a record vote to be taken on each legislative measure
18 called for a vote, preserve order and decorum during
19 committee meetings, establish procedural rules (subject to
20 approval by the Speaker) governing the presentation and
21 consideration of legislative measures, and generally
22 supervise the affairs of the committee. The Vice-Chairperson
23 of a committee or other member of the committee from the
24 majority caucus may preside over its meetings in the absence
25 or at the direction of the Chairperson. In the case of
26 special committees with Co-Chairpersons from different
27 political parties, the "Chairperson" for purposes of this
28 Rule is the Co-Chairperson from the majority caucus.
29 (d) A vacancy on a committee, or in the position of
30 Chairperson, Co-Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, or Minority
31 Spokesperson on a committee, exists when a member resigns
32 from the position or ceases to be a Representative.
33 Resignations shall be made in writing to the Clerk, who shall
34 promptly notify the Speaker and Minority Leader. Absent
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1 concurrence by a majority of those elected, except as
2 otherwise provided in Rule 15 and except in connection with
3 temporary replacements under Rule 10(b), no member who
4 resigns from a committee shall be re-appointed to that
5 committee for the remainder of the term. Replacement members
6 shall be of the same political party as that of the member
7 who resigns, and shall be appointed in the same manner as the
8 original appointment, except that in the case of the
9 resignation of a Chairperson or Co-Chairperson, the
10 replacement member need not be from the same political party.
11 In the case of vacancies on subcommittees that were created
12 by committees, the parent committee shall fill the vacancy in
13 the same manner as the original appointment.
14 (e) The Chairperson of a committee has the authority to
15 call meetings of that committee, subject to the approval of
16 the Speaker. In the case of special committees with
17 Co-Chairpersons from different political parties, the
18 Co-Chairperson from the majority caucus has the authority to
19 call meetings of the special committee, subject to the
20 approval of the Speaker. Except as otherwise provided by
21 these Rules, committee meetings shall be convened in
22 accordance with Rule 21.
23 (f) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
24 vote of 71 members elected.
25 (House Rule 11)
26 11. Standing Committees. The Standing Committees of the
27 House are as follows:
28 AGING
29 AGRICULTURE & CONSERVATION
30 APPROPRIATIONS-ELEMENTARY & SECONDARY EDUCATION
31 APPROPRIATIONS-GENERAL SERVICES & GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT
32 APPROPRIATIONS-HIGHER EDUCATION
33 APPROPRIATIONS-HUMAN SERVICES
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1 APPROPRIATIONS-PUBLIC SAFETY
2 CHILD SUPPORT ENFORCEMENT
3 CHILDREN & YOUTH
4 COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY
5 CONSTITUTIONAL OFFICERS
6 CONSUMER PROTECTION & PRODUCT REGULATION
7 ELECTIONS & CAMPAIGN REFORM
8 ELEMENTARY & SECONDARY EDUCATION
9 ENVIRONMENT & ENERGY
10 EXECUTIVE
11 FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
12 HEALTH CARE AVAILABILITY & ACCESS
13 HIGHER EDUCATION
14 HUMAN SERVICES
15 INSURANCE
16 JUDICIARY I-CIVIL LAW
17 JUDICIARY II-CRIMINAL LAW
18 LABOR & COMMERCE
19 LOCAL GOVERNMENT
20 PERSONNEL & PENSIONS
21 PUBLIC UTILITIES
22 REGISTRATION & REGULATION
23 REVENUE
24 STATE GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION
25 TOURISM
26 TRANSPORTATION & MOTOR VEHICLES
27 URBAN REVITALIZATION
28 VETERANS' AFFAIRS
29 (House Rule 12)
30 12. Members and Officers of Standing Committees. The
31 members of each standing committee shall be appointed for the
32 term by the Speaker and the Minority Leader. The Speaker
33 shall appoint the Chairperson (from either the majority or
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1 minority caucus) and the remaining standing committee members
2 of the majority caucus (one of whom the Speaker may designate
3 as Vice-Chairperson), and the Minority Leader shall appoint
4 the remaining standing committee members of the minority
5 caucus (one of whom the Minority Leader may designate as
6 Minority Spokesperson). Appointments are effective upon the
7 delivery of appropriate correspondence from the respective
8 leader to the Clerk, regardless of whether the House is in
9 session, and shall remain effective for the duration of the
10 term, subject to Rule 10(d). The Clerk shall journalize the
11 appointments. Committees may conduct business when a
12 majority of the total number of committee members has been
13 appointed.
14 (House Rule 13)
15 13. Special Committees.
16 (a) The following Special Committees are created:
17 ELECTRIC UTILITY DEREGULATION
18 JUDICIAL REAPPORTIONMENT
19 MENTAL HEALTH & PATIENT ABUSE
20 PRISON MANAGEMENT REFORM
21 PROSECUTORIAL MISCONDUCT
22 STATE PROCUREMENT
23 TOBACCO SETTLEMENT PROCEEDS DISTRIBUTION
24 The Speaker may create additional special committees by
25 filing a notice of the creation of the special committee with
26 the Clerk. The notice creating an additional special
27 committee shall specify the subject matter of the special
28 committee and the number of members to be appointed.
29 (b) The Speaker shall determine the number of majority
30 and minority caucus members to be appointed to special
31 committees in accordance with Rule 10(b). The Speaker, at
32 his or her discretion, shall appoint a Chairperson or
33 Co-Chairpersons. The Speaker may appoint any member as a
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1 Chairperson or Co-Chairperson of a special committee. If the
2 Chairperson or Co-Chairperson is a member of the majority or
3 minority leadership or the Chairperson or Minority
4 Spokesperson of a standing committee, the member shall
5 receive no additional stipend or compensation for serving as
6 Chairperson or Co-Chairperson of the special committee. For
7 purposes of Section 1 of the General Assembly Compensation
8 Act (25 ILCS 115/1), (i) a special committee under these
9 rules is considered a "select committee" and (ii) one
10 Co-Chairperson of a special committee shall be considered
11 "Chairman" and the other shall be considered "Minority
12 Spokesman". The appointed members of special committees shall
13 be designated by the Speaker and the Minority Leader in a
14 like manner as provided in Rule 12 with respect to standing
15 committees, except that if the special committee has
16 Co-Chairpersons from different political parties, the special
17 committee shall not have a Minority Spokesperson. In that
18 case, the Minority Leader shall appoint the minority caucus
19 members to the special committee, except the Co-Chairperson
20 from the minority caucus who shall be appointed by the
21 Speaker. The Speaker may establish a reporting date during
22 the term for each special committee by filing a notice of the
23 reporting date with the Clerk. Unless an earlier date is
24 specified by the notice, special committees expire at the end
25 of the term.
26 (c) Special committees are empowered to conduct business
27 when a majority of the total number of committee members has
28 been appointed.
29 (d) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
30 vote of 71 members elected.
31 (House Rule 14)
32 14. Subcommittees.
33 (a) The following subcommittees are created:
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1 (1) Subcommittee on Smart Growth as a subcommittee
2 of the Urban Revitalization Committee.
3 (2) Subcommittee on Reform of the Department of
4 Children and Family Services as a subcommittee of the
5 Children & Youth Committee.
6 (3) Subcommittee on Abandoned Oil Wells as a
7 subcommittee of the Environment & Energy Committee.
8 (4) Subcommittee on Chapter 1 Spending as a
9 subcommittee of the Appropriations-Elementary & Secondary
10 Education Committee.
11 Members of a subcommittee created under this subsection (a)
12 must be members of the parent committee. The number of
13 members, the number from each caucus, the manner of
14 appointment, and the reporting date, if any, shall be
15 determined by the Committee Chairperson by filing a written
16 statement with the committee clerk. Subcommittees created
17 under this subsection (a) expire at the end of the term.
18 (b) In addition, the Chairperson of a standing committee
19 or a special committee may create a subcommittee by filing a
20 notice with the committee clerk. The number of majority
21 caucus and minority caucus members to be appointed to a
22 subcommittee shall be determined by the Committee
23 Chairperson, and filed with the committee clerk. In the case
24 of special committees with Co-Chairpersons from different
25 political parties, the creation of subcommittees and the
26 number of majority caucus and minority caucus members to be
27 appointed to the subcommittee shall be determined by the
28 Co-Chairperson from the majority caucus. Members of
29 subcommittees must be members of the parent committee, and
30 shall be appointed in the manner determined by the committee
31 Chairperson, or in the case of special committees with
32 Co-Chairpersons from different political parties, by the
33 Co-Chairperson from the majority caucus.
34 The notice creating a subcommittee shall specify the
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1 subject matter of the subcommittee and the number of members
2 to be appointed, and may specify a reporting date during the
3 term. Unless an earlier date is specified by the notice,
4 subcommittees expire at the end of the term.
5 (c) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
6 vote of 71 members elected.
7 (House Rule 15)
8 15. Rules Committee.
9 (a) The Rules Committee is created as a permanent
10 committee. The Rules Committee shall consist of 5 members, 3
11 appointed by the Speaker and 2 appointed by the Minority
12 Leader. The Speaker and the Minority Leader are each
13 eligible to be appointed to the Rules Committee. The Rules
14 Committee may conduct business when a majority of the total
15 number of its members has been appointed.
16 (b) The majority caucus members of the Rules Committee
17 shall serve at the pleasure of the Speaker, and the minority
18 caucus members shall serve at the pleasure of the Minority
19 Leader. Appointments shall be by notice filed with the
20 Clerk, and shall be effective for the balance of the term or
21 until a replacement appointment is made, whichever first
22 occurs. Appointments take effect upon filing with the Clerk,
23 regardless of whether the House is in session.
24 Notwithstanding any other provision of these Rules, any
25 Representative who is replaced on the Rules Committee may be
26 re-appointed to the Rules Committee without concurrence of
27 the House.
28 (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of these Rules,
29 the Rules Committee may meet upon reasonable public notice
30 that includes a statement of the subjects to be considered.
31 All legislative measures pending before the Rules Committee
32 are eligible for consideration at any of its meetings, and
33 all of those legislative measures are deemed posted for
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1 hearing by the Rules Committee for all of its meetings.
2 (d) Upon concurrence of a majority of those appointed,
3 the Rules Committee may advance any legislative measure
4 pending before it to the House, without referral to another
5 committee; the Rules Committee, however, shall not so report
6 any bill that has never been before a standing committee or a
7 special committee of the House.
8 (e) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
9 vote of 71 members elected.
10 (House Rule 16)
11 16. Referrals of Resolutions and Reorganization Orders.
12 (a) All resolutions, except adjournment resolutions and
13 resolutions considered under subsection (b) or (c) of this
14 Rule, after being initially read by the Clerk, are
15 automatically referred to the Rules Committee, which may
16 thereafter refer any resolution before it to the House or to
17 a standing committee or special committee. No resolution,
18 except adjournment resolutions and resolutions considered
19 under subsection (b) or (c) of this Rule, may be considered
20 by the House unless referred to the House by the Rules
21 Committee under Rule 18, or by a standing committee or
22 special committee. An adjournment resolution is subject to
23 Rule 66.
24 (b) Any member may file a congratulatory resolution for
25 consideration by the House. The Principal Sponsor of each
26 congratulatory resolution shall pay a reasonable fee,
27 determined by the Clerk with the approval of the Speaker, to
28 offset the actual cost of producing the congratulatory
29 resolution. The fee may be paid from the office allowance
30 provided by Section 4 of the General Assembly Compensation
31 Act, or from any other funds available to the member. Upon
32 agreement of the Speaker and the Minority Leader,
33 congratulatory resolutions may be immediately considered and
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1 adopted by the House without referral to the Rules Committee.
2 Those resolutions may be adopted as a group by a single
3 motion. Congratulatory resolutions shall be entered on the
4 Journal only by number, sponsorship, and subject. The
5 provisions of this subsection requiring the Principal Sponsor
6 to pay a reasonable fee may not be suspended.
7 (c) Death resolutions in memory of former members of the
8 General Assembly and former constitutional officers, upon
9 introduction, may be immediately considered by the House
10 without referral to the Rules Committee. Those resolutions
11 shall be entered on the Journal in full.
12 (d) Executive reorganization orders of the Governor
13 issued under Article V, Sec. 11 of the Constitution, upon
14 being read into the record by the Clerk, are automatically
15 referred to the Rules Committee for its referral to a
16 standing committee or a special committee, which may issue a
17 recommendation to the House with respect to the Executive
18 Order. The House may disapprove of an Executive Order only by
19 resolution adopted by a majority of those elected; no such
20 resolution is in order until a standing committee or a
21 special committee has reported to the House on the executive
22 reorganization, or until the Executive Order has been
23 discharged under Rule 58.
24 (House Rule 17)
25 17. Sponsorship by the Rules Committee. The Rules
26 Committee may consider any legislative measure referred to it
27 under these Rules, by motion or resolution, or by order of
28 the Presiding Officer upon initial reading. The Rules
29 Committee may, with the concurrence of a majority of those
30 appointed, sponsor motions or resolutions; notwithstanding
31 any other provision of these Rules, any motion or resolution
32 sponsored by the Rules Committee may be immediately
33 considered by the House without referral to a committee. Any
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1 such motion or resolution shall be assigned standard debate
2 status, subject to Rule 52.
3 (House Rule 18)
4 18. Referrals to Committees.
5 (a) All House Bills and Senate Bills, after being
6 initially read by the Clerk, are automatically referred to
7 the Rules Committee.
8 (b) During odd-numbered years, the Rules Committee shall
9 thereafter refer any such bill before it to a standing
10 committee or a special committee within 3 legislative days.
11 During even-numbered years, the Rules Committee shall refer
12 to a standing committee or a special committee only
13 appropriation bills implementing the budget and bills deemed
14 by the Rules Committee, by the affirmative vote of a majority
15 appointed, to be of an emergency nature or to be of
16 substantial importance to the operation of government. This
17 subsection (b) applies equally to House Bills and Senate
18 Bills introduced into or received by the House.
19 (c) A standing committee or a special committee may
20 refer a subject matter or a legislative measure pending in
21 that committee to a subcommittee of that committee.
22 (d) All legislative measures favorably reported by a
23 standing committee or a special committee, or discharged from
24 a standing committee or a special committee under Rule 58,
25 shall be referred to the House and placed on the appropriate
26 order of business, which shall appear on the daily calendar.
27 All legislative measures, except bills or resolutions on the
28 Consent Calendar, bills or resolutions assigned short debate
29 status by a standing committee or special committee, and
30 floor amendments, so referred are automatically assigned
31 standard debate status, subject to Rule 52.
32 (e) All floor amendments, joint action motions for final
33 action, and conference committee reports, upon filing with
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1 the Clerk, are automatically referred to the Rules Committee.
2 The Rules Committee may refer any floor amendment, joint
3 action motion for final action, or conference committee
4 report to the House or to a standing committee or a special
5 committee for its review and consideration (in those
6 instances, and notwithstanding any other provision of these
7 Rules, the standing committee or special committee may hold a
8 hearing on and consider those legislative measures pursuant
9 to a one-hour advance notice). Any floor amendment, joint
10 action motion for final action, or conference committee
11 report that is not referred to the House by the Rules
12 Committee is out of order, except that any floor amendment,
13 joint action motion for final action, or conference committee
14 report favorably approved by a standing committee or a
15 special committee is deemed referred to the House by the
16 Rules Committee for purposes of this Rule. All joint action
17 motions for final action and conference committee reports so
18 referred are automatically assigned standard debate status,
19 subject to Rule 52. Floor amendments referred to the House
20 under this Rule are automatically assigned amendment debate
21 status.
22 (f) The Rules Committee may at any time refer or
23 re-refer a legislative measure from a committee to a
24 Committee of the Whole or to any other committee.
25 (g) Legislative measures may be discharged from the
26 Rules Committee only by unanimous consent of the House. Any
27 bill discharged from the Rules Committee shall be placed on
28 the order of Second Reading and assigned standard debate
29 status, subject to Rule 52.
30 (h) Except for those provisions that require unanimous
31 consent, this Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
32 vote of 71 members elected.
33 (House Rule 19)
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1 19. Re-Referrals to the Rules Committee.
2 (a) All legislative measures that fail to meet the
3 applicable deadline established under Rule 9 for reporting to
4 the House by a standing committee or a special committee, for
5 Third Reading and passage, or for consideration of joint
6 action motions and conference committee reports are
7 automatically re-referred to the Rules Committee unless: (i)
8 the deadline has been suspended or revised by the Speaker,
9 with re-referral to the Rules Committee to occur if the bill
10 has not been reported to the House in accordance with a
11 revised deadline; or (ii) the Rules Committee has issued a
12 written exception to the Clerk with respect to a particular
13 bill before the reporting deadline, with re-referral to
14 occur, if at all, in accordance with the written exception.
15 (b) All legislative measures pending before the House or
16 any of its committees are automatically re-referred to the
17 Rules Committee on the 31st consecutive day that the House
18 has not convened for session unless: (i) any deadline
19 applicable to the bill or resolution that has been designated
20 by the Speaker under Rule 9 exceeds 31 days, with re-referral
21 to occur, if at all, in accordance with that deadline; (ii)
22 this Rule is suspended under Rule 67; or (iii) the Rules
23 Committee, by the affirmative vote of a majority appointed,
24 issues a written exception to the Clerk before that 31st day.
25 (House Rule 20)
26 20. Reporting by Committees. Committees shall report to
27 the House, and subcommittees shall report to their parent
28 committees.
29 (House Rule 21)
30 21. Notice.
31 (a) Except as provided in Rule 18 or unless this Rule is
32 suspended under Rule 67, no standing committee or special
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1 committee may consider or conduct a hearing with respect to a
2 legislative measure absent notice first being given as
3 follows:
4 (1) The Chairperson of the committee, or the
5 Co-Chairperson from the majority caucus of a special
6 committee, shall, no later than 6 days before any
7 proposed hearing, post a notice on the House bulletin
8 board identifying each legislative measure, other than a
9 committee amendment upon initial consideration under Rule
10 40, that may be considered during that hearing. The
11 notice shall contain the day, hour, and place of the
12 hearing.
13 (2) Meetings of the Rules Committee may be called
14 under Rule 15; meetings of the standing committees and
15 special committees to consider floor amendments, joint
16 action motions for final consideration, and conference
17 committee reports may be called under Rule 18.
18 (3) The Chairperson, or Co-Chairperson from the
19 majority caucus of a special committee, shall, in advance
20 of a committee hearing, notify all Principal Sponsors of
21 legislative measures posted for that hearing of the date,
22 time, and place of hearing. When practical, the Clerk
23 shall include a notice of all scheduled hearings,
24 together with all posted bills and resolutions, in the
25 Daily Calendar of the House. Regardless of whether a
26 particular legislative measure or subject matter has been
27 posted for hearing, it is in order for a committee during
28 any of its meetings to refer a subject matter or
29 legislative measure pending before it to a subcommittee
30 of that committee.
31 (b) Other than the Rules Committee, no committee may
32 meet during any session of the House, and no commission
33 created by Illinois law that has legislative membership may
34 meet during any session of the House.
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1 (c) Regardless of whether notice has been previously
2 given, it is always in order for a committee to table any
3 legislative measure pending before it when the Principal
4 Sponsor so requests.
5 (d) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
6 vote of 71 members elected.
7 (House Rule 22)
8 22. Committee Procedure.
9 (a) A committee may consider any legislative measure
10 referred to it, except as provided in subsection (b), and may
11 make with respect to that legislative measure one of the
12 following reports to the House or to the parent committee, as
13 appropriate:
14 (1) that the bill "do pass";
15 (2) that the bill "do not pass";
16 (3) that the bill "do pass as amended";
17 (4) that the bill "do not pass as amended";
18 (5) that the resolution "be adopted";
19 (6) that the resolution "be not adopted";
20 (7) that the resolution "be adopted as amended";
21 (8) that the resolution "be not adopted as
22 amended";
23 (9) that the floor amendment, joint action motion,
24 or conference committee report referred by the Rules
25 Committee "be adopted";
26 (10) that the floor amendment, joint action motion,
27 or conference committee report referred by the Rules
28 Committee "be not adopted";
29 (11) "without recommendation"; or
30 (12) "tabled".
31 Any of the foregoing reports may be made only upon the
32 concurrence of a majority of those appointed. All
33 legislative measures reported "do pass", "do pass as
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1 amended", "be adopted", or "be adopted as amended" are
2 favorably reported to the House. Except as otherwise provided
3 by these Rules, any legislative measure referred or
4 re-referred to a committee and not reported under this Rule
5 shall remain in that committee.
6 (b) No bill or committee amendment that provides for an
7 appropriation of money from the State Treasury may be
8 considered by an Appropriations Committee unless the bill or
9 committee amendment is limited to appropriations to a single
10 department, office, or institution; this provision does not
11 apply to floor amendments, joint action motions, or
12 conference committee reports.
13 No bill that provides for an appropriation of money from
14 the State Treasury may be considered for passage by the House
15 unless it has first been favorably reported by an
16 Appropriations Committee or:
17 (1) the bill was discharged from an Appropriations
18 Committee under Rule 58;
19 (2) the bill was exempted from this requirement by
20 a majority of those appointed to the Rules Committee; or
21 (3) this Rule was suspended under Rule 67.
22 (c) The Chairperson of each committee, or Co-Chairperson
23 from the majority caucus of a special committee, shall keep,
24 or cause to be kept, a record in which there shall be
25 entered:
26 (1) The time and place of each meeting of the
27 committee.
28 (2) The attendance of committee members at each
29 meeting.
30 (3) The votes cast by the committee members on all
31 legislative measures acted on by the committee.
32 (4) The "Record of Committee Witness" forms
33 executed by each person appearing or registering in each
34 committee meeting, which shall include identification of
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1 the witness, the person, group, or firm represented by
2 appearance and the capacity in which the representation
3 is made (if the person is representing someone other than
4 himself or herself), his or her position on the
5 legislation under consideration, and the nature of his or
6 her desired testimony.
7 (5) A tape recording of the proceedings.
8 (6) Such additional information as may be requested
9 by the Clerk.
10 (d) The committee Chairperson, or the Co-Chairperson
11 from the majority caucus of a special committee, shall file
12 with the Clerk, along with every bill or resolution reported
13 upon, a written report containing such information as
14 required by the Clerk. The Clerk may adopt forms, policies,
15 and procedures with respect to the preparation, filing, and
16 maintenance of the reports.
17 (e) When a committee fails to report a legislative
18 measure pending before it to the House, or when a committee
19 fails to hold a public hearing on a legislative measure
20 pending before it, the exclusive means to bring that
21 legislative measure directly before the House for its
22 consideration is as provided in Rule 18 or Rule 58.
23 (f) No bill or resolution may be called for a vote in a
24 standing committee or special committee in the absence of the
25 Principal Sponsor. The Chairperson of a committee or a chief
26 co-sponsor may present a bill or resolution in committee with
27 the approval of the Principal Sponsor when the committee
28 consents. In the case of special committees with
29 Co-Chairpersons from different political parties, the
30 "Chairperson" means the Co-Chairperson from the majority
31 caucus. This subsection may not be suspended.
32 (g) No bill or resolution may be voted on more than
33 twice in any committee on motions to report the bill or
34 resolution favorably, or to reconsider the vote by which the
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1 committee adopted a motion to report the bill or resolution
2 unfavorably. A bill or resolution having failed to receive a
3 favorable recommendation after 2 such record votes shall be
4 automatically reported with the appropriate unfavorable
5 recommendation.
6 (h) A bill or resolution shall be given short debate
7 status by report of the committee if the bill or resolution
8 was favorably reported by a three-fifths vote of the members
9 present. Bills and resolutions receiving favorable reports
10 may be placed upon the Consent Calendar as provided in Rule
11 42.
12 (i) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
13 vote of 71 members elected.
14 (House Rule 23)
15 23. Witnesses and Subpoenae.
16 (a) Standing committees may compel, by subpoena, any
17 person to appear and give testimony as a witness before the
18 standing committee and produce papers, documents, and other
19 materials relating to a legislative measure pending before
20 the standing committee.
21 (b) Special committees may compel, by subpoena, any
22 person to appear and give testimony before the special
23 committee and produce papers, documents, and other materials
24 relating to the subject matter for which the special
25 committee was created or relating to a legislative measure
26 pending before the special committee.
27 (c) Subpoenae issued under this Rule must be issued and
28 signed by the Chairperson of the committee and must comply
29 with Rule 4(c)(9). In the case of special committees with
30 Co-Chairpersons from different political parties, the term
31 "Chairperson" for purposes of this Rule means the
32 Co-Chairperson from the majority caucus.
33 (d) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
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1 vote of 71 members elected.
2 (House Rule 24)
3 24. Committee Reports.
4 (a) All bills favorably reported to the House from a
5 committee, or with respect to which a committee has been
6 discharged, shall be reported to the House and shall be
7 placed on the order of Second Reading and assigned standard
8 debate status, subject to Rule 52. Bills reported to the
9 House from committee "do not pass", "do not pass as amended",
10 "without recommendation", or "tabled" shall lie on the table.
11 (b) All floor amendments, joint action motions for final
12 action, and conference committee reports favorably reported
13 from a standing committee or special committee shall be
14 referred to the House and eligible for consideration when the
15 House is on an appropriate order of business. Amendments to
16 bills that are not on the order of Second Reading are out of
17 order. All floor amendments, joint action motions for final
18 action, and conference committee reports that are reported to
19 the House from committee "be not adopted", "without
20 recommendation", or "tabled" shall lie on the table. When the
21 Rules Committee refers a floor amendment, joint action motion
22 for final action, or conference committee report to a
23 standing committee or a special committee that thereafter
24 favorably reports that legislative measure to the House, the
25 legislative measure shall be referred to the House, assigned
26 standard debate status subject to Rule 52 (except floor
27 amendments, which shall be assigned amendment debate status),
28 and eligible for consideration when the House is on an
29 appropriate order of business.
30 (c) All resolutions favorably reported to the House from
31 the Rules Committee, a standing committee, or a special
32 committee, or with respect to which the committee has been
33 discharged, shall be referred to the House and placed on the
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1 order of Resolutions and assigned standard debate status,
2 subject to Rule 52. All resolutions that are reported to the
3 House from committee "be not adopted", "be not adopted as
4 amended", "without recommendation", or "tabled" shall lie on
5 the table. Floor amendments to resolutions are subject to
6 the same procedure applicable to floor amendments to bills.
7 (House Rule 25)
8 25. Suspension of Posting Requirements.
9 (a) A motion to suspend the posting requirements of Rule
10 21 must be in writing, specifying the committee and the bills
11 or resolutions to which the motion applies, be carried on the
12 calendar before it may be taken up by the House, and adopted
13 by the affirmative vote of 60 members elected. The calendar
14 requirements of this Rule may be suspended only by unanimous
15 consent. The requirement that the motion be in writing may
16 not be suspended.
17 (b) Except for those provisions that may not be
18 suspended or that require unanimous consent, this Rule may be
19 suspended only by the affirmative vote of 71 members elected.
20 (House Rule 26)
21 26. Rights of the Public.
22 (a) If a bill or resolution has been properly set for
23 hearing and witnesses are present and wish to testify, the
24 committee shall hear the witnesses at the scheduled time and
25 place.
26 (b) Any person wishing to offer testimony to a committee
27 hearing of a bill or resolution shall be given a reasonable
28 opportunity to do so, orally or in writing. The Chairperson
29 may set time limits for presentation of oral testimony. No
30 testimony in writing is required of any witness, but any
31 witness may submit a statement in writing for the committee
32 record. All persons offering testimony shall complete a
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1 "Record of Committee Witness" form and submit it to the
2 committee clerk before testifying. In the case of special
3 committees with Co-Chairpersons from different political
4 parties, the "Chairperson" means the Co-Chairperson from the
5 majority caucus.
