| 1 | 1 | | By: Vasut H.R. No. 72 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 5 | 5 | | BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the 87th |
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| 6 | 6 | | Legislature, that Rule 1, Section 15, of the permanent rules of the |
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| 7 | 7 | | House of Representatives of the 87th Legislature is amended to read |
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| 8 | 8 | | as follows: |
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| 9 | 9 | | Sec. 15. Standing Committee Appointments - (a) The speaker |
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| 10 | 10 | | shall designate the chair and vice-chair of each standing |
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| 11 | 11 | | substantive committee and shall also appoint membership of the |
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| 12 | 12 | | committee, subject to the provisions of Rule 4, Section 2. |
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| 13 | 13 | | (b) If members of equal seniority request the same |
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| 14 | 14 | | committee, the speaker shall decide which among them shall be |
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| 15 | 15 | | assigned to that committee. |
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| 16 | 16 | | (c) In announcing the membership of the standing |
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| 17 | 17 | | substantive committees, the speaker shall designate which are |
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| 18 | 18 | | appointees and which acquire membership by seniority. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (d) The speaker shall appoint the chair and vice-chair of |
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| 20 | 20 | | each standing procedural committee and the remaining membