Suspension of the Rules: House Practice in the December 7, 2022
116th Congress (2019-2020)
Jane A. Hudiburg
Suspension of the rules is the most commonly used procedure to call up measures on the floor of
Analyst on Congress and
the House of Representatives. As the name suggests, the procedure allows the House to suspend
the Legislative Process
its standing and statutory rules in order to consider broadly supported legislation in an expedited

manner. More specifically, the House temporarily sets aside its rules that govern the raising and
consideration of measures and assumes a new set of constraints particular to the suspension

procedure.
The suspension of the rules procedure has several parliamentary advantages: (1) it allows non-privileged measures to be
raised on the House floor without the need for a special rule, (2) it enables the consideration of measures that would
otherwise be subject to a point of order, and (3) it streamlines floor action by limiting debate and prohibiting floor
amendments. Given these features, as well as the required two-thirds supermajority vote for passage, suspension motions are
generally used to process less controversial legislation.
In the 116th Congress (2019-2020), measures considered under suspension made up 66% of the bills and resolutions that
received floor action in the House (792 out of 1,195 measures). The majority of suspension measures were House bills
(81%), followed by Senate bills (11%) and House resolutions (7%). The measures covered a variety of policy areas but most
often addressed government operations, such as the designation of federal facilities or amending administrative policies.
Most measures that are considered in the House under the suspension procedure are sponsored by a House or Senate majority
party Member. However, suspension is the most common House procedure used to consider minority-party-sponsored
legislation regardless of whether the legislation originated in the House or Senate. In 2019 and 2020, minority-party
Members sponsored 29% of suspension measures, compared to 16% of legislation subject to different procedures.
Most suspension measures are referred to at least one House committee before their consideration on the floor. The House
Committee on Foreign Affairs was the committee of primary jurisdiction for the plurality of suspension measures considered
in the 116th Congress. Additional committees—such as Energy and Commerce, Oversight and Reform, Natural Resources,
and Financial Services—also served as the primary committee for a large number of suspension measures.
Suspension motions are debatable for up to 40 minutes. In most cases, a fraction of that debate time is actually used. In the
116th Congress, the average amount of time spent considering a motion to suspend the rules was 13½ minutes.
The House adopted nearly every suspension motion considered in 2019 and 2020. Approval by the House, however, did not
guarantee final approval in the 116th Congress. The Senate agreed to three of the six House joint resolutions and two of the
three House concurrent resolutions considered under suspension of the rules. The Senate passed 178 of the 645 House bills
initially considered under suspension (28%). The President signed 256 measures into law and vetoed one measure, which was
not subject to further congressional action.
This report briefly describes the suspension of the rules procedure, which is defined in clause 1 of House Rule XV, and
provides an analysis of measures considered under this procedure during the 116th Congress. Figures and one table display
statistics on the use of the procedure, including the prevalence and form of suspension measures, sponsorship of measures by
party, committee consideration, length of debate, voting, resolution of differences between the chambers, and the final status
of legislation. In addition, an Appendix illustrates trends in the use of the suspension procedure from the 110th through the
116th Congresses (2007-2020).
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Introduction
The House of Representatives has well-established standing rules that govern how bills and
resolutions are to be taken up and considered on the floor. However, to expedite legislation
receiving floor action, the House may temporarily set aside these rules for measures that are not
otherwise privileged for consideration.1 This can be done by agreeing to a special order of
business resolution (special rule) or by adopting a motion to suspend the rules and pass the
underlying measure.2 In general, special rules enable the consideration of complex or contentious
legislation, such as major appropriations or reauthorizations, while the suspension of the rules
procedure is usually applied to measures that are perceived to have broad bipartisan support and
can be approved without floor amendments or extensive debate in the chamber.3
Most bills and resolutions that receive floor action in the House are called up and considered
under suspension of the rules.4 The suspension procedure allows non-privileged measures to be
raised without a special rule, waives points of order, limits debate, and prohibits floor
amendments. Motions to suspend the rules and pass the measure require a two-thirds vote, so the
procedure is typically reserved for bills and resolutions that can meet a supermajority threshold.5
Decisions to schedule bills for consideration under suspension are generally based on how widely
supported the measures are, how long Members wish to debate them, and whether they want to
propose floor amendments. These decisions are not necessarily related to the subject matter of the
measure. Accordingly, measures brought up under suspension cover a wide range of policy areas
but most often address government operations, such as the designation of federal facilities.
This report describes the suspension procedure, which is defined in clause 1 of House Rule XV,
and provides an analysis of measures considered under suspension during the 116th Congress
(2019-2020). Figures 1-8 display statistical data, including the prevalence and form of
suspension measures, sponsors of measures, committee consideration, length of floor debate,
voting, and resolution of differences between the chambers.6 Table 1 summarizes the final
legislative status of measures initially considered in the House under the suspension of the rules.