6 (c) A motion to foreclose further oral testimony by
7 witnesses on a matter before a committee may be adopted only
8 by a three-fifths majority of those voting on the motion. No
9 such motion is in order until both proponents and opponents
10 requesting to be heard have been given a fair and substantial
11 opportunity to express their positions. No one shall be
12 prohibited from filing for the record "Record of Committee
13 Witness" forms or written statements while the matter is
14 before the committee.
15 (d) Meetings of committees and subcommittees shall be
16 open to the public. Committee meetings of the House may be
17 closed to the public if two-thirds of the members elected to
18 the House determine, by a record vote, that the public
19 interest so requires.
20 (e) This Rule cannot be suspended retroactively.
21 (House Rule 27)
22 27. Smoking. Smoking is prohibited at any official
23 committee hearing, and no committee member, staff member, or
24 member of the public is permitted to smoke in the room in
25 which the hearing is being held.
26 ARTICLE III
27 CONDUCT OF BUSINESS
28 (House Rule 28)
29 28. Sessions of the House.
30 (a) The House is in session whenever it convenes in
31 perfunctory session, regular session, veto session, or
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1 special session. Members are entitled to per diem expense
2 reimbursements only on those regular, veto, and special
3 session days that they are in attendance at the House.
4 Attendance by members is not required or recorded on
5 perfunctory session days.
6 (b) Regular and veto session days shall be scheduled
7 with notice by the Speaker under Rule 9. Special session days
8 shall be scheduled in accordance with the Constitution and
9 laws of Illinois.
10 (c) The Speaker may schedule perfunctory session days
11 during which the Clerk may read into the House record any
12 legislative measure. Committees may meet and may consider and
13 act upon legislative measures during a perfunctory session
14 day, and the Clerk may receive and read committee reports
15 into the House record during a perfunctory day. Except for
16 automatic referral under these Rules, no further action may
17 be taken by the House with respect to a legislative measure
18 during a perfunctory session day.
19 (House Rule 29)
20 29. Hour of Meeting. Unless otherwise ordered by the
21 Speaker or Presiding Officer or as provided in Rule 1, the
22 House shall regularly convene at 12:30 p.m. on the first day
23 of each week that the House convenes in regular, veto, or
24 special session and shall convene at noon on all other days.
25 (House Rule 30)
26 30. Access to the House Floor.
27 (a) Except as otherwise provided in these Rules, only
28 the following persons shall be admitted to the House while it
29 is in session: members and officers of the General Assembly;
30 elected officers of the executive branch; justices of the
31 Supreme Court; the designated aide to the Governor, except as
32 limited by the Speaker; the parliamentarian; majority staff
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1 members and minority staff members, except as limited by the
2 Speaker or Presiding Officer; former members, except as
3 limited by the Speaker or prohibited under subsection (d);
4 and employees of the Legislative Reference Bureau, except as
5 limited by the Speaker. Representatives of the press, while
6 the House is in session, may have access to the galleries and
7 places allotted to them by the Speaker. No person is
8 entitled to the floor unless appropriately attired. Only
9 members of the General Assembly may use telephones at the
10 members' desks or in the telephone booths at the rear of the
11 House Chamber. Smoking is prohibited on the floor of the
12 House and in the House galleries.
13 (b) On days during which the House is in session, the
14 Doorkeeper shall clear the floor of all persons not entitled
15 to access to the floor 15 minutes before the convening time,
16 and the Doorkeeper shall enforce all other provisions of this
17 Rule.
18 (c) The Speaker may authorize the admission to the floor
19 of any other person, except as prohibited under subsection
20 (d).
21 (d) No person who is directly or indirectly interested
22 in defeating or promoting any pending legislative measure, if
23 required to be registered as a lobbyist, shall be allowed
24 access to the floor of the House at any time during the
25 session.
26 (e) When he or she deems it necessary for the
27 preservation of order, the Presiding Officer may by order
28 remove any person from the floor of the House. A
29 Representative may be removed from the floor only under
30 Article XI or XII of these Rules.
31 (House Rule 31)
32 31. Standing Order of Business. Unless otherwise
33 determined by the Presiding Officer, the standing daily order
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1 of business of the House is as follows:
2 (1) Call to Order, Invocation, Pledge of
3 Allegiance, and Roll Call.
4 (2) Approval of the Journal.
5 (3) Reading of House Bills a first time.
6 (4) Reports from committees, with reports from the
7 Rules Committee ordinarily made at any time.
8 (5) Presentation of Resolutions, Petitions, and
9 Messages.
10 (6) Introduction of House Bills.
11 (7) Messages from the Senate, not including reading
12 Senate Bills a first time.
13 (8) Reading of House Bills a second time.
14 (9) Reading of House Bills a third time.
15 (10) Reading of Senate Bills a third time.
16 (11) Reading of Senate Bills a second time.
17 (12) Reading of Senate Bills a first time.
18 (13) House Bills on the Order of Concurrence.
19 (14) Senate Bills on the Order of Non-Concurrence.
20 (15) Conference Committee Reports.
21 (16) Motions in Writing.
22 (17) Constitutional Amendment Resolutions.
23 (18) Motions with respect to Vetoes.
24 (19) Consideration of Resolutions.
25 (20) Motions to Discharge Committee.
26 (21) Motions to Take from the Table.
27 (22) Motions to Suspend the Rules.
28 (23) Consideration of Bills on the Order of
29 Postponed Consideration.
30 (House Rule 32)
31 32. Quorum.
32 (a) A majority of those elected constitutes a quorum of
33 the House, and a majority of those appointed constitutes a
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1 quorum of a committee, but a smaller number may adjourn from
2 day to day, or recess for less than one day, and compel the
3 attendance of absent members. The attendance of absent
4 members may also be compelled by order of the Speaker.
5 (b) The question of the presence of a quorum in any
6 committee may not be raised on consideration of a legislative
7 measure by the House unless the same question was previously
8 raised before the committee with respect to that legislative
9 measure.
10 (House Rule 33)
11 33. Approval of the Journal. The Speaker or his or her
12 designee shall periodically examine and report to the House
13 any corrections he or she deems should be made in the Journal
14 before it is approved. If those corrections are approved by
15 the House, they shall be made by the Clerk.
16 (House Rule 34)
17 34. Executive Sessions. The sessions of the House shall
18 be open to the public. Sessions and committee meetings of
19 the House may be closed to the public if two-thirds of the
20 members elected determine, by a record vote, that the public
21 interest so requires.
22 (House Rule 35)
23 35. Length of Adjournment. The House, without the
24 consent of the Senate, shall not adjourn for more than 3 days
25 or to a place other than where the 2 chambers of the General
26 Assembly are sitting. The House is in session on any day in
27 which it convenes in perfunctory session, regular session,
28 veto session, or special session.
29 (House Rule 36)
30 36. Transcript of the House. Nothing contained in the
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1 official transcript of the House shall be changed or expunged
2 except by written request of a Representative to the Clerk
3 and Speaker, and that request may be approved only by the
4 record vote of 71 members elected.
5 ARTICLE IV
6 BILLS AND AMENDMENTS
7 (House Rule 37)
8 37. Bills.
9 (a) A bill may be introduced in the House by sponsorship
10 of one or more members of the House, whose names shall be on
11 the reproduced copies of the bills, in the House Journal, and
12 in the Legislative Digest. The Principal Sponsor shall be the
13 first name to appear on the bill and may be joined by no more
14 than 4 chief co-sponsors with the approval of the Principal
15 Sponsor; other co-sponsors shall be separated from the
16 Principal Sponsor and any chief co-sponsors by a comma. The
17 Principal Sponsor may change the sponsorship of a bill to
18 that of one or more other Representatives, or to that of the
19 standing committee or special committee to which the bill was
20 referred or from which the bill was reported. Such change
21 may be made at any time the bill is pending before the House
22 or any of its committees by filing a notice with the Clerk.
23 This subsection may not be suspended.
24 (b) The Principal Sponsor of a bill controls that bill.
25 A standing committee-sponsored bill is controlled by the
26 Chairperson of the committee, who for purposes of these Rules
27 is deemed the Principal Sponsor. A special
28 committee-sponsored bill is controlled by the Chairperson, or
29 if Co-Chairpersons have been appointed, by the Co-Chairperson
30 from the majority caucus, who for purposes of these Rules is
31 deemed the Principal Sponsor. Committee-sponsored bills may
32 not have individual co-sponsors.
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1 (c) The Senate sponsor of a bill originating in the
2 Senate may request substitute House sponsorship of that bill
3 by filing a notice with the Clerk; such a notice is
4 automatically referred to the Rules Committee and deemed
5 adopted if approved by the Rules Committee. If disapproved
6 by the Rules Committee, the notice shall lie on the table. If
7 the Rules Committee fails to act on a notice, that notice may
8 be discharged by unanimous consent.
9 (d) All bills introduced in the House shall be read by
10 title a first time, ordered reproduced, and automatically
11 referred to the Rules Committee in accordance with Rule 18.
12 When a Senate Bill is received, it shall be read by title,
13 ordered reproduced, and placed on the order of Senate Bills
14 on first reading; after being read a first time, it is
15 automatically referred to the Rules Committee in accordance
16 with Rule 18.
17 (e) All bills introduced into the House shall be
18 accompanied by 9 copies. Any bill that amends a statute
19 shall indicate the particular changes in the following
20 manner:
21 (1) All new matter shall be underscored.
22 (2) All matter that is to be omitted or superseded
23 shall be shown crossed with a line.
24 (f) No bill shall be passed by the House except on a
25 record vote of a majority of those elected. A bill that has
26 lost and has not been reconsidered may not thereafter be
27 revived.
28 (House Rule 38)
29 38. Reading and Reproduction of Bills. Every bill shall
30 be read by title on 3 different days before passage by the
31 House, and the bill and all amendments adopted to it shall be
32 reproduced, under Rule 39, before the vote is taken on its
33 final passage.
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1 (House Rule 39)
2 39. Reproduction and Distribution. The Clerk shall, as
3 soon as any bill is reproduced, cause the bill to be placed
4 upon the desks of the members. Reproduction and distribution
5 may be done electronically, or the Clerk may establish a
6 method that any member may use to secure a copy of any bill.
7 (House Rule 40)
8 40. Amendments.
9 (a) An amendment to a bill may be adopted by a standing
10 committee or special committee when the bill is before that
11 committee. An amendment to a bill may be adopted by the House
12 when a bill is on the order of Second Reading if: (i) the
13 Rules Committee has referred the floor amendment to the House
14 for consideration under Rule 18; or (ii) a standing committee
15 or special committee has referred the floor amendment to the
16 House. All amendments must be in writing. All committee
17 amendments that have been timely filed, as determined by the
18 Chairperson, shall be considered by the committee or a
19 subcommittee of that committee prior to consideration by the
20 committee of the bill to which the amendment relates. All
21 amendments still pending in a committee upon the passage or
22 defeat of a bill on Third Reading are automatically tabled.
23 (b) Except as otherwise provided in these Rules,
24 committee amendments may be offered only by the Principal
25 Sponsor or a member of the committee while the affected bill
26 is before that committee, and shall be adopted by a majority
27 of those appointed. Floor amendments may be offered only by
28 a Representative while the bill is on the order of Second
29 Reading, subject to Rule 18, and shall be adopted by a
30 majority vote of the House. A committee amendment may be the
31 subject of a motion to "do adopt" or "do not adopt". A
32 committee amendment may be adopted only by a successful
33 motion to "do adopt". The Chairperson of a committee may
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1 refer any committee amendment to a subcommittee of that
2 committee.
3 (c) Committee amendments shall be filed with the
4 Chairperson of the committee, and are in order only when
5 sufficient copies have been filed to provide each member of
6 the committee with a copy (which may be done in the same
7 manner as distribution of bills under Rule 39) and 9
8 additional copies for the Chairperson. Floor amendments shall
9 be filed with the Clerk, and are in order only when 9 copies
10 have been filed.
11 (d) The Clerk shall have reproduced all adopted
12 committee amendments that come before the House. The Clerk
13 shall also have reproduced all floor amendments referred to
14 the House by a committee. No floor amendment may be adopted
15 by the House unless it has been reproduced and placed on the
16 members' desks in the same manner as for bills under Rule 39.
17 (e) No floor amendment is in order unless it has been
18 first referred to the House for consideration by the Rules
19 Committee under Rule 18, or by a standing committee or
20 special committee.
21 (f) Amendments that propose to alter any existing law
22 shall conform to the requirements of Rule 37(e).
23 (g) If a committee reports a bill "do pass as amended",
24 the committee amendments are deemed adopted by the committee
25 action and shall be reproduced and placed on the members'
26 desks (which may be done in the same manner as provided for
27 bills under Rule 39) before the bill may be read a second
28 time.
29 (h) In the case of special committees with
30 Co-Chairpersons from different political parties, the
31 "Chairperson" for the purposes of this Rule is the
32 Co-Chairperson from the majority caucus.
33 (House Rule 41)
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1 41. Fiscal and Other Notes.
2 (a) The House shall comply with all Illinois laws
3 requiring fiscal or other notes. The notes shall be filed
4 with the Clerk, who shall affix each note with a time stamp
5 endorsing the date and time received, and attached to the
6 original of the bill and available for inspection by the
7 members. As soon as practical, the Clerk shall provide a copy
8 of the note to the Legislative Reference Bureau, which shall
9 provide an informative summary of the note in subsequent
10 issues of the Legislative Digest.
11 (b) No bill authorizing or directing the conveyance by
12 the State of any particular interest in real estate to any
13 individual or entity other than a governmental unit or agency
14 may be voted upon in committee or upon Second Reading unless
15 a certified appraisal of the value of the interest has been
16 filed. The appraisal shall be filed with the clerk of the
17 committee to which the bill is assigned, and shall be part of
18 the permanent committee record, unless the bill is advanced
19 without reference to committee, or discharged under Rule 58,
20 in which event the appraisal shall be filed with the Clerk of
21 the House.
22 (House Rule 42)
23 42. Consent Calendar.
