Order Code RL31840
CRS Report for Congress
Received through the CRS Web
Congressional Budget Resolutions:
Motions to Instruct Conferees
Updated July 12, 2004
Robert Keith
Specialist in American National Government
Government and Finance Division
Congressional Research Service ˜ The Library of Congress

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Congressional Budget Resolutions:
Motions to Instruct Conferees
Summary
Both the House and the Senate have procedures whereby the full bodies may
issue instructions to conferees on budget resolutions. Such instructions usually are
issued in the form of a motion, but in at least one instance the Senate adopted a
simple resolution containing such instructions. If a motion (or resolution) instructing
conferees is agreed to, however, the instructions are not binding on the conferees and
no point of order would lie against the conference report on the ground that the
instructions had been violated.
The practices of the House and Senate regarding such motions differ markedly
in key respects, including in terms of the frequency and number of motions and the
prerogative to offer such motions
First, the House resorts to such motions regularly, having considered such
motions in 12 of the past 15 years (covering FY1991-FY2005). The House regularly
used such motions in earlier years as well. During this period, the Senate instructed
its conferees on only one budget resolution, for FY2000. For earlier years, the Senate
precedents only cite one instance when budget resolution conferees were instructed.
Second, the House usually has considered only one motion per budget
resolution, while the Senate considered five motions during consideration of the
FY2002 budget resolution. The House considered multiple motions only once, in
connection with the FY2005 budget resolution.
Finally, the House regards the motion to instruct conferees strictly as a
prerogative of the minority party, while the Senate does not. While four of motions
considered in the Senate were offered by Members of the minority, one was offered
by the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee.
In both chambers, the content of a motion may range from a broad statement of
policy to a position focused more narrowly on one or a few issues. Further, there is
no clear pattern of acceptance or rejection of such motions in either chamber.
Finally, motions to instruct conferees are amendable in each chamber.
This report will be updated as developments warrant.

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Contents
Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
House and Senate Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Frequency of Motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Number of Motions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Prerogative to Offer Motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Other Procedural Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
List of Tables
Table 1. Motions to Instruct House Conferees on Budget Resolutions:
FY1991-FY2005 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

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Congressional Budget Resolutions:
Motions to Instruct Conferees
Background
The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 requires the House and Senate to reach
agreement on at least one budget resolution each year.1 In most years, the House and
Senate initially pass separate versions of a budget resolution and then resolve their
differences through regular conference procedures, but sometimes the differences
have been resolved by means of the two chambers formally exchanging amendments.
Both the House and the Senate have procedures whereby the full bodies may
issue instructions to conferees on legislation.2 Instructions to conferees on a budget
resolution usually are issued in the form of a motion, but in at least one instance the
Senate adopted a simple resolution containing such instructions. If a motion (or
resolution) instructing conferees is agreed to, however, the instructions are not
binding on the conferees and no point of order would lie against the conference
report on the ground that the instructions had been violated.
House and Senate Practices
The practices of the House and Senate regarding motions to instruct budget
resolution conferees differ markedly in key respects. These differences are discussed
below in terms of the frequency and number of motions and the prerogative to offer
such motions. Some additional procedural issues also are discussed.
Frequency of Motions. The House resorts to such motions regularly while
the Senate seldom uses them. As Table 1 shows, the House considered 15 such
motions in 12 of the last 15 years, covering FY1991-FY2005. (The table lists
another motion, for FY2005, that a Member announced he would offer, but the
House vitiated the motion before it was considered.) The House regularly used such
motions in earlier years as well.
1 For detailed information regarding the record of experience with budget resolutions, see
CRS Report RL30297, Congressional Budget Resolutions: Selected Statistics and
Information Guide, by Bill Heniff Jr. The House and Senate have adopted at least one
budget resolution every year since 1975, except in 1998 (for FY1999) and in 2002 (for
FY2003); the FY2005 budget resolution has not been adopted as of this date.
2 For information on these procedures generally, see (1) CRS Report RS20209, Instructing
Senate Conferees, by Richard S. Beth; and (2) CRS Report 98-381, Instructing House
Conferees, by Elizabeth Rybicki.

