A New Assignment-The Rules Committee

A New Assignment-The Rules Committee
By Tom Cole
January 25, 2005

At the beginning of the new Congress, I was appointed by the Speaker of the House to a new committee assignment-the Rules Committee. Although often misunderstood, the Rules committee has a hand in the debate of every single piece of legislation that comes to the floor. I would like to share with you a brief history of this committee and the advantages of this new assignment.

Although this assignment requires me to leave the Education and the Workforce Committee, the Resources Committee and take a leave of absence from the Armed Services Committee, I will have an even greater opportunity in this new role to advance Oklahoma interests and values. Because every single piece of legislation must go through the Rules Committee before it is introduced to the House for a vote, I will have an influence on how and if a piece of legislation advances. This will allow me to have a voice in the debate on all issues that affect Oklahoma.

On April 2, 1789, the second day of the First Congress, the House voted to establish a select committee "to prepare and report such standing rules and orders of proceedings as may be proper to be observed in the House." The Rules Committee remained, for ninety years, a temporary select committee, appointed at the beginning of each Congress for the purpose of recommending rule changes and then immediately adjourning. It wasn't until 1880, that the modern Rules Committee began to emerge as the legislative scheduling agent of the House. The development of the Rules Committee over two hundred years, reflects the growing complexity of the Congress and the issues it confronts. The evolution has shown the need for a mechanism to assist the leadership in coordinating and processing the business of the House in an orderly and prompt fashion.

Although the Rules Committee was originally created to develop a set of standing rules and uniform order of business for the House, now its principal role is to create special rules that depart from the standing rules and regular order.

The Rules Committee consists of thirteen members, nine from the majority party and four from the minority party. The Committee works with the Speaker and the Majority Leader to schedule bills and set the terms of debate on the floor. It serves as a "legislative gatekeeper" and every piece of legislation considered by the House must first pass through the Rules Committee. The Rules Committee is instrumental in recommending procedures for considering major bills. It can recommend rules for the debate of a certain bill and can place restrictions on the floor amendments that Members may offer. The House will vote on the recommended rules before considering the bill.

Joining the Speakers leadership committee is an enormous responsibility. I believe this committee assignment will help me better advance Oklahoma's interests and will enable me to have a larger voice in the big debates of this session. I am looking forward to the challenges of this year and the new assignment on Rules Committee.

http://www.house.gov/apps/list/hearing/ok04_cole/rules.html