24 (a) The Clerk shall include a Consent Calendar on the
25 daily calendar and designate it as a separate calendar. The
26 Consent Calendar shall contain 3 orders of business: Consent
27 Calendar - Second Reading, Consent Calendar - Third Reading,
28 and Consent Calendar - Resolutions. Within each order of
29 business, bills or resolutions shall be listed in separate
30 groups according to the number of required days each has been
31 on that order of business on the Consent Calendar. No more
32 than 80 bills and resolutions shall be listed in each group.
33 All bills or resolutions to which amendments have been
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1 adopted shall be so designated.
2 (b) No debate is in order regarding any item on the
3 Consent Calendar. The Presiding Officer, however, shall
4 allow a reasonable time for questions from the floor and
5 answers to those questions. No amendment from the floor is
6 in order regarding any bill or resolution on the Consent
7 Calendar.
8 (c) A bill on the Consent Calendar shall stand for 2
9 legislative days on the order of Consent Calendar - Second
10 Reading, and for at least 2 legislative days on the order of
11 Consent Calendar - Third Reading, before a vote on the final
12 passage may be taken. Resolutions on the Consent Calendar
13 shall stand for at least 4 legislative days before a vote on
14 adoption may be taken. One record vote on final passage
15 shall be taken on those bills called for final passage.
16 Immediately before a vote on the bills on the Consent
17 Calendar, the Presiding Officer shall call to the attention
18 of the members the fact that the next legislative action will
19 be the vote on the Consent Calendar.
20 (d) A bill or resolution may be placed on the Consent
21 Calendar by report of a standing committee upon a motion
22 adopted by a unanimous vote of the members present. For
23 purposes of this subsection (d), a unanimous vote on the
24 motion is a vote with no member voting nay.
25 (e) No bill regarding revenue or appropriations may be
26 placed on the Consent Calendar. No resolution requiring more
27 than 60 affirmative votes for adoption and no bill requiring
28 more than 60 affirmative votes for passage by the House may
29 be placed on the Consent Calendar.
30 (f) The Speaker and the Minority Leader shall each
31 appoint 3 members who may challenge the presence of any bill
32 or resolution on the Consent Calendar. Before a vote on
33 final passage of any item on the Consent Calendar, an item
34 shall be removed from the Consent Calendar if (i) 4 or more
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1 members, (ii) the Principal Sponsor of the bill or
2 resolution, or (iii) one or more of the appointed challengers
3 file with the Clerk written objections to the presence of the
4 bill or resolution on the Consent Calendar. Any bill or
5 resolution so removed may not be placed thereafter on the
6 Consent Calendar during that session of the General Assembly,
7 unless the member or members who objected to the presence of
8 the bill or resolution on the Consent Calendar consent in
9 writing to restoration of the bill or resolution on the
10 Consent Calendar.
11 Any bill removed from the Consent Calendar shall stand on
12 the order of Second Reading with short debate status, subject
13 to Rule 52, and any resolution so removed shall stand on the
14 order of Resolutions with short debate status, subject to
15 Rule 52.
16 (House Rule 43)
17 43. Changing Order of Business.
18 (a) Any order of business may be changed at any time by
19 the Speaker or Presiding Officer.
20 (b) Any order of business may be changed at any time
21 upon the motion of any member, supported by 5 additional
22 members, if the motion is adopted by an affirmative vote of
23 71 members elected.
24 (c) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
25 vote of 71 members elected.
26 (House Rule 44)
27 44. Special Orders; Rules Committee.
28 (a) A special order of business may be set by the Rules
29 Committee or by the Speaker. The Principal Sponsor of a bill
30 or resolution must consent to the placement of the bill or
31 resolution on a special order. A special order shall fix the
32 day to which it applies and the matters to be included. The
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1 Speaker, or the Rules Committee by a vote of a majority of
2 the members appointed, may establish time limits for a
3 special order and may establish limitations on debate during
4 a special order (notwithstanding Rule 52), in which event the
5 allotted time shall be fairly divided between proponents and
6 opponents of the legislation to be considered. A special
7 order of business takes the place of the standing order for
8 such time as may be necessary for its completion. Only
9 matters that may otherwise properly be before the House may
10 be included in a special order.
11 (b) A special order shall appear on the Daily Calendar
12 for 3 legislative days. This subsection (b) may be
13 suspended only by the affirmative vote of 71 members elected.
14 (c) A special order may be suspended, amended, or
15 modified by motion adopted by an affirmative vote of 60
16 members. A special order shall be suspended by a written
17 objection signed by 3 members of the Rules Committee and
18 filed during the first legislative day on which the special
19 order appears on the calendar.
20 ARTICLE V
21 RESOLUTIONS AND CERTIFICATES OF RECOGNITION
22 (House Rule 45)
23 45. Resolutions.
24 (a) A resolution may be introduced in the House by
25 sponsorship of one or more members of the House, and the
26 names of all sponsors shall be included in the House Journal
27 and in the Legislative Digest. Each resolution introduced
28 shall be accompanied by 9 copies. Consideration of
29 resolutions shall be governed by Rule 16 and Rule 66.
30 (b) Any resolution calling for the expenditure of State
31 funds may be adopted only by a record vote of a majority of
32 those elected.
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1 (House Rule 46)
2 46. State Constitutional Amendments. All resolutions
3 introduced in the House proposing amendments to the Illinois
4 Constitution shall be reproduced and distributed in the same
5 manner in which bills are reproduced and distributed under
6 Rule 39. Every such resolution that originated in the Senate
7 and is presented to the House shall be ordered reproduced and
8 distributed in like manner. No such resolution may be adopted
9 unless read in full in its final form on 3 different days.
10 Amendments are in order only on First Reading and Second
11 Reading.
12 (House Rule 47)
13 47. Federal Constitutional Amendments and Constitutional
14 Conventions. The affirmative vote of 71 of the members
15 elected is required to adopt any resolution:
16 (1) requesting Congress to call a federal
17 constitutional convention;
18 (2) ratifying a proposed amendment to the
19 Constitution of the United States; or
20 (3) calling a State convention to ratify a proposed
21 amendment to the Constitution of the United States.
22 (House Rule 48)
23 48. Certificates of Recognition. Any member may sponsor
24 a certificate of recognition to be signed by the Speaker and
25 attested by the Clerk to recognize any person, organization,
26 or event worthy of public commendation. The form of the
27 Certificate of Recognition shall be determined by the Clerk
28 with the approval of the Speaker.
29 ARTICLE VI
30 PARLIAMENTARY PRACTICE
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1 (House Rule 49)
2 49. Voting. The Presiding Officer shall put all
3 questions distinctly, as follows: "All those in favor vote
4 AYE, and those opposed vote NAY." No member may vote on any
5 question before the House unless on the floor before the vote
6 is announced. No member of a committee may vote except in
7 person at the time of the call of the committee vote. Any
8 vote of the House shall be by record vote whenever 5
9 Representatives shall so request or whenever the Presiding
10 Officer shall so order.
11 (House Rule 50)
12 50. Announcing a Record Vote. When a record vote is
13 requested, the Presiding Officer shall put the question and
14 then announce to the House: "The voting is open." While the
15 vote is being taken, the Presiding Officer shall state: "Have
16 all voted who wish?" The voting is closed when the Presiding
17 Officer announces: "Take the Record." The Presiding
18 Officer, unless an intervening motion to postpone
19 consideration by the Principal Sponsor is made, shall then
20 announce the results of the record vote. After the record is
21 taken, no member may vote, change his or her vote, or remove
22 his or her vote as recorded.
23 (House Rule 51)
24 51. Decorum.
25 (a) When any member is about to speak to the House, he
26 or she shall rise and address the Presiding Officer as
27 "Speaker". The Presiding Officer, upon recognizing the
28 member, shall address him or her by name, and thereupon the
29 engineer in charge of operating the microphones in the House
30 shall give the use of the microphone to the member who has
31 been so recognized. The member in speaking shall confine
32 himself or herself to the subject matter under discussion and
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1 avoid personalities.
2 (b) Questions affecting the rights, reputation, and
3 conduct of members of the House in their representative
4 capacity are questions of personal privilege. A matter of
5 personal explanation does not constitute a question of
6 personal privilege.
7 (c) If 2 or more members rise at once, the Presiding
8 Officer shall name the member who is to speak first.
9 (d) No person shall give any signs of approbation or
10 disapprobation while the House is in session.
11 (e) Recognition of guests by any member is prohibited,
12 except that the Speaker or Presiding Officer may recognize an
13 honored guest.
14 (f) While the Presiding Officer is putting a question,
15 no member shall leave or walk across the House Chamber. When
16 a member is addressing the House, no member or other person
17 entitled to the floor shall entertain private discourse or
18 pass between the member speaking and the Presiding Officer.
19 (g) In case of any disturbance or disorderly conduct,
20 the Speaker or Presiding Officer may order that the lobby,
21 gallery, or hallways adjoining the House Chamber be cleared.
22 (h) No literature may be distributed on the House floor.
23 (i) No member may be absent from a session of the House
24 unless he or she has leave or is sick or his or her absence
25 is unavoidable. The switch to the electrical roll call
26 recording equipment located on the desk of any member who has
27 been excused or is absent shall be locked by the Clerk and
28 shall not be unlocked until the member returns and files with
29 the Clerk a request to be shown as present on the quorum roll
30 call.
31 (House Rule 52)
32 52. Debate.
33 (a) All legislative measures, except those legislative
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1 measures placed on the Consent Calendar under Rule 42, are
2 subject to a debate status as follows:
3 (1) Short Debate: Debate is limited to a 2-minute
4 presentation by the Principal Sponsor or a member
5 designated by the Principal Sponsor, a 2-minute
6 presentation by a member in response, and one minute for
7 the Principal Sponsor to close debate, or yield to other
8 members; provided that at the request of 7 members before
9 the close of debate, the debate status shall be opened to
10 standard debate;
11 (2) Standard Debate: Debate is limited to a
12 5-minute presentation by the Principal Sponsor or a
13 member designated by the Principal Sponsor, debate by
14 each of 2 additional proponents of the legislative
15 measure and by 3 members in response to the legislative
16 measure, and 3 minutes for the Principal Sponsor to close
17 debate, or yield to other members;
18 (3) Extended Debate: Debate is limited to a
19 5-minute presentation by the Principal Sponsor or a
20 member designated by the Principal Sponsor, debate by
21 each of 4 proponents of the legislative measure and 5
22 members in response, and 5 minutes for the Principal
23 Sponsor to close debate, or yield to other members;
24 (4) Unlimited Debate: Debate shall consist of a
25 10-minute presentation by the Principal Sponsor or a
26 member designated by the Principal Sponsor, debate by
27 each proponent and member in response who seeks
28 recognition, and 5 minutes for the Principal Sponsor to
29 close debate, or yield to other members; or
30 (5) Amendment Debate: Debate on floor amendments
31 referred to the House from a committee, or discharged
32 from a committee, is limited to a 3-minute presentation
33 by the Principal Sponsor, or a member designated by the
34 Principal Sponsor, debate by one proponent, debate by
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1 each of 2 members in response, and 3 minutes for the
2 Principal Sponsor to close debate, or yield to other
3 members.
4 No debate is in order on bills or resolutions on the
5 order of First Reading or Second Reading, except for debate
6 on floor amendments as provided in this Rule.
7 (b) All legislative measures, except floor amendments,
8 referred to the House from a committee, or discharged from a
9 committee, are automatically assigned standard debate status,
10 subject to subsection (c) of this Rule, except those assigned
11 to the Consent Calendar or short debate status by a standing
12 committee or a special committee. All floor amendments
13 referred to the House from a committee, or discharged from a
14 committee, are automatically assigned amendment debate
15 status, subject to subsection (c) of this Rule.
16 (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of these Rules
17 to the contrary, the debate status of any legislative measure
18 may be changed only (i) by the Speaker, as defined in item
19 (27) of Rule 102, by filing a notice with the Clerk, or (ii)
20 by the Rules Committee by motion approved by a majority of
21 those appointed. While a legislative measure is being
22 considered by the House, the debate status may also be
23 changed by unanimous consent. No legislative measure,
24 however, may be placed on the Consent Calendar under this
25 Rule. No legislative measure, except a floor amendment, may
26 be assigned amendment debate status under this Rule.
27 (d) The Speaker or Rules Committee, as the case may be,
28 shall notify the Clerk of any action to change the debate
29 status of any legislative measure. The Clerk shall cause
30 that information to be reflected on the Daily Calendar on
31 subsequent legislative days, provided the legislative measure
32 is still before the House.
33 (e) No member shall speak longer than 5 minutes at one
34 time or more than once on the same question except by leave
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1 of the House. The Principal Sponsor of a measure or a
2 member designated by the Principal Sponsor, however, shall be
3 allowed to open the debate and to close the debate in
4 accordance with subsection (a) of this Rule. The provisions
5 of this subsection (e) are subject to and limited by
6 subsections (a), (b), and (c) of this Rule. A member may
7 yield to another member the time allotted for the member's
8 debate.
9 (f) The Presiding Officer shall allocate the debate on
10 each legislative measure alternately, if possible, between
11 proponents and opponents of the legislative measure under
12 debate.
13 (g) This Rule may not be suspended.
14 (House Rule 53)
15 53. Written Statements.
16 (a) Any member may submit a written statement regarding
17 any bill, resolution, or floor amendment considered by the
18 House, by submitting that statement to the Clerk within one
19 legislative day or 3 business days, whichever is shorter,
20 after the day on which the bill, resolution, or floor
21 amendment to which the comments relate was considered by the
22 House. The Clerk shall affix a time stamp to each statement
23 indicating the date on which the statement was submitted.
24 Each statement shall indicate the member or members on whose
25 behalf the statement is submitted, the bill, resolution, or
26 floor amendment to which it applies, the names of any other
27 members mentioned in the statement, and the person who
28 actually submits the statement to the Clerk. Each member on
29 whose behalf a statement is submitted is under an obligation
30 to ensure that all required information, specifically
31 including the names of any other members mentioned in the
32 statement, is indicated at the time a statement is submitted.