1 Privileged business has precedence over the regular order of business. Measures and motions that are privileged
include general appropriation bills, conference reports, order of business resolutions (special rules), resolutions
providing for adjournment, questions of the privileges of the House, and bills returned following a veto by the
President. Charles W. Johnson, John V. Sullivan, and Thomas J. Wickham Jr., House Practice: A Guide to the Rules,
Precedents, and Procedures of the House (Washington: GPO, 2017; hereinafter House Practice), ch. 36, pp. 675-676.
2 The House may also take up and consider non-privileged legislation by unanimous consent or under procedures
associated with clause 2 of Rule XV, the House discharge rule. In the 116th Congress, the House initially considered
66% of all measures receiving floor action under the suspension of the rules procedure, 12% of all measures receiving
floor action were privileged under House rules and precedents, 10% were raised by special rules reported by the
Committee on Rules and adopted by the House, 12% were raised by unanimous consent, and no measures were
considered under the discharge procedure.
3 House Practice, ch. 53, §2.
4 The statistics for use of suspension procedures in the 116th Congress do not differ in significant ways from those in
the 114th Congress or 115th Congress. See CRS Report R45545, Suspension of the Rules: House Practice in the 114th
Congress (2015-2016); and CRS Report R46364, Suspension of the Rules: House Practice in the 115th Congress
(2017-2018), by Jane A. Hudiburg.
5 For additional information on the suspension of the rules procedure, see House Practice, ch. 53, pp. 897-905; and
CRS Report 98-314, Suspension of the Rules in the House: Principal Features, by Elizabeth Rybicki.
6 Data used in this report were collected from the Congress.gov database, which provided the legislative status of all
measures initially considered on the House floor under the suspension of the rules procedure during the 116th Congress.
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Finally, the Appendix depicts the use of the suspension procedure from the 110th through the
116th Congresses (2007-2020).
House Rule XV (Clause 1)
The suspension of the rules procedure is established by clause 1 of House Rule XV. Bills,
resolutions, House amendments to Senate bills, amendments to the Constitution, conference
reports, and other types of business may be considered under suspension, even those “that would
otherwise be subject to a point of order … [or have] not been reported or referred to any calendar
or previously introduced.”7
In the 116th Congress, suspension motions were in order on designated days. Rule XV stated,
“The Speaker may not entertain a motion that the House suspend the rules except on Mondays,
Tuesdays, and Wednesdays and during the last six days of a session of Congress.”8 Suspension
measures, however, could be considered on other days by unanimous consent or under the terms
of a special order of business (special rule) reported by the Committee on Rules and agreed to by
the House.9
A motion to suspend the rules is a compound motion to suspend the House rules and pass a bill or
agree to a resolution. When considering such a motion, the House is voting on the two questions
simultaneously. Once recognized, the Member making the motion will say, “Mr. [or Madam]
Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass___.”10 The House rules that are suspended under
this procedure include those that “would impede an immediate vote on passage of a measure …
such as ordering the previous question, third reading, recommittal, or division of the question.”11
A measure considered under the suspension procedure is not subject to floor amendment. The
motion to suspend and pass the measure, though, may provide for passage of the measure in an
amended form. That is, the text to be approved may be presented in a form altered by committee
amendments or by informal negotiations. Suspension measures that are passed with changes
incorporated into the text are passed “as amended.” There are no separate votes on the floor
approving such amendments.12
Suspension motions are “debatable for 40 minutes, one-half in favor of the motion and one-half in
opposition thereto.” However, in most instances, a true opponent never claims half the time, and
most speakers come to the floor to express support for the measure. Debate time is controlled by
two floor managers, one from each party, who sit on a committee of jurisdiction. The managers
make opening statements and may yield increments of the 20 minutes they control to other
Members to debate the measure. Although rare, the time for debate on a motion to suspend the
rules may be extended by unanimous consent or by resolution.