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CRS-2
During this period, the Senate instructed its conferees on only one budget
resolution (for FY2000), as discussed in more detail below. For earlier years, the
Senate precedents cite only one instance when budget resolution conferees were
instructed.3
Number of Motions. The House has considered only one motion per budget
resolution, except for FY2005, when four different motions were considered. With
regard to FY2005, three of the motions were rejected and the fourth was vitiated. (As
indicated previously, one Member announced his intention to offer a fifth motion to
instruct conferees on the budget resolution, but that motion was vitiated as well.)
The Senate considered (on April 13, 1999) the following five motions to the
FY2000 budget resolution, accepting four and rejecting one:
! Lautenberg motion, to include in the conference report provisions
that would reserve all Social Security surpluses only for Social
Security, and not for other programs (including other retirement
programs) or tax cuts; adopted by a vote of 98-0;
! Domenici motion, to include in the conference report a Roth/Breaux
modified amendment regarding Medicare reform and a section of the
Senate-passed budget resolution regarding the use of on-budget
surpluses for a prescription drug benefit; adopted by a vote of 57-42;
! Dodd motion, to include in the conference report a Dodd/Jeffords
modified amendment to provide for an increase in the mandatory
spending in the Child Care and Development Block Grant; adopted
by a vote of 66-33;
! Dorgan motion, to include in the conference report provisions that
would provide additional funding for income assistance for family
farmers above the level provided in the Senate-passed resolution;
adopted by voice vote; and
! Kennedy motion, to include in the conference report provisions that
would allow targeted tax relief for low- and middle-income working
families, and reserve a sufficient portion of projected non-Social
Security surpluses to extend significantly the solvency of the
Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Fund and modernize and
strengthen the program; rejected by a vote of 54-45; a Domenici
amendment to this motion was withdrawn.
Prerogative to Offer Motion. The House regards the motion to instruct
conferees strictly as a prerogative of the minority party. In the 11 instances identified
in Table 1 when only one motion was considered, the motion was made by the
ranking minority member of the House Budget Committee. With regard to the
FY2005 budget resolution, all four of the motions considered were offered by
3 The Senate adopted S.Res. 562 on September 14, 1978, by a vote of 63-21. The measure
instructed the Senate conferees on the second budget resolution for FY1979 to insist on the
Senate position not to add $2 billion for public works spending. See the remarks of Sen.
Edmund Muskie and others in the Congressional Record of Sept. 13 and 14, 1978, at pages
29157-29158 and 29391-29403, respectively.

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CRS-3
Members of the minority party, two of them serving on the House Budget
Committee. (The fifth motion, which was not considered by the House, also was
offered by a member of the minority party.) A motion to instruct conferees, however,
is subject to amendments offered by members of the majority party, as discussed
below.
Although four of the motions made in the Senate to instruct conferees on the
FY2000 budget resolution were made by members of the minority party, one was
made by the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee.
Other Procedural Issues. In both chambers, the content of a motion may
range from a broad statement of policy to a position focused more narrowly on one
or a few issues. For example, a broadly-worded motion offered by Representative
John Kasich to the FY1994 budget resolution instructed the conferees
to agree to the highest level of deficit reduction, the lowest levels of budget
outlays, and the lowest level of revenues within the scope on the conference
without resorting to higher taxes on Social Security beneficiaries.
A more narrowly drawn motion, offered by Representative Willis Gradison to
the FY1990 budget resolution, instructed the conferees “to agree to Senate provision
relating to the adoption of a joint resolution to amend the U.S. Constitution to require
a balanced budget.”
Further, there is no clear pattern of acceptance or rejection of such motions in
either chamber.4 Of the 14 motions decided by a vote in the House, six were
approved and eight were rejected. The six motions approved were decided either by
a voice vote or a strong affirmative vote (the smallest margin of victory was 322-66).
The eight motions that failed were decided by closer margins, averaging 14 votes (the
closest vote failed on a 209-209 tie). Similarly, the four motions approved in the
Senate were decided by a voice vote or a strong affirmative vote (the smallest margin
of victory was 66-33), and the one rejected motion failed on a much closer vote (54-
45).
Finally, motions to instruct conferees are amendable in each chamber. In the
House, a motion offered by Representative Willis Gradison (the ranking minority
member of the House Budget committee) regarding the FY1992 budget resolution
was amended by a substitute offered by Representative Leon Panetta (the chairman
of the House Budget Committee). In the Senate, Senator Pete Domenici (the
chairman of the Senate Budget Committee) offered an amendment to a motion
offered by Senator Edward Kennedy, but then withdrew it.
4 For recent commentary on how Members sometimes perceive acceptance or rejection of
a motion to instruct conferees, see (1) Mark Wegner and Bill Ghent, “House Lawmakers
Spin on Budget Vote to Instruct Conferees,” National Journal’s CongressDaily AM, Apr.
2, 2003; and (2) Bud Newman and Brett Ferguson, “Budget Conference to Begin April 2
Amid Differences on Taxes, Spending,” BNA Daily Report for Executives, Apr. 2, 2003,
page G-7.