33 Each statement shall comply with standards as may be
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1 established by the Clerk with the approval of the Speaker.
2 The standards established by the Clerk, however, shall not
3 relate to the contents of the written statement. The Clerk
4 shall maintain statements that comply with this Rule and
5 established standards in files for each bill and resolution.
6 A statement is not considered filed until the Clerk has
7 determined that it complies with this Rule and established
8 standards. The Clerk shall notify the member or members on
9 whose behalf a statement was submitted if the statement is
10 determined not to comply. Statements filed under this Rule
11 shall be considered part of the transcript and made available
12 to the public.
13 (b) If a statement mentions another member, the
14 statement shall not be considered filed until the member
15 mentioned has an opportunity to respond as a matter of
16 personal privilege. The Clerk shall notify each member who
17 is identified at the time a statement is submitted as being
18 mentioned in the statement. The member identified as
19 mentioned in the statement shall have one legislative day or
20 3 business days, whichever is shorter, after notification by
21 the Clerk in which to file a written response to the
22 statement. The original statement and any responsive
23 statement shall both be considered filed at the close of
24 business on the final day on which a response may be filed.
25 If, however, a statement is submitted mentioning another
26 member and the name of the member mentioned is not indicated
27 to the Clerk at the time of submission, the statement shall
28 be stricken at the request of the member mentioned in the
29 statement. The Clerk shall notify each member on whose
30 behalf the statement was submitted that the statement has
31 been stricken from the record.
32 (c) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
33 vote of 71 members elected.
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1 (House Rule 54)
2 54. Motions.
3 (a) The following are general rules for all motions:
4 (1) Every motion, except to adjourn, recess, or
5 postpone consideration, shall be reduced to writing if
6 ordered by the Presiding Officer. Unless otherwise
7 provided in these Rules, no second is required to any
8 motion presented to the House, or in any committee. The
9 Presiding Officer may refer any motion to the Rules
10 Committee.
11 (2) Before the House debates a motion, the
12 Presiding Officer shall state an oral motion and the
13 Clerk shall read aloud a written motion. Each motion,
14 unless otherwise provided in these Rules, is assigned
15 standard debate status, subject to Rule 52.
16 (3) After a motion is stated by the Presiding
17 Officer or read by the Clerk, it is deemed in the
18 possession of the House, but may be withdrawn at any time
19 before decision with consent of a majority of the members
20 elected.
21 (4) If a motion is divisible, any member may call
22 for a division of the question.
23 (5) Any question taken under consideration may be
24 withdrawn, postponed, or tabled by unanimous consent or,
25 if unanimous consent is denied, by a motion adopted by a
26 majority of the members elected.
27 (b) The Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
28 vote of 71 members elected.
29 (House Rule 55)
30 55. Precedence of Motions.
31 (a) When a question is under debate, no motion may be
32 entertained except:
33 (1) to adjourn to a time certain;
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1 (2) to adjourn;
2 (3) to question the presence of a quorum;
3 (4) to recess;
4 (5) to lay on the table;
5 (6) for the previous question;
6 (7) to postpone consideration;
7 (8) to commit or recommit; or
8 (9) to amend, except as otherwise provided in these
9 Rules.
10 The foregoing motions have precedence in the order in
11 which they are listed.
12 (b) During a record vote, no motion (except a motion to
13 postpone consideration) is in order until after the
14 announcement of the result of the vote.
15 (c) A motion to commit or re-commit, until it is
16 decided, precludes all amendments and debate on the main
17 question. A motion to postpone consideration, until it is
18 decided, precludes all amendments and debate on the main
19 question.
20 (House Rule 56)
21 56. Verification.
22 (a) After any record vote, except for a vote that
23 requires a specific number of affirmative votes and that has
24 not received the required votes, and before intervening
25 business, it is in order for any member to request
26 verification of the results of the record vote.
27 (b) In verifying a record vote, the Presiding Officer
28 shall instruct the Clerk to call the names of those members
29 whose votes are to be verified. The member requesting the
30 verification may thereafter identify those members he or she
31 wishes to verify. If a member does not answer, his or her
32 vote shall be stricken; the member's vote shall be restored
33 to the roll, however, if his or her presence is recognized
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1 before the Presiding Officer announces the final result of
2 the verification. The Presiding Officer shall determine the
3 presence or absence of each member whose name is called, and
4 shall then announce the results of the verification.
5 (c) While the results of any record vote are being
6 verified, it is in order for any member to announce his or
7 her presence on the floor and thereby have his or her vote
8 verified.
9 (d) A request for a verification of the affirmative and
10 negative results of a record vote may be made only once on
11 each record vote.
12 (House Rule 57)
13 57. Appealing a Ruling.
14 (a) If any appeal is taken from a ruling of the
15 Presiding Officer, the Presiding Officer shall be sustained
16 unless 71 of the members elected vote to overrule the
17 Presiding Officer. Notwithstanding Rule 52, debate on a
18 motion to appeal is limited to a 2-minute presentation by the
19 Principal Sponsor or a member designated by the Principal
20 Sponsor, a 2-minute presentation by a member in response, and
21 one-minute for the Principal Sponsor to close debate, or
22 yield to other members. A motion to appeal is not in order
23 if the House has conducted intervening business since the
24 ruling at issue was made.
25 (b) If any appeal is taken from a ruling of a committee
26 Chairperson, the Chairperson shall be sustained unless
27 three-fifths of those appointed vote to overrule the
28 Chairperson. A motion to appeal is not in order if the
29 committee has adjourned or recessed, or if intervening
30 business has occurred. In the case of special committees
31 with Co-Chairpersons from different political parties, the
32 "Chairperson" for purposes of this Rule is the Co-Chairperson
33 from the majority caucus.
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1 (c) In an appeal of a ruling of the Presiding Officer or
2 Chairperson, the question is: "Shall the ruling of the Chair
3 be sustained?"
4 (d) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
5 vote of 71 members elected.
6 (House Rule 58)
7 58. Discharge of Committee.
8 (a) Any member may move that a standing committee or a
9 special committee be discharged from consideration of any
10 legislative measure assigned to it and not reported back
11 unfavorably.
12 (b) The motion must be in writing and shall be carried
13 on the Daily Calendar for the next legislative day under the
14 order of "Motions". No action shall be taken on the motion
15 until it is on the calendar.
16 (c) If the motion receives an affirmative vote of 60
17 members, the legislative measure subject to the motion shall
18 be referred to the House and placed on the appropriate order
19 of business.
20 (d) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
21 vote of 71 members elected.
22 (House Rule 59)
23 59. Previous Question.
24 (a) A motion for the previous question may be made at
25 any time. A motion for the previous question is not
26 debatable and requires the affirmative vote of 60 members
27 elected.
28 (b) The previous question shall be stated in the
29 following form: "Shall the main question be put?" Until the
30 previous question is decided, all amendments and debate are
31 precluded. When it is decided that the main question shall
32 not be put, the main question remains under debate.
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1 (c) The effect of the main question being ordered is to
2 put an end to all debate and bring the House to a direct vote
3 on the immediately pending motion. After a motion for the
4 previous question has been approved, unless the vote on that
5 motion suggests the absence of a quorum, it is not in order
6 to move for adjournment or to make any other motion before a
7 decision on the main question.
8 (d) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
9 vote of 71 members elected.
10 (House Rule 60)
11 60. Tabling.
12 (a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d), a
13 motion to lay on the table applies only to the particular
14 proposition and is neither debatable nor amendable.
15 (b) A motion to table a bill or resolution shall
16 identify the bill or resolution by number. The Principal
17 Sponsor of a bill or resolution may, with leave of the House,
18 table that bill or resolution at any time. A motion to table
19 a committee bill that is before the House may be adopted only
20 by the affirmative vote of a majority of those elected.
21 (c) The Principal Sponsor of a bill or resolution before
22 a committee may, with leave of the committee, table the bill
23 or resolution. Upon tabling, the Chairperson of the
24 committee shall return the bill or resolution to the Clerk,
25 noting thereon that it has been tabled.
26 (d) A motion to table a committee amendment has priority
27 over a floor amendment. Motions to table amendments are
28 debatable and may be adopted by the affirmative vote of a
29 majority vote of those elected.
30 (House Rule 61)
31 61. Motion to Take from Table.
32 (a) A motion to take from the table requires the
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1 affirmative vote of a majority of those elected if the Rules
2 Committee has previously recommended that action by written
3 notice filed with the Clerk; otherwise, a motion to take from
4 the table requires the affirmative vote of 71 members
5 elected.
6 (b) A bill taken from the table shall be placed on the
7 Daily Calendar on the order on which it appeared before it
8 was tabled.
9 (c) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
10 vote of 71 members elected.
11 (House Rule 62)
12 62. Motion to Postpone Consideration. A motion to
13 postpone consideration on a bill or resolution may not be
14 made more than once on the same bill or resolution. Unless
15 otherwise provided by these Rules, a motion to postpone
16 consideration shall be granted as a matter of privilege; no
17 motion to postpone consideration is in order, however, if the
18 bill or resolution initially received a vote of fewer than 47
19 of the members elected.
20 (House Rule 63)
21 63. Motion on Different Subject. No motion or other
22 legislative measure on a subject different from that under
23 consideration shall be admitted under color of amendment.
24 (House Rule 64)
25 64. Division of Question. If the question in debate
26 contains several points, any member may have the question
27 divided. On a motion to strike out and insert, it is not in
28 order to move for a division of the question. The rejection
29 of a motion to strike out and insert one proposition does not
30 prevent a motion to strike out and insert a different
31 proposition.
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1 (House Rule 65)
2 65. Reconsideration.
3 (a) A member who voted on the prevailing side of a
4 record vote on a legislative measure still within the control
5 of the House may on the same or the following legislative
6 day move to reconsider the vote. The motion to reconsider
7 may be laid on the table without affecting the vote to which
8 it refers. When the motion to reconsider is made during the
9 last 3 days of April or any time thereafter during the
10 regular session, or at any time during a veto or special
11 session, any member may move that the vote on reconsideration
12 be taken immediately. A question that requires the
13 affirmative vote of a majority of those elected or more to
14 carry requires a majority of those elected to reconsider.
15 (b) A motion to reconsider a record vote on the adoption
16 of an amendment to a bill may be made only on Second Reading.
17 (c) If a motion to reconsider is made under this Rule
18 and the motion is later tabled, the question shall not be
19 further reconsidered. This subsection (c) may be suspended
20 only by the affirmative vote of 71 members elected.
21 (d) When a motion to reconsider is made within the time
22 prescribed by these Rules, the Clerk shall not allow the bill
23 or other subject matter of the motion to pass out of the
24 possession of the House until after the motion has been
25 decided or withdrawn. Such a motion shall be deemed rejected
26 if laid on the table.
27 (e) A Representative who voted "present" or failed to
28 vote on a question does not have the right to move for
29 reconsideration.
30 (f) Upon a motion to reconsider the vote on the final
31 passage of any bill, the affirmative vote of a majority of
32 those elected is required to reconsider.
33 (House Rule 66)
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1 66. Motion to Adjourn.
2 (a) A motion to adjourn is in order at any time, except
3 when a prior motion to adjourn has been defeated and no
4 intervening business has transpired.
5 (b) A motion to adjourn is neither debatable nor
6 amendable.
7 (c) The Clerk shall enter in the Journal the hour at
8 which every motion to adjourn is made.
9 (d) Unless the Presiding Officer otherwise orders, the
10 standing hour to which the House adjourns is 12:00 noon,
11 except on the last day of a week in which the House convenes
12 in regular, veto, or special session, in which case the
13 standing hour to which the House adjourns is 12:30 p.m.
14 (e) A motion to adjourn for more than 3 days is not in
15 order unless both chambers of the General Assembly have
16 adopted a joint resolution permitting that adjournment.
17 Notwithstanding any other provision of these Rules, a
18 resolution filed under this Rule may be referred to the Rules
19 Committee by the Presiding Officer or may be immediately
20 considered and adopted by the House.
21 (House Rule 67)
22 67. Adoption and Amendment to or Suspension of Rules.
23 (a) Adoption of Rules. At the commencement of a term,
24 the House shall adopt new rules of organization and procedure
25 by resolution setting forth those rules in their entirety.
26 The resolution must be adopted by the affirmative vote of a
27 majority of those elected. These Rules of the House of
28 Representatives are subject to revision or amendment only in
29 accordance with this Rule.
30 (b) Rules may be amended only by resolution. Any
31 resolution to amend these Rules shall show the proposed
32 changes in the existing rules by underscoring all new matter
33 and by crossing out with a line all matter that is to be
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1 omitted or superseded.
2 (c) Any resolution proposing to amend a House Rule or
3 any Joint House-Senate Rule, upon initial reading by the
4 Clerk, is automatically referred to the Rules Committee.
5 Resolutions to amend the House Rules or any Joint
6 House-Senate Rules may be initiated and sponsored by the
7 Rules Committee; those resolutions shall not be referred to a
8 committee and may be immediately considered and adopted by
9 the House. Those resolutions shall be assigned standard
10 debate status, subject to Rule 52.
11 (d) A resolution to amend the House Rules or any Joint
12 House-Senate Rules that has been reported "do adopt" or "do
13 adopt as amended" by a majority of those appointed to the
14 Rules Committee requires the affirmative vote of a majority
15 of those elected for adoption by the House. Any other
16 resolution proposing to amend the House Rules or any Joint
17 House-Senate Rules requires the affirmative vote of 71 of the
18 members elected for adoption by the House.
19 (e) No House Rule or any Joint House-Senate Rule may be
20 suspended except by unanimous consent of the members present
21 or upon a motion supported by affirmative vote of a majority
22 of those elected unless a higher number is required in the
23 Rule sought to be suspended. A committee may not suspend any
24 Rule.
25 (f) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
26 vote of 71 members elected.
27 (House Rule 68)
28 68. Motion to Commit or Recommit. No motion to commit
29 or recommit a legislative measure to committee, being decided
30 in the negative, shall again be allowed on the same day, or
31 at the same stage of the legislative measure.