7 House Practice, ch. 53, §2.
8 U.S. Congress, House, Constitution, Jefferson’s Manual and the Rules of the House (hereinafter House Manual),
116th Cong., 2nd sess., 116-177 (Washington: GPO, 2021), §885. In the 117th Congress, the House, pursuant to H.Res.
1230, amended its standing rules by striking the language from clause 1(a) of Rule XV that had restricted motions to
suspend the rules “except on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays and during the last six days of a session of
Congress.”
9 House Manual, §887.
10 House Manual, §886a.
11 House Practice, ch. 53, §2.
12 If the measure considered under the suspension procedure contains different text than the introduced version, the
question is on “the motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill [resolution], as amended.”
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Once debate has concluded, a single vote is held on the motion to suspend the rules and pass the
measure. The motion requires approval by “two-thirds of the Members voting, a quorum being
present.”13 Should the vote fall short of the two-thirds required for passage (290, if all Members
vote), the measure is not permanently rejected. Before the end of the Congress, the House may
consider the measure again under suspension, or the Committee on Rules may report a special
rule that provides for floor consideration of the measure.14
Prevalence and Form of Suspension Measures, 116th
Congress
As illustrated in Figure 1, the majority of measures considered on the House floor during the
116th Congress were initially called up under the suspension of the rules procedure. Sixty-six
percent of all measures that received floor action were initially considered under suspension (792
out of the 1,195), compared to those under the terms of a special rule (10%), unanimous consent
(12%), or privileged business (12%).
Figure 2 displays the form of suspension measures. Most of the measures considered under
suspension during the 116th Congress (92%) were bills. House bills made up 81% of the
suspension total, Senate bills 11%. The remaining measures were House resolutions, House
concurrent resolutions, and House joint resolutions. There were no Senate concurrent or joint
resolutions considered under suspension of the rules in the 116th Congress.
Figure 1. Suspension Measures Compared to Total Number of
Measures Considered on House Floor
116th Congress (2019-2020)

Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.
Note: Chart reflects initial consideration of House and Senate bills and resolutions.

13 House Manual, §885.
14 House Practice, ch. 53, §1.
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Figure 2. Forms of Measures Considered Under Suspension Procedure
116th Congress (2019-2020)

Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.
Note: Chart reflects initial consideration of House and Senate bills and resolutions.
Sponsors of Suspension Measures
As represented in Figure 3, most suspension measures were sponsored by Members of the
majority party during the 116th Congress. House or Senate majority-party Members sponsored
71% of all bills and resolutions initially considered in the House under suspension, while House
majority-party Members sponsored 515 (73%) of the 708 House-originated measures (designated
with an H.R., H.Res., H.Con.Res. or H.J.Res. prefix).
However, by a wide margin, suspension is the most common procedure used to consider
minority-sponsored legislation in the House. In the 116th Congress, 78% of the minority-
sponsored measures that were considered on the House floor were raised under the suspension
procedure. Members of the House or Senate minority parties sponsored 29% of all suspension
measures originating in either chamber, and minority-party House Members sponsored 193 (27%)
of the 708 House measures considered under suspension.15 In contrast, minority-party Members
sponsored 16% of legislation originating in either chamber that was subject to different
procedures, including privileged business (19 measures) and unanimous consent (32 measures),
and 7 measures (1 House bill and 6 Senate joint resolutions) that were considered under the terms
of special rules.

15 In the 116th Congress, Democrats were the majority in the House, and Republicans were the majority in the Senate.
Thus, the Senate minority-party sponsors belonged to the same party as the House majority, which may have affected
the number of minority-sponsored, Senate-originated bills considered in the House. Senate Democrats sponsored 46%
(39 bills) of the total number of Senate bills (84) raised and considered under the suspension of the rules procedure.
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Figure 3. Suspension Measures by Party of Sponsor
116th Congress (2019-2020)

Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.
Note: Chart reflects initial consideration of House and Senate bills and resolutions.
Committee Consideration
Committee Referral
Most suspension measures are referred to at least one House committee before their consideration
on the chamber floor. In the 116th Congress, 746 out of the 792 suspension measures considered
(94%) were previously referred to House committees. The 46 measures that were not referred
were Senate bills that were “held at the desk” prior to consideration.16
Measures may be referred to multiple House committees before receiving floor action. When a
bill or resolution is referred to more than one House committee, the Speaker will designate one
committee as primary, meaning it is the committee exercising jurisdiction over the largest part of
the measure. Generally, the chair of the committee of primary jurisdiction works with majority
party leadership to determine if and when a measure should be considered under suspension.
The House Committee on Foreign Affairs was the committee of primary jurisdiction for the
plurality of measures considered under suspension in the 116th Congress: 111, or 14%, of the total
number of suspension measures considered. Figure 4 shows the number and percentage of
measures brought up under suspension from each House committee of primary jurisdiction.