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CRS-4
Table 1. Motions to Instruct House Conferees on Budget Resolutions: FY1991-FY2005
Fiscal
Congress/
H. Con.
Sponsor of
Date of
Year
Session
Res.
Motion
Nature of Instruction
Disposition
Vote
Action
1991
101st, 2nd
310
—
[none]
—
—
—
1992
102nd, 1st 121
Gradison
a
To ensure that within the reserve
Agreed to
Voice
05-09-91
fund areas specified in the Senate
a m e n d m e n t , p a y - a s - y o u - g o
legislation will not harm working
families and Medicare beneficiaries,
and will adhere to the 1990 budget
process agr eement between
President Bush and the Congress. a
1993
102nd, 2nd
287
Gradison
To agree to Senate provision relating
Agreed to
322-66
05-06-92
to the adoption of a joint resolution
to amend the U.S. Constitution to
require a balanced budget.
1994
103rd, 1st
64
Kasich
To agree to the highest level of
Agreed to
413-0
03-25-93
deficit reduction, the lowest levels of
budget outlays, and the lowest level
of revenues within the scope on the
conference without resorting to
higher taxes on Social Security
beneficiaries.
1995
103rd, 2nd
218
Kasich
To agree to
Senate
provisions:
Rejected
202-216
04-14-94
reflecting a $26 billion 5-year deficit
reduction by agreeing to reduce the
total spending levels specified in the
House-passed resolution by
specified amounts; and providing no
further cuts in defense spending if
the President's defense budget
request is approved.

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CRS-5
Fiscal
Congress/
H. Con.
Sponsor of
Date of
Year
Session
Res.
Motion
Nature of Instruction
Disposition
Vote
Action
1996
104th, 1st
67
Sabo
To agree to revenue levels (within
Rejected
183-233
06-08-95
the scope of the conference) that
exclude the revenue effects of the
Contract With America Tax Relief
Act and insist on House position
regarding the Earned Income Tax
Credit.
1997
104th, 2nd
178
Sabo
To agree to Senate provisions on:
Rejected
187-205
05-30-96
levels of discretionary spending;
“balance billing” of Medicare
patients by health care providers;
federal nursing home quality
standards; and protection under the
Medicaid program against spousal
impoverishment.
1998
105th, 1st
84
Spratt
To agree to Senate provisions on
Agreed to
Voice
06-03-97
limiting 10-year net cost of tax cuts
to $250 billion and fair distribution
of tax cuts.
1999
105th, 2nd 284
—
[none]
—
—
—
2000
106th, 1st 68
Spratt
To
insist
that
tax cuts set forth in the
Agreed to
349-44
04-12-99
reconciliation directives in the
concurrent resolution be reported at
the latest possible date within the
scope of the conference and to
require that the reconciliation
legislation implementing these tax
cuts not be reported any earlier to
provide Congress with time to first
enact legislation extending the
solvency of the Social Security and
Medicare trust funds.