32 (House Rule 69)
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1 69. Effective Date.
2 (a) A bill passed after May 31 of a calendar year shall
3 not become effective prior to June 1 of the next calendar
4 year unless an earlier effective date is specified in the
5 bill and it is approved by the affirmative vote of 71 members
6 elected.
7 (b) If a majority of those elected, but fewer than 71,
8 vote affirmatively for a bill on Third Reading after May 31
9 and the bill specifies an effective date earlier than the
10 following June 1, the bill has not passed, but the Principal
11 Sponsor has the right to have the bill automatically
12 reconsidered and returned to the order of Second Reading for
13 an amendment to remove the earlier effective date. The
14 amendment, if offered and referred to the House by a
15 committee, shall be reproduced and placed on the desks of the
16 members, in the same manner as provided for bills under Rule
17 39, before the bill is taken up again on the order of Third
18 Reading.
19 (House Rule 70)
20 70. Home Rule. No bill denies or limits any power or
21 function of a home rule unit under paragraph (g), (h), (i),
22 (j), or (k) of Sec. 6 of Article VII of the Constitution
23 unless there is specific language limiting or denying the
24 power or function and the language specifically sets forth in
25 what manner and to what extent it is a denial or limitation
26 of the power or function of a home rule unit. If a majority
27 of those elected, but fewer than 71, vote affirmatively for a
28 bill on Third Reading that requires the affirmative vote of
29 71 members elected to deny or limit a power of a home rule
30 unit, the bill has not passed, but the Principal Sponsor has
31 the right to have the bill automatically reconsidered and
32 returned to the order of Second Reading for an amendment to
33 remove those effects of the bill. The amendment, if referred
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1 to the House by a committee, shall be reproduced and placed
2 on the desks of the members, in the same manner as provided
3 for bills under Rule 39, before the bill is taken up again on
4 the order of Third Reading.
5 ARTICLE VII
6 CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
7 (House Rule 71)
8 71. Conflicts of Interest.
9 (a) A Committee on Conflicts of Interest is created. It
10 shall consist of 4 members appointed by the Speaker and 4
11 members appointed by the Minority Leader. The Speaker shall
12 designate one of the members as Chairperson. The Minority
13 Leader shall designate one of the minority caucus members as
14 Minority Spokesperson. The Committee shall not have a
15 Vice-Chairperson.
16 (b) The Committee shall study the problems of conflicts
17 of interest in relation to the responsibilities of
18 legislators and the laws relating thereto, including the
19 Illinois Governmental Ethics Act. The Committee shall
20 develop guidelines for the conduct of members in regard to
21 conflicts of interest, including procedures for appropriate
22 disclosure of the existence of conflicts. The Committee
23 shall also recommend changes in the law determined to be
24 desirable to assure members appropriate guidance in their
25 conduct. Any report of the Committee shall be filed with the
26 Clerk, who shall reproduce the report and distribute it to
27 each member, in the same manner as provided for bills under
28 Rule 39.
29 ARTICLE VIII
30 JOINT ACTION
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1 (House Rule 72)
2 72. Concurring in or Receding from Amendments.
3 (a) If a bill or resolution is received back in the
4 House with one or more amendments added by the Senate, it is
5 in order for the Principal Sponsor to present a motion "to
6 concur" or "not to concur and to ask the Senate to recede"
7 with respect to each, several, or all of those amendments.
8 Any 2 members may demand a separate record vote on any of
9 those amendments.
10 (b) When the Senate has refused to concur in one or more
11 amendments added to a bill or resolution by the House and has
12 returned the bill or resolution to the House with a message
13 requesting the House to recede from one or more of its
14 amendments, it is in order for the Principal Sponsor to
15 present a motion "to recede" from the House amendments or
16 "not to recede and to request a conference". Any 2 members
17 may demand a separate record vote on any of those amendments.
18 (House Rule 73)
19 73. Conference Committees.
20 (a) A disagreement between the House and Senate exists
21 with respect to any bill or resolution in the following
22 situations:
23 (1) when the Senate refuses to recede from the
24 adoption of any amendment, after the House has previously
25 refused to concur in the amendment; or
26 (2) when the House refuses to recede from the
27 adoption of any amendment, after the Senate has
28 previously refused to concur in the amendment.
29 In those cases of disagreement between the House and
30 Senate, the House may request a conference. When such a
31 request is made, both chambers of the General Assembly shall
32 appoint members to a committee to confer on the subject of
33 the bill or resolution giving rise to the disagreement. The
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1 combined membership of the 2 chambers appointed for that
2 purpose is the conference committee.
3 (b) The conference committee shall consist of 5 members
4 from each chamber of the General Assembly. The number of
5 majority caucus members from each chamber shall be one more
6 than the number of minority caucus members from each chamber.
7 (c) Each conference committee shall be comprised of 5
8 members of the House, 3 appointed by the Speaker and 2
9 appointed by the Minority Leader. No conference committee
10 report may be filed with the Clerk until a majority of the
11 House conferees has been appointed.
12 (House Rule 74)
13 74. Conference Committee Reports.
14 (a) No subject matter shall be included in any
15 conference committee report on any bill unless that subject
16 matter directly relates to the matters of difference between
17 the House and Senate that have been referred to the
18 conference committee unless the Rules Committee, by a
19 majority vote of the members appointed, determines that the
20 proposed subject matter is of an emergency nature, is of
21 substantial importance to the operation of government, or is
22 in the best interests of Illinois.
23 (b) No conference committee report shall be received by
24 the Clerk or acted upon by the House unless it has been
25 signed by at least 6 conferees. The report shall be signed in
26 duplicate. One of the reports shall be filed with the
27 Secretary of the Senate and one with the Clerk. The report
28 shall contain the agreements reached by the committee.
29 (c) If the conference committee determines that it is
30 unable to reach agreement, the committee shall so report to
31 each chamber of the General Assembly and request appointment
32 of a second conference committee. If there is agreement, the
33 committee shall so report to each chamber.
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1 (House Rule 75)
2 75. House Consideration of Joint Action.
3 (a) No joint action motion for final action or
4 conference committee report may be considered by the House
5 unless it has first been referred to the House by the Rules
6 Committee or a standing committee or special committee in
7 accordance with Rule 18, or unless the joint action motion or
8 conference committee report has been discharged from the
9 Rules Committee under Rule 18. Joint action motions for final
10 consideration and conference committee reports referred to a
11 standing committee or special committee by the Rules
12 Committee may not be discharged from the standing committee
13 or special committee. This subsection (a) may be suspended
14 by unanimous consent.
15 (b) No conference committee report may be considered by
16 the House unless it has been reproduced and placed on the
17 members' desks, in the same manner as provided for bills
18 under Rule 39, for one full session day before May 1st, or
19 one full hour on or after May 1st.
20 (c) Before any conference committee report on an
21 appropriation bill is considered by the House, the conference
22 committee report shall first be the subject of a public
23 hearing by a standing Appropriations Committee or a special
24 committee (the conference committee report need not be
25 referred to an Appropriations Committee or special committee,
26 but instead may remain before the Rules Committee or the
27 House, as the case may be). The hearing shall be held
28 pursuant to not less than one hour advance notice by
29 announcement on the House floor, or one day advance notice by
30 posting on the House bulletin board. An Appropriations
31 Committee or special committee shall not issue any report
32 with respect to the conference committee report following the
33 hearing.
34 (d) Any House Bill amended in the Senate and returned to
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1 the House for concurrence in the Senate amendment shall lie
2 upon the desk of the Clerk for not less than one hour before
3 being further considered.
4 (e) No House Bill that is returned to the House with
5 Senate amendments may be called except by the Principal
6 Sponsor, or by a chief co-sponsor with the consent of the
7 Principal Sponsor. This subsection may not be suspended.
8 (f) Except as otherwise provided in Rule 74, the report
9 of a conference committee on a non-appropriation bill or
10 resolution shall be confined to the subject of the bill or
11 resolution referred to the conference committee. The report
12 of a conference committee on an appropriation bill shall be
13 confined to the subject of appropriations.
14 (House Rule 76)
15 76. Action on Conference Committee Reports.
16 (a) Each chamber of the General Assembly shall inform
17 the other by message of any action taken with respect to a
18 conference committee report. Copies of all papers necessary
19 for a complete understanding of the action shall accompany
20 the message. The original bill or resolution shall remain in
21 the chamber of origin.
22 (b) No conference committee report may be called except
23 by the Principal Sponsor of the bill for which the conference
24 committee was appointed. A chief co-sponsor may call a
25 conference committee report with the consent of the Principal
26 Sponsor. This subsection may not be suspended.
27 (c) If either chamber refuses to adopt the report of the
28 conference committee, or the first conference committee is
29 unable to reach agreement, either chamber may request a
30 second conference committee. When such a request is made,
31 each chamber shall again appoint a conference committee. If
32 either chamber refuses to adopt the report of a second
33 conference committee, the 2 chambers shall have adhered to
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1 their disagreement, and the bill or resolution is lost.
2 ARTICLE IX
3 VETOES
4 (House Rule 77)
5 77. Recording of Vetoes. Upon the receipt by the House
6 of any bill returned by the Governor under any of the
7 provisions of Article IV, Sec. 9 of the Constitution, the
8 Clerk shall enter the objections of the Governor on the
9 Journal, and shall distribute copies of all veto messages to
10 each member's desk, together with copies of the vetoed bill
11 or item, as soon as practical, in the same manner as for
12 bills under Rule 39.
13 (House Rule 78)
14 78. Amendatory Vetoes.
15 (a) The Principal Sponsor of a bill that has been passed
16 by the General Assembly may request the Clerk to notify the
17 Governor that the Principal Sponsor wishes to be consulted by
18 the Governor or his or her designee before the Governor
19 returns the bill together with specific recommendations for
20 change under subsection (e) of Section 9 of Article IV of the
21 Illinois Constitution.
22 (b) Any bill returned by the Governor together with
23 specific recommendations for change under subsection (e) of
24 Section 9 of Article IV of the Illinois Constitution is
25 automatically referred to the Rules Committee and shall be
26 considered as provided in this Rule.
27 (c) The Governor's specific recommendations for change
28 with respect to a bill returned under subsection (e) of
29 Section 9 of Article IV of the Illinois Constitution shall be
30 limited to addressing the Governor's objections to portions
31 of a bill the general merit of which the Governor recognizes
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1 and shall not alter the fundamental purpose or legislative
2 scheme set forth in the bill as passed.
3 (d) Any bill returned by the Governor together with
4 specific recommendations for change shall be reviewed by the
5 Rules Committee. The Rules Committee shall examine the
6 Governor's specific recommendations for change and determine
7 by a majority of the members appointed whether those
8 recommendations comply with the standard set forth in
9 subsection (c). Any bill that the Rules Committee determines
10 is in compliance with subsection (c) of this Rule shall be
11 subject to action by the Rules Committee in the same manner
12 as floor amendments, joint action motions, and conference
13 committee reports under Rule 18(e).
14 (e) This rule may not be suspended.
15 (House Rule 79)
16 79. Motions to Consider Vetoes. For purposes of this
17 Article, the term "motions" means motions to accept or
18 override a veto of the Governor. Motions with respect to
19 bills returned by the Governor may be made by the Principal
20 Sponsor, the committee Chairperson in the case of a
21 committee-sponsored bill, or if Co-Chairpersons have been
22 appointed, by the Co-Chairperson of the majority caucus in
23 the case of special committee-sponsored bills. Motions shall
24 be filed in writing with the Clerk. All motions shall be
25 assigned standard debate status, subject to Rule 52.
26 (House Rule 80)
27 80. Consideration of Motions.
28 (a) The vote to override a veto of a bill vetoed in its
29 entirety shall be by record vote and shall be entered on the
30 Journal. The form of motion with respect to these bills shall
31 be: "I move that ________ Bill _____ do pass,
32 notwithstanding the veto of the Governor."
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1 (b) The vote to override an item veto shall be by record
2 vote as to each item separately and shall be entered on the
3 Journal. The form of motion with respect to an item shall
4 be: "I move that the item on page ____, line ____, of ____
5 Bill _____ do pass, notwithstanding the item veto of the
6 Governor."
7 (c) The vote to restore an item that has been reduced
8 shall be by record vote as to each item separately and shall
9 be entered on the Journal. The form of motion with respect
10 to an item shall be: "I move that the item on page ____,
11 line ____, of ____ Bill ____ be restored, notwithstanding the
12 item reduction of the Governor."
13 (d) A bill returned together with specific
14 recommendations of the Governor may be acted upon, by record
15 vote, in either of the following manners:
16 (1) By a motion to accept the specific
17 recommendations of the Governor. The form of motion shall
18 be: "I move to accept the specific recommendations of
19 the Governor as to _____ Bill _____ in manner and form as
20 follows: (inserting herein the language deemed necessary
21 to effectuate the specific recommendations)."; or
22 (2) By considering the bill as a vetoed bill and
23 overriding the recommendation and passing the bill in its
24 original form. The form of motion shall be: "I move
25 that _____ Bill _____ do pass, notwithstanding the
26 specific recommendations of the Governor.".
27 (House Rule 81)
28 81. Vetoed Bills Considered in Entirety. If a bill is
29 returned by the Governor containing more than one item veto,
30 reduction veto, specific recommendation for change, or
31 combination of them, the bill shall be acted upon in its
32 entirety before the bill is released from the custody of the
33 House.
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1 (House Rule 82)
2 82. Disposition of Vetoes. When a bill or item has
3 received the affirmative vote of the number of members
4 elected necessary under the Constitution, the Presiding
5 Officer shall declare that the bill or item has been passed
6 or restored over the veto of the Governor, or that the
7 specific recommendations for change have been approved, as
8 the case may be. The bill shall then be attested to by the
9 Clerk who shall note thereon the day the bill passed. The
10 bill and the objections of the Governor shall then be
11 immediately delivered to the Senate. When specific
12 recommendations have been accepted, then the accepting
13 language shall be attached to the original bill, and the bill
14 shall be delivered to the Senate.