16 When a Senate-passed bill is received in the House and “held at the desk,” it is not referred to a committee. The
measure may remain at the desk or instead be called up on the floor by suspension of the rules or by unanimous
consent.
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Figure 4. Suspension Measures by Committee of Primary Jurisdiction
116th Congress (2019-2020)

Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.
Notes: Chart reflects initial consideration of House and Senate bills and resolutions.
For most House committees, the majority of their referred measures that reached the floor were
raised under the suspension procedure. In the 116th Congress, the exceptions included the
Committee on House Administration, which had most of its measures considered by unanimous
consent, and the Committees on Budget and Appropriations, which had all or most of their
measures considered pursuant to special rules, respectively. The Select Intelligence Committee
had two bills considered pursuant to special rules and two considered via the suspension
procedure. Armed Services was the primary committee for six bills considered by the House;
three were considered by unanimous consent and three were considered under the terms of special
rules. For the other committees, suspension measures ranged from 56% to 100% of the total
number of the committee’s measures receiving House floor action (Figure 5).
As suspension motions require a two-thirds majority for passage, House committees that handle
less contentious subjects tend to have more of their measures considered under the suspension
procedure in comparison to other committees. In the 116th Congress, high-suspension committees
included Small Business (100% of measures receiving floor action); Science, Space, and
Technology (96.2%); Foreign Affairs (94%); and Homeland Security (93%).
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Figure 5. Total Number of Measures Considered on House Floor, Grouped by
Committee of Primary Jurisdiction
116th Congress (2019-2020)

Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.
Note: Chart displays House and Senate bills and resolutions that were initially considered on the House floor
under the suspension procedure as sorted by the committee of primary jurisdiction.
Committee Markup and Reporting
While suspension measures are not subject to floor amendments, committees may recommend
amendments to legislative texts during markup meetings or through informal negotiations. The
motion to suspend the rules can include these proposed changes when a Member moves to
suspend the rules and pass the measure “as amended.” In the 116th Congress, 468 suspension
measures (59% of the total) were considered “as amended,” meaning that the text considered
pursuant to the suspension motion differed from the measure’s introduced text.
Clause 2 of House Rule XIII requires that a measure reported by a House committee must be
accompanied by a written report. Otherwise, it is not placed on a calendar of measures eligible for
floor consideration.17 However, the written report requirement is among those rules suspended
under the suspension procedure. Thus, a measure may be called up on the floor under suspension
of the rules even if a committee never ordered it to be reported or wrote an accompanying

17 House Practice, ch. 11, §28.
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committee report.18 Instead, the motion to suspend the rules discharges the committee and brings
the legislation directly to the House floor.
In the 116th Congress, 509 (64%) suspension measures were ordered to be reported by House
committees. Of this number, 302 were reported with accompanying House committee reports.
Eighty-seven measures that did not have House reports did have Senate reports (of these, 22 were
Senate bills that did not receive House committee referral), and 403 measures had no written
reports from either chamber (51% of the total number of suspension measures).
Floor Consideration
Raising Measures (Day of Week)
In the 116th Congress, motions to suspend the rules were regularly in order on Mondays,
Tuesdays, and Wednesdays or on the last six days of a session of Congress pursuant to Rule XV.
However, suspension motions could be considered on other days by unanimous consent or under
the terms of a special rule reported by the Committee on Rules and agreed to by the House.19
Such special rules included a provision stating, “It shall be in order at any time on the legislative
day of ___ for the Speaker to entertain motions that the House suspend the rules as though under
clause 1 of rule XV.”
As displayed in Figure 6, in the 116th Congress, most suspension measures were considered on
Mondays (254 measures) or Tuesdays (255 measures), followed by Wednesdays (184) and
Thursdays (90). In addition, seven suspension measures were considered on Fridays, while a
Saturday and a Sunday each featured one suspension measure. The two weekend measures
responded to arguably time-sensitive issues: emergency coronavirus supplemental funding (H.R.
6201) and a potential lapse in government funding (H.J.Res. 110).