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CRS-6
Fiscal
Congress/
H. Con.
Sponsor of
Date of
Year
Session
Res.
Motion
Nature of Instruction
Disposition
Vote
Action
2001
106th, 2nd
290
Spratt
To insist that
reconciliation
Rejected
198-210
04-10-00
legislation implementing tax cuts be
reported no earlier than September
22, 2000, thereby allowing time to
enact legislation establishing a
universal prescription drug benefit,
and that the House recede to the
lower tax cuts in the Senate
amendment.
2002
107th, 1st
83
Spratt
To increase the funding
for
Rejected
200-207
04-24-01
education in the House resolution to
provide for the maximum feasible
funding, provide that the costs for
coverage of prescription drugs under
Medicare not be taken from the
surplus of the Federal Hospital
Insurance Trust Fund, increase the
funding provided for Medicare
prescription drug coverage to the
level set by the Senate amendment,
and insist that the on-budget surplus
set forth in the budget resolution for
any fiscal year not be less than the
surplus of the Federal Hospital
Insurance Trust Fund for that year.
2003
107th, 2nd
353
— b
[none] b
—
—
—

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CRS-7
Fiscal
Congress/
H. Con.
Sponsor of
Date of
Year
Session
Res.
Motion
Nature of Instruction
Disposition
Vote
Action
2004
108th, 1st
95
Spratt
To (1) eliminate the reconciliation
Agreed to
399-22
04-01-03
instruction to the Committees on
Agriculture, Education and the
Workforce, Energy and Commerce,
Transportation and Infrastructure,
Veterans’ Affairs, and Ways and
Means contained in section 201(b)
of the House resolution; (2) recede
to the Senate on section 319 (entitled
“`Reserve Fund to Strengthen Social
S e c u r i t y” ') o f t h e S e n a t e
amendment; and (3) adjust the
revenue levels by the amounts
needed to offset the cost of the
instructions set forth in (1) and (2),
without resulting in any increase in
the deficit or reduction in surplus for
any fiscal year covered by the
resolution.

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CRS-8
Fiscal
Congress/
H. Con.
Sponsor of
Date of
Year
Session
Res.
Motion
Nature of Instruction
Disposition
Vote
Action
2005
108th, 2nd
95
Thompson
To recede to the Senate on the
Rejected
209-209
03-30-04
(S.Con.
(CA)
provisions contained in section 408
Res.)
of the Senate concurrent resolution
(relating to the pay-as-you-go point
of order made applicable to all
legislation increasing the deficit as a
result of direct spending increases or
tax cuts).
Moore
[same as above]
Rejected
208-215
05-05-04
Pomeroy
[same as above]
Rejected
207-211
05-12-04
Stenholm
To reject provisions that provide for
Considered
—
05-19-04
an increase in the statutory debt
but vitiated c
limit.
Price
[same as Thompson, Moore, and
Vitiated d
—
05-19-04
Pomeroy motions]
(not
considered)
a. The Gradison motion was amended by a Panetta substitute. The House failed, by a vote of 132-284, to move the previous question on the original
Gradison motion.
b. The House and Senate did not reach the conference stage during consideration of the FY2003 budget resolution.
c. On May 19, 2004, the Speaker announced that the motion to instruct conferees offered by Representative Stenholm and debated by the House
the previous day was vitiated; see the Congressional Record, daily ed., vol. 150 (May 19, 2004), p. H3259.
d. On May 18, 2004, Representative Price, pursuant to House Rule XXII, Clause 7(c), announced his intention to offer a motion to instruct conferees
on the budget resolution. The next day, the Speaker announced that the motion (which the House had not considered) was vitiated; see the
Congressional Record, daily ed., vol. 150 (May 19, 2004), p. H3259.

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