15 ARTICLE X
16 ELECTION CONTESTS AND QUALIFICATIONS CHALLENGES
17 (House Rule 83)
18 83. Election Contests and Qualifications Challenges.
19 (a) An election contest places in issue only the
20 validity of the results of an election of a member to the
21 House in a representative district. An election contest may
22 result only in a determination of which candidate in that
23 election was properly elected to the House and shall be
24 seated.
25 (b) A qualifications challenge places in issue only the
26 qualifications of an incumbent member of the House under the
27 Constitution, or the legality of an appointment of a person
28 as a member of the House to fill a vacancy. A qualifications
29 challenge may result only in a determination of whether a
30 member of the House is properly seated.
31 (c) Election contests and qualifications challenges
32 shall be brought and conducted as provided in these Rules.
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1 (d) If an election contest or qualifications challenge
2 is filed with the Clerk, the Speaker shall create an Election
3 Contest or Qualifications Challenge Committee, as the case
4 may be, within 3 legislative days by filing a notice with the
5 Clerk. The creation of any committee under this Rule shall
6 be governed by Rule 10. The election contest or
7 qualifications challenge shall be automatically referred to
8 the Election Contest or Qualifications Challenge Committee,
9 as the case may be. For purposes of this Article, the term
10 "committee" means only the Election Contest or Qualifications
11 Challenge Committees created under this Rule. This
12 subsection may not be suspended.
13 (e) The committee may adopt rules to govern election
14 contests and qualifications challenges, but those committee
15 rules must be consistent with these Rules, must be filed with
16 the Clerk, and must be made available to all parties and to
17 the public. Any committee rule shall be subject to
18 amendment, suspension, or repeal by House resolution.
19 (House Rule 84)
20 84. Initiating Election Contests.
21 (a) Election contests may be brought only by a
22 registered voter of the representative district or by a
23 member of the House.
24 (b) Election contests may be brought only by the
25 procedures and within the time limits established by the
26 Election Code. Notice of intention to contest shall be
27 served on the person certified as elected to the House from
28 the representative district within the time limits
29 established by the Election Code. The requirements of this
30 subsection apply to a member of the House appointed to fill a
31 vacancy the same as if that member had been elected to the
32 House.
33 (c) Within 10 days after the convening of the House in
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1 January following the general election contested, each
2 contestant shall file with the Clerk a petition of election
3 contest and shall serve the petition on the incumbent member
4 of the House from the representative district. A petition of
5 election contest shall allege the contestant's qualifications
6 to bring the contest and to serve as a member of the House,
7 that he or she believes that a mistake or fraud has been
8 committed in specified precincts in the counting, return, or
9 canvass of the votes, or that there was some other specified
10 irregularity in the conduct of the election in specified
11 precincts. A petition of election contest shall contain a
12 prayer specifying the relief requested and the precincts in
13 which a recount or other inquiry is desired. A petition of
14 election contest shall be verified by affidavit swearing to
15 the truth of the allegations or based upon information and
16 belief, and shall be accompanied by proof of service on all
17 respondents.
18 (d) A notice of intent to contest may not be amended to
19 cure a defect under the statutory requirements. A petition
20 of election contest, if filed and served after the notice of
21 intention to contest, may not raise points not expressed in
22 the notice.
23 (e) The incumbent member of the House from the
24 representative district is a necessary party to the
25 initiation of an election contest.
26 (House Rule 85)
27 85. Initiating Qualifications Challenges.
28 (a) Qualifications challenges may be brought only by a
29 registered voter of the representative district of the
30 representative challenged or by a member of the House.
31 (b) Qualifications challenges must be brought within 90
32 days after the day the challenged member takes his or her
33 oath of office as a member of the House, or within 90 days
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1 after the day the petitioner first learns of the information
2 on which the challenge is based, whichever occurs later.
3 (c) A qualifications challenge shall be brought by
4 filing a petition of qualifications challenge with the Clerk,
5 and by serving a copy of the petition on the respondent
6 member of the House. The petition must be accompanied by
7 proof of personal service upon the respondent member and must
8 be verified by affidavit swearing to the truth of the
9 allegations or based upon information and belief. A petition
10 of qualifications challenge shall set forth the grounds on
11 which the respondent member is alleged to be constitutionally
12 unqualified, or on which his or her appointment to the House
13 is claimed to be legally improper, the qualifications of the
14 petitioner to bring the challenge, and a prayer for relief.
15 (House Rule 86)
16 86. Contests and Challenges; Due Process.
17 (a) Election contests and challenges shall be heard and
18 determined as expeditiously as possible under adversary
19 procedures wherein each party to the proceedings has a
20 reasonable opportunity to present his or her claim, to
21 present any defense and arguments, and to respond to those of
22 his or her opponents. All parties may be represented by
23 counsel.
24 (b) Election contests and qualifications challenges
25 shall be heard and determined in accordance with the
26 applicable provisions of the Election Code and other Illinois
27 statutes, the Illinois Constitution, and the United States
28 Constitution. Judicial decisions that bear on a point of law
29 in a contest or challenge shall be admissible in the
30 arguments of the parties and the deliberations and decisions
31 of the committee. Judicial decisions applicable to a point
32 of law or to a fact situation to the committee shall be given
33 weight as precedent.
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1 (c) In addition to notice of meetings required under
2 these Rules, the committee and any subcommittee shall give
3 notice to all parties reasonably in advance of each meeting
4 or other proceeding. The committee shall also give notice of
5 all rules, timetables, or deadlines adopted by the committee.
6 Notice under this subsection shall be in writing and shall be
7 given either personally with receipt, or by certified mail
8 (return receipt requested) addressed to the party at his or
9 her place of residence, and to his or her attorney of record
10 at the attorney's office if so requested by the party.
11 (House Rule 87)
12 87. Committee Proceedings and Powers in Contests and
13 Challenges.
14 (a) All proceedings of the committee and any
15 subcommittees concerning election contests and qualifications
16 challenges shall be transcribed by a certified court
17 reporter. Copies of the transcript shall be made available
18 to the members of the committee and to the parties.
19 (b) The committee may dismiss an election contest or
20 qualifications challenge, or may determine to proceed to a
21 recount or other inquiry. The committee may limit the issues
22 to be determined in a contest or challenge, except that when
23 a recount is conducted in an election contest, any precinct
24 timely requested by any party to be recounted shall be
25 recounted by the committee.
26 (c) In conducting inquiries, investigations, and
27 recounts in election contests and qualifications challenges,
28 the committee has the power to send for and compel the
29 attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers,
30 ballots, documents, and records by subpoena signed by the
31 Chairperson of the committee as provided by law and subject
32 to Rule 4(c)(9). In conducting proceedings in election
33 contests and qualifications challenges, the Chairperson of
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1 the committee and the Chairperson of any subcommittee may
2 administer oaths to witnesses, as provided by law, and for
3 this purpose a subcommittee is deemed to be a committee of
4 the House.
5 (d) The committee may issue commissions by its
6 Chairperson to any officer authorized to take depositions of
7 any necessary witnesses as may be permitted by law. In
8 recounting the ballots in any election contest, however, no
9 person other than a member of the committee shall handle any
10 ballots, tally sheets, or other election materials without
11 consent of the committee or subcommittee. The responsibility
12 for the actual recounting of ballots may not be delegated.
13 (e) The committee shall maintain an accurate and
14 complete record of proceedings in every election contest and
15 qualifications challenge. That record shall include all
16 notices and pleadings, the transcripts and roll call votes,
17 all reports and dissents, and all documents that were
18 admitted into the proceeding. The committee shall file the
19 record with the Clerk of the House upon the adoption of its
20 final report. The record shall then be available for
21 examination in the Clerk's office.
22 (f) With the approval of the Speaker, the committee may
23 employ clerks, stenographers, court reporters, professional
24 staff, and messengers.
25 (House Rule 88)
26 88. Adoption of Reports in Contests and Challenges.
27 (a) All final decisions of the committee regarding an
28 election contest or qualification challenge shall be approved
29 by a majority of the members appointed to the committee and
30 reported in writing to the House. Reports shall include a
31 specific recommendation to the House as to the disposition of
32 the contest or challenge. Final reports following full
33 inquiry on the merits of a contest or challenge shall contain
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1 findings of fact and, when necessary, conclusions of law.
2 (b) Any member of the committee may file a dissent from
3 a report of the committee, a minority report, or a special
4 concurrence with the majority report or with any minority
5 report.
6 (c) A subcommittee shall report to the committee in
7 writing in the same form as required for the committee
8 report. Subcommittee members may file dissents, reports, and
9 special concurrences.
10 (d) Reports shall not be adopted by the committee or a
11 subcommittee until a hearing has been held thereon, with
12 notice to all parties and a reasonable opportunity to examine
13 and respond to a proposed majority report.
14 (e) Reports of the committee shall be filed with the
15 Clerk, reproduced, and placed on the members' desks, along
16 with any dissents, minority reports, or special concurrences,
17 in the same manner as provided for bills under Rule 39. The
18 report shall be listed on the calendar under the heading
19 "Report of Election Contest" or "Report of Qualifications
20 Challenge". The report shall be carried on the Daily
21 Calendar for 2 legislative days before any action by the
22 House.
23 (f) The House shall adopt the majority report or a
24 minority report in an election contest or qualifications
25 challenge or shall refuse to adopt any report filed and
26 re-refer the contest or challenge to the committee for
27 further proceedings or for a modified report. A report that
28 has the effect of unseating an incumbent member of the House
29 shall be adopted only by the affirmative vote of 60 members
30 elected.
31 (g) Each party to a contest or challenge shall file with
32 the Clerk of the committee within 10 days after the filing of
33 the final report a detailed statement of attorney's fees and
34 expenses incurred by that party in connection with the case.
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1 The committee shall make recommendations to the House
2 concerning reimbursement of attorney's fees and the expenses
3 of the parties. The recommendation shall not exceed a sum
4 that is reasonable, just, and proper.
5 ARTICLE XI
6 DISCIPLINE AND PROTEST
7 (House Rule 89)
8 89. Disorderly Behavior.
9 (a) In accordance with Article IV, Sec. 6(d) of the
10 Constitution, the House may punish any of its members for
11 disorderly behavior and, with the concurrence of two-thirds
12 of the members elected, expel a member (but not for a second
13 time for the same offense). The reason for expulsion shall
14 be entered upon the Journal with the names and votes of those
15 members voting on the question.
16 (b) In accordance with Article IV, Sec. 6(d) of the
17 Constitution, the House during its session may punish by
18 imprisonment any person, not a member, guilty of disrespect
19 to the House by disorderly or contemptuous behavior in its
20 presence. That imprisonment shall not extend beyond 24 hours
21 at one time unless the person persists in disorderly or
22 contemptuous behavior.
23 (House Rule 90)
24 90. Protest. Any 2 members have the right to dissent
25 and protest, in respectful language, against any act or
26 resolution that they may think injurious to the public or to
27 any individual, and have the reason of their protest entered
28 upon the Journal. When by motion a majority of members
29 determines that the language of a protest is not respectful,
30 the protest shall be referred back to the protesting members.
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1 ARTICLE XII
2 DISCIPLINARY PROCEEDINGS
3 (House Rule 91)
4 91. Initiating Disciplinary Proceedings.
5 (a) Disciplinary proceedings may be commenced by filing
6 with the Speaker a petition for a special investigating
7 committee. The petition must be signed by at least one member
8 of the House, and shall contain suggested charges which, if
9 true, may subject the member named in the petition to
10 disciplinary action by the House. If the petition is signed
11 by 3 or more members of the House, the Speaker shall appoint
12 3 members of the majority caucus and the Minority Leader
13 shall appoint 3 members of the minority caucus to a special
14 investigating committee. If the petition is signed by fewer
15 than 3 members of the House, the Speaker shall consult the
16 member named in the petition, and unless that member objects
17 in writing, the Speaker and the Minority Leader shall appoint
18 a special investigating committee. If the member named in
19 the petition objects to the appointment of a special
20 investigating committee, any member who signed a petition for
21 an investigation under this Rule may introduce a resolution
22 to initiate disciplinary proceedings. Unless a resolution
23 initiating disciplinary proceedings is introduced under this
24 Rule, the contents of a petition for a special investigating
25 committee shall be confidential except as to the member
26 named, the members signing it, the Speaker, and the members
27 of a special investigating committee.
28 (b) A resolution to initiate disciplinary proceedings
29 shall be substantially in the following form:
30 "BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
31 ______________ GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS,
32 that a Special Investigating Committee be appointed to
33 investigate allegations concerning the conduct of
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1 Representative _______________________, which, if true, may
2 subject that member to disciplinary action by the House of
3 Representatives."
4 A resolution to initiate disciplinary proceedings may be
5 introduced only as permitted under this Rule. It is improper
6 to attempt to initiate disciplinary proceedings in any manner
7 not authorized by this Rule.
8 (c) A resolution to initiate disciplinary proceedings
9 shall not be assigned to committee, notwithstanding the
10 provisions of Rule 15. The resolution shall lie on the
11 Speaker's Table and shall be called within 5 legislative
12 days.
13 (d) A resolution to initiate disciplinary proceedings is
14 debatable.
15 (e) A resolution initiating disciplinary proceedings may
16 be adopted only by the affirmative vote of 60 members
17 elected.
18 (f) This Rule may be suspended only by unanimous
19 consent.
20 (House Rule 92)
21 92. Preliminary Investigation.
22 (a) Pursuant to a petition or upon the adoption of a
23 resolution initiating disciplinary proceedings, as provided
24 in Rule 91, a special investigating committee consisting of 6
25 members shall be appointed, of whom 3 shall be appointed by
26 the Speaker from the majority caucus and 3 shall be appointed
27 by the Minority Leader from the minority caucus. The Speaker
28 shall appoint the Chairperson of the special investigating
29 committee from among the 6 members. Sponsors of the
30 initiating resolution may not be appointed to the special
31 investigating committee.