18 In regular practice, a House committee will vote to order a measure reported (almost always favorably), then the
committee will often prepare a written report and file it on the floor. However, a motion to suspend the rules and pass a
measure may occur without a measure being ordered reported or after the measure is ordered reported but without the
filing of an accompanying committee report. The motion to suspend the rules, if adopted, discharges the committee
from the further consideration of the measure and places it directly on the floor. House Practice, ch. 53, §2.
19 In the 117th Congress, the House, pursuant to H.Res. 1230, amended its standing rules to eliminate the language of
clause 1(a) of Rule XV that stated, “The Speaker may not entertain a motion that the House suspend the rules except on
Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays and during the last six days of a session of Congress.” This rule change enables
measures to be raised and considered under the suspension of the rules procedure on any day in which the House is in
session during the 117th Congress, provided that the presiding officer recognizes a Member to make the motion to
suspend the rules.
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Figure 6. Days of the Week Suspension Measures Were Considered
116th Congress (2019-2020)

Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.
Notes: Chart reflects initial consideration of House and Senate bills and resolutions.
Majority and Minority Floor Managers
Pursuant to Rule XV, suspension measures are “debatable for 40 minutes, one-half in favor of the
motion and one-half in opposition thereto.”20 In practice, there is rarely a true opponent to a
motion to suspend the rules, and the time is divided between two floor managers, usually one
from each party, who both favor the motion.21 The floor managers each control 20 minutes of
debate. The managers may be their parties’ sole representatives for or against the motion, or they
may yield increments of the 20-minute allotment to other Members.
Typically, the relevant committee chairs and ranking members select the majority and minority
floor managers for particular bills and resolutions. These managers may be the measure’s
sponsor, the chair or ranking member of the measure’s committee of primary jurisdiction, or
another committee member.
In the 116th Congress, the measure’s sponsor served as the majority manager on 135 (17%) of the
suspension measures receiving floor action. The committee chairs managed 308 (39%) of the
measures.
The majority floor manager makes the motion to suspend the rules by stating, “Mr. [or Madam]
Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill [or resolution] ____.” The Speaker (or
Speaker pro tempore) responds, “Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman [woman] from [state] and
the gentleman [woman] from [state] each will control twenty minutes.” The majority and

20 Rule XV, clause 1(c), House Manual, §891, p. 690.
21 In the event that a true opponent claims the time in opposition, the time is often divided among three managers with
the opponent controlling 20 minutes and the majority and minority proponents controlling 10 minutes. However, in the
116th Congress, during debate on H.R. 3702, the true opponent yielded 10 minutes to the minority manager, and the
majority manager controlled 20 minutes.
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minority managers then, in turn, make opening statements regarding the measure using the 20
minutes each controls.
If the majority and minority managers have secured additional speakers, the speakers generally
alternate between the parties within the 40-minute limit. Occasionally, floor managers controlling
time on a motion to suspend the rules cede their control to other Members during debate. By
unanimous request, the other Member then controls the remaining amount of time allotted.
At the start of the debate period, the majority manager may request “unanimous consent that all
Members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and add
extraneous materials on this bill [resolution].” This request enables “general leave” statements to
be inserted into the Congressional Record.
Debate and Length of Consideration
Suspension measures are limited to 40 minutes of debate under Rule XV. However, if there are
time gaps between speakers or procedural interruptions, such as a vote on a motion to adjourn, the
period between the start of the first speaker’s remarks and the conclusion of debate may exceed
40 minutes.22 The statistics displayed in Figure 7 show the length of consideration of suspension
measures as documented in Congress.gov, not the accumulated length of statements, as kept by
official timekeepers in the chamber.23
In the 116th Congress, the average length of consideration on a motion to suspend the rules was
13½ minutes, and more than half of the measures considered had debate periods of 10 minutes or
less. Thus, while overall debate is limited to 40 minutes under the rule, on most suspension
measures, a fraction of that time was actually expended during consideration. Twenty-four
measures, however, had consideration periods that exceeded 40 minutes as a result of unanimous
consent requests for additional time to debate or due to unspecified procedural delays.

22 “Pending a motion to suspend the rules, only one motion to adjourn is in order, unless the failure of a quorum is
demonstrated.” House Practice, ch. 53, §5.
23 For the purposes of this report, the length of consideration is the difference in the time between a measure being
called up under suspension and the conclusion of debate, as noted in Congress.gov.
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Figure 7. Length of Debate Periods for Suspension Measures
116th Congress (2019-2020)

Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.
Notes: Chart reflects initial consideration of House and Senate bills and resolutions.
Voting and Passage in the House
House leaders generally choose measures for suspension that are likely to achieve the two-thirds
majority threshold for passage. Thus, almost all suspension measures were passed or adopted by
the House in the 116th Congress.
The House passed, via motions to suspend the rules, 643 of the 645 House bills that were initially
considered under suspension. Two House bills did not receive the requisite supermajority. One
bill was later considered and approved under the terms of a special rule. The other bill did not
return to the floor and therefore did not pass the House.24
The House agreed to all but one of the House resolutions (54) and concurrent resolutions (3) that
were considered under suspension.25 The House approved five out of the six House joint
resolutions. The House joint resolution that did not receive the requisite supermajority was
H.J.Res. 27, the Further Additional Continuing Appropriations Act, 2019. The House approved
each of the 84 Senate bills initially considered under the suspension procedure.
Voice Votes
Most suspension motions are agreed to in the House by voice vote, which is the chamber’s
default method of voting on most questions. In 2019 and 2020, this method of voting led to the
final approval of 77% (608) of the motions to suspend the rules and pass the measures (see
Figure 8).

24 H.R. 6782 (116th Congress) failed under suspension and was not reconsidered. H.R. 549 (116th Congress)
subsequently passed in the House under a special rule.
25 H.Res. 79 (116th Congress) failed under suspension and was not reconsidered.
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Record Votes
After the initial voice vote, Members triggered an eventual record vote (often called a roll call
vote) on 184 (23%) of the suspension measures considered in the 116th Congress. This was done
by demanding the “yeas and nays,” objecting to the vote “on the grounds that a quorum is not
present,” or, in two cases, demanding a recorded vote.26 In all but four instances, the chair elected
to postpone the vote to a later period within two additional legislative days pursuant to clause 8 of
House Rule XX.27
In the 116th Congress, 180 suspension motions were adopted by record vote, and four motions to
suspend the rules were defeated by record votes. The defeat of a motion to suspend the rules,
however, does not necessarily kill the legislation. The Speaker may choose to recognize a
Member at a later time to make another motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, or the
House may consider the measure pursuant to a special rule reported by the Committee on Rules.
Accordingly, one of the initially unsuccessful measures was later called up and passed under the
terms of a special rule. The other three measures did not receive further House consideration after
their initial rejection under the suspension of the rules procedure.
Figure 8. Adoption of Suspension Motions in the House
116th Congress, 2019-2020

Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.

26 Voice votes ascertain the approval or disapproval on a question, while record votes also list the names of Members
and how they voted. Record votes are often referred to as roll call votes. There are three types of record votes: (1) those
that are triggered by a sustained point of order alleging that a quorum is not present, in which case the yeas and nays
are automatically ordered without the need for a sufficient second; (2) those that are triggered by a demand for the yeas
and nays with the concurrence of one-fifth present; and (3) those that are triggered by a demand for a recorded vote
with the concurrence of one-fifth of a quorum—44 Members. See CRS Report 95-563, The Legislative Process on the
House Floor: An Introduction, by Christopher M. Davis; CRS Report 98-228, House Voting Procedures: Forms and
Requirements, by Jane A. Hudiburg; and CRS Report 98-988, Voting and Quorum Procedures in the House of
Representatives, coordinated by Elizabeth Rybicki.
27 House Manual, Rule XX, clause 8(a), §1030.
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Note: Chart reflects initial consideration of House and Senate bills and resolutions.
Final Disposition of Measures Considered Under
Suspension of the Rules
Passed by the Senate
Although suspension measures generally receive broad support, measures that receive the
requisite two-thirds majority in the House are not guaranteed passage in the Senate. As noted in
Table 1, in the 116th Congress, the Senate agreed to three of the six House joint resolutions and
two of the three House concurrent resolutions considered under suspension of the rules. The
Senate passed 178 of the 645 House bills initially considered under suspension (28%).
Of the 267 suspension measures that passed the House and Senate, 43 entered a “resolution of
differences” stage between the chambers. Twenty-seven House bills and 16 Senate bills were
subject to an amendment exchange process. (No measure initially considered under suspension of
the rules had bicameral differences resolved in a conference committee.) Three of these
measures—H.R. 925, H.R. 550, and H.R. 2486—did not have their differences resolved because
the House and Senate did not agree on the final text as amended by both chambers. Five bills,
initially passed in the House under suspension, did not enter the “resolving differences” stage,
and were not enacted into law, because either the House or the Senate did not take up the opposite
chamber’s amendments.28
Presidential Action
Of the measures initially considered under suspension during the 116th Congress, 172 House bills,
82 Senate bills, and 3 House joint resolutions were presented to President Trump for signature or
veto. The President signed 256 of these measures, vetoing one Senate bill, so a total of 253 bills
and 3 joint resolutions were enacted into law (see Table 1).29
Table 1. Final Status of Legislation Initially Brought Up Under Suspension
116th Congress, 2019-2020
Passed
Presented
Achieved Final
Form of
Number of
Passed
Both
to
Passage/
Measure
Measures
House
Chambers
President
Vetoed
Became Law
House Bill
645
644a
178
172
0
172
Senate Bill
84
84
84
82
1
81
House Joint
6
5
3
3
0
3
Resolution
House
3
3
2
N/A
N/A
2
Concurrent
Resolution

28 These bills were S. 178, S. 1811, H.R. 1044, H.R. 2610, and H.R. 4764.
29 President Trump vetoed S. 906, Driftnet Modernization and Bycatch Reduction Act. The House and Senate did not
attempt to override the veto, so the bill was not enacted into law.
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Suspension of the Rules: House Practice in the 116th Congress (2019-2020)

Passed
Presented
Achieved Final
Form of
Number of
Passed
Both
to
Passage/
Measure
Measures
House
Chambers
President
Vetoed
Became Law
Senate
0
0
0
N/A
N/A
0
Concurrent
Resolution
House
54
53
N/A
N/A
N/A
53
Resolution
Total
792
789
267
257
1
311
Source: CRS analysis of data from Congress.gov.
Note:
a. Of the 792 measures initially considered under suspension of the rules, the House passed 643 House bills
under the suspension procedure and 1 under the terms of a special rule.
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Suspension of the Rules: House Practice in the 116th Congress (2019-2020)

Appendix. Use of Suspension Motions, 110th-116th
Congresses
Figure A-1. Measures Considered Under Suspension Compared to Measures
Considered Under Other Procedures on the House Floor
110th-116th Congresses, 2007-2020

Sources: Congress.gov and the following reports by Christopher M. Davis: CRS Report R40829, How Legislation
Is Brought to the House Floor: A Snapshot of Recent Parliamentary Practice in the 111th Congress (2009-2010); CRS
Report R43039, How Legislation Is Brought to the House Floor: A Snapshot of Parliamentary Practice in the 112th
Congress (2011-2012); CRS Report R43912, How Legislation Is Brought to the House Floor: A Snapshot of
Parliamentary Practice in the 113th Congress (2013-2014); and CRS Report R44734, How Legislation Is Brought to the
House Floor: A Snapshot of Parliamentary Practice in the 114th Congress (2015-2016).
Notes: Chart reflects initial consideration of House and Senate bills and resolutions. At the start of the 112th
Congress (2011-2012), the House Republican Conference amended its conference rules to generally prohibit the
Republican leader from scheduling for consideration under suspension of the rules any bills or resolutions that
recognize individuals, groups, institutions, anniversaries of events, or periods of time. This action likely reduced
the number of measures considered under the suspension procedure as well as the total number of measures
considered on the House floor during this and subsequent Congresses. See CRS Report R43539,
Commemorations in Congress: Options for Honoring Individuals, Groups, and Events, coordinated by Jacob R. Straus.

Author Information

Jane A. Hudiburg

Analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process

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Suspension of the Rules: House Practice in the 116th Congress (2019-2020)

Disclaimer
This document was prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS serves as nonpartisan
shared staff to congressional committees and Members of Congress. It operates solely at the behest of and
under the direction of Congress. Information in a CRS Report should not be relied upon for purposes other
than public understanding of information that has been provided by CRS to Members of Congress in
connection with CRS’s institutional role. CRS Reports, as a work of the United States Government, are not
subject to copyright protection in the United States. Any CRS Report may be reproduced and distributed in
its entirety without permission from CRS. However, as a CRS Report may include copyrighted images or
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copy or otherwise use copyrighted material.

Congressional Research Service
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