32 (b) The special investigating committee shall conduct a
33 thorough investigation of all allegations and charges of
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1 impropriety concerning the member named in the initiating
2 resolution that are brought to its attention to determine if
3 reasonable grounds exist to bring charges against the member
4 for formal disciplinary proceedings by the House. The
5 special investigating committee shall meet with the Principal
6 Sponsor of the initiating resolution at its initial meeting.
7 At the initial meeting, the Principal Sponsor of the
8 initiating resolution shall submit to the special
9 investigating committee a written list of suggested charges.
10 The list shall define the scope of the inquiry or
11 investigation pursuant to the initiating resolution. If the
12 Principal Sponsor of the initiating resolution fails to
13 submit a list, the special committee shall report a
14 resolution of exoneration.
15 The Principal Sponsor of the initiating resolution shall
16 also submit to the special investigating committee all
17 information he or she may have relevant to the charges and
18 allegations.
19 (c) The special investigating committee shall conduct
20 all of its proceedings in executive session, and shall
21 maintain strict confidence as to all of its proceedings and
22 all witnesses, testimony, information, and exhibits that may
23 come before it. No transcript or record of proceedings shall
24 be taken. This subsection shall be adopted and effective
25 upon an affirmative vote of 79 members. This subsection may
26 not be suspended.
27 (d) Except for its initial meeting, any posting or
28 notice requirements do not apply to meetings of the special
29 investigating committee, but the Chairperson shall give
30 notice of all meetings to the member named in and the
31 Principal Sponsor of the initiating resolution and shall give
32 reasonable notice to the public. The member who is the
33 subject of the initiating resolution has the right to counsel
34 during proceedings of the special investigating committee.
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1 (e) Except for subsection (c), this Rule may be
2 suspended only by the affirmative vote of 71 members elected.
3 (House Rule 93)
4 93. Report of Special Investigating Committee.
5 (a) The special investigating committee shall report in
6 writing. All reports shall be signed by the members
7 supporting the report.
8 (b) If a majority of the members of the special
9 committee determines to prefer charges, it shall file with
10 the Clerk a formal statement of charges and specifications,
11 and shall appoint 2 members of the House, one from the
12 majority caucus and one from the minority caucus, who are not
13 members of the special investigating committee to be managers
14 for the House at the hearing on the charges. The statement
15 of charges shall constitute the report of the special
16 committee, but the special committee in its discretion may
17 file a supplementary report stating its reasons for not
18 bringing any other charges that may have been suggested to
19 it.
20 (c) If the special committee determines not to prefer
21 charges, it shall file with the Clerk a resolution
22 exonerating the member named in the initiating resolution
23 together with a report stating its reasons for not preferring
24 charges.
25 (d) If the special committee cannot by majority vote of
26 its members determine whether to prefer charges, the
27 committee shall file with the Clerk a resolution of
28 exoneration and a report stating the affirmative reasons for
29 not preferring charges. That report shall be signed by all
30 members of the special investigating committee, regardless of
31 their original vote in the committee proceedings on whether
32 to prefer charges.
33 (e) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
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1 vote of 71 members elected.
2 (House Rule 94)
3 94. Select Committee on Discipline.
4 (a) When charges are preferred against any member of the
5 House under Rule 93, the Speaker and the Minority Leader
6 shall appoint a committee, to be known as a select committee
7 on discipline, to hear and determine the charges. The select
8 committee shall consist of 12 members of the House, 6 of whom
9 shall be appointed by the Speaker from the majority caucus
10 and 6 of whom shall be appointed by the Minority Leader from
11 the minority caucus. The Speaker shall appoint a Chairperson
12 of the select committee from among the 12 members. No member
13 who served on the special investigating committee or any
14 sponsor of the initiating resolution may be appointed to the
15 select committee.
16 (b) All appointments to a select committee on discipline
17 shall be completed and the select committee shall convene
18 within 30 days after the filing of charges for which the
19 committee is appointed.
20 (c) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
21 vote of 79 members elected.
22 (House Rule 95)
23 95. Hearings on Disciplinary Charges.
24 (a) Proceedings before the select committee on
25 discipline shall be adversary in form, with the managers for
26 the House presenting the case for disciplinary action. The
27 respondent member may be represented by counsel.
28 (b) Stipulations of fact shall be encouraged by the
29 select committee.
30 (c) The rules of evidence applicable to criminal
31 proceedings apply except as may be waived by the managers or
32 respondent, as may be appropriate.
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1 (House Rule 96)
2 96. Report of Select Committee.
3 (a) The committee shall vote on each specification and
4 charge, except that a vote of exoneration on a charge shall
5 be a vote as to all specifications under that charge. All
6 final votes on the merits of a charge or specification shall
7 be by record vote.
8 (b) A finding of fault or exoneration on any
9 specification or charge requires an affirmative vote of a
10 majority of the members appointed to the select committee.
11 (c) The committee shall file a report of its findings on
12 each specification and charge and a recommendation as to
13 penalty with the Clerk. The report shall state the reasons
14 for each conclusion and recommendation. If the committee
15 finds the respondent member exonerated regarding any charge,
16 it shall report a resolution of exoneration together with its
17 report. If the select committee finds the respondent member
18 at fault regarding any charge, it shall report a resolution
19 embodying its findings and recommended penalty.
20 (d) If a select committee reports a finding of fault
21 regarding any charge, any member of the select committee may
22 file a minority report with the Clerk either dissenting from
23 a finding, reason, or recommendation in the majority report
24 or stating a concurrence on different grounds. A dissenting
25 report may include a resolution of exoneration as to any
26 charge or specifications.
27 (e) When a select committee has found a member at fault
28 regarding a charge, the committee shall adopt a
29 recommendation for disciplinary action. The committee may
30 recommend a reprimand, a censure, expulsion from the House,
31 or that no penalty be invoked. The recommendation on
32 disciplinary action requires an affirmative vote of the
33 majority of the members appointed to the select committee.
34 (f) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
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1 vote of 71 members elected.
2 (House Rule 97)
3 97. House Action on Disciplinary Reports.
4 (a) The report of a select committee, together with any
5 dissenting or concurring reports, and any accompanying
6 resolution, shall be reproduced and placed on the members'
7 desks, in the same manner as for bills under Rule 39. The
8 report shall be placed on the calendar under the heading
9 "Report of Select Committee on Discipline". The report shall
10 be carried on the Daily Calendar for 2 legislative days
11 before any action by the House.
12 (b) If the report of a select committee or a special
13 investigating committee exonerates the respondent member, the
14 House shall take up the resolution or re-refer the case to
15 the committee for further proceedings.
16 (c) If the select committee reports a finding of fault
17 as to any charge, the House shall take up the resolution for
18 disciplinary action together with any minority resolutions.
19 The House may amend a resolution for disciplinary action to
20 decrease the recommended penalty.
21 (d) The House shall take action by a record vote on each
22 resolution. Adoption of a resolution finding the respondent
23 member at fault regarding charges and specifications shall
24 dispose of any minority resolution of exoneration on those
25 charges and specifications. If the House adopts a resolution
26 of exoneration as to any charge or specification, a majority
27 resolution shall be amended in accord with that disposition
28 of those charges and specifications before it may be called
29 for a final vote. If the adoption of exoneration resolutions
30 disposes of all the charges and specifications in a majority
31 resolution for disciplinary action, the majority resolution
32 shall be tabled.
33 (e) Following record votes on all majority and minority
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1 resolutions arising out of a select committee finding of
2 fault on a charge or specification, if there remains any
3 charge or specification on which the House has neither
4 exonerated the member or adopted a finding of fault, then any
5 member may introduce and move a resolution of exoneration on
6 that charge or specification.
7 (f) A resolution finding a member at fault regarding a
8 charge may be adopted only by the affirmative vote of 71
9 members elected, except that a resolution the effect of which
10 is to expel a member may be adopted only by the affirmative
11 vote of 79 members elected.
12 (g) This Rule may be suspended only by the affirmative
13 vote of 79 members elected.
14 ARTICLE XIII
15 FORCE AND EFFECT
16 (House Rule 98)
17 98. Applicability. The meetings and actions of the
18 House, including all of its committees, are governed by these
19 House Rules.
20 (House Rule 99)
21 99. Parliamentary Authority. The rules of parliamentary
22 practice appearing in the latest edition of Robert's Rules of
23 Order govern the House in all cases to which they apply so
24 long as they are not inconsistent with these Rules.
25 (House Rule 100)
26 100. Certification by Speaker. With respect to each
27 bill that is certified by the Speaker in accordance with
28 Article IV, Sec. 8(d) of the Constitution, there is an
29 irrebuttable presumption that the procedural requirements for
30 passage have been met.
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1 (House Rule 101)
2 101. Effective Date. These rules are in full force and
3 effect upon their adoption, and shall remain in full force
4 and effect except as amended in accordance with these Rules,
5 or until superseded by new rules adopted as part of the
6 organization of a newly-constituted General Assembly at the
7 commencement of a term.
8 ARTICLE XIV
9 DEFINITIONS
10 (House Rule 102)
11 102. Definitions. As used in these Rules, terms have
12 the meanings ascribed to them as follows, unless the context
13 clearly requires a different meaning:
14 (1) Chairperson. "Chairperson" means that
15 Representative designated by the Speaker to serve as
16 chair of a committee.
17 (2) Co-Chairperson. "Co-Chairperson" means a
18 Representative designated by the Speaker to serve as
19 co-chair of a special committee.
20 (3) Clerk. "Clerk" means the elected Clerk of the
21 House.
22 (4) Committee. "Committee" means a committee of
23 the House and includes a standing committee, the Rules
24 Committee, a special committee, the Committee on
25 Conflicts of Interest, committees created under Article X
26 and Article XII of these Rules, and a subcommittee of a
27 committee. "Committee" does not mean a conference
28 committee, and the procedural and notice requirements
29 applicable to committees do not apply to conference
30 committees.
31 (5) Constitution. "Constitution" means the
32 Constitution of the State of Illinois.
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1 (6) General Assembly. "General Assembly" means the
2 current General Assembly of the State of Illinois.
3 (7) House. "House" means the House of
4 Representatives of the General Assembly.
5 (8) Joint Action Motions. "Joint action motions"
6 means the following motions before the House: to concur
7 in a Senate amendment, to non-concur in a Senate
8 amendment, to recede from a House amendment, to refuse to
9 recede from a House amendment, to request that a
10 conference committee be appointed, and to adopt a
11 conference committee report.
12 (9) Legislative Digest. "Legislative Digest" means
13 the Legislative Synopsis and Digest that is prepared by
14 the Legislative Reference Bureau of the General Assembly.
15 (10) Legislative Measures. "Legislative measures"
16 means all matters brought before the House for
17 consideration, whether originated in the House or Senate,
18 and includes bills, amendments, resolutions, conference
19 committee reports, motions, messages, notices, and
20 Executive Orders from the executive branch.
21 (11) Majority. "Majority" means a majority of
22 those members present and voting on a question. Unless
23 otherwise specified with respect to a particular House
24 Rule, for purposes of determining the number of members
25 present and voting on a question, a "present" vote shall
26 not be counted.
27 (12) Majority Caucus. "Majority caucus" means that
28 group of Representatives from the numerically strongest
29 political party in the House.
30 (13) Majority of those Appointed. "Majority of
31 those appointed" means a majority of the total number of
32 Representatives authorized under these Rules to be
33 appointed to a committee.
34 (14) Majority of those Elected. "Majority of those
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1 elected" means a majority of the total number of
2 Representatives entitled to be elected to the House,
3 regardless of the number of elected or appointed
4 Representatives actually serving in office. So long as
5 118 Representatives are entitled to be elected to the
6 House, "majority of those elected" means 60 affirmative
7 votes; 71 affirmative votes means three-fifths of the
8 members elected; and 79 affirmative votes means
9 two-thirds of the members elected.
10 (15) Member. "Member" means a Representative.
11 Where the context so requires, "member" may also mean a
12 Senator of the Illinois Senate.
13 (16) Members Appointed. "Members appointed" means
14 the total number of Representatives authorized under
15 these Rules to be appointed to a committee.
16 (17) Members Elected. "Members elected" means the
17 118 Representatives entitled to be elected to the House,
18 regardless of the number of elected or appointed
19 Representatives actually serving in office.
20 (18) Minority Caucus. "Minority caucus" means that
21 group of Representatives from the second numerically
22 strongest political party in the House.
23 (19) Minority Leader. "Minority Leader" means the
24 Minority Leader of the House elected under Rule 2.
25 (20) Minority Spokesperson. "Minority
26 spokesperson" means that Representative designated by the
27 Minority Leader to serve as the minority spokesperson of
28 a committee.
29 (21) Perfunctory Session. "Perfunctory session"
30 means the convening of the House, pursuant to the
31 scheduling of the Speaker, for purposes consistent with
32 Rule 28.
33 (22) Presiding Officer. "Presiding Officer" means
34 that Representative serving as the presiding officer of
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1 the House, whether that Representative is the Speaker or
2 another Representative designated by the Speaker under
3 Rule 4.
4 (23) Principal Sponsor. "Principal sponsor" means
5 the first listed House sponsor of any legislative
6 measure; with respect to a standing committee-sponsored
7 bill or resolution, it means the Chairperson of the
8 committee; with respect to a special committee-sponsored
9 bill or resolution, it means the Co-Chairperson from the
10 majority caucus.
11 (24) Record Vote. "Record vote" means a vote by
12 ayes and nays entered on the journal.
13 (25) Representative. "Representative" means any
14 duly elected or duly appointed Illinois State
15 Representative, and means the same as "member".
16 (26) Senate. "Senate" means the Senate of the
17 General Assembly.
18 (27) Speaker. "Speaker" means the Speaker of the
19 House elected as provided in Rule 1.
20 (28) Term. "Term" means the 2-year term of a
21 General Assembly.
22 (29) Vice-Chairperson. "Vice-Chairperson" means
23 that Representative designated by the Speaker to serve as
24 Vice-Chairperson of a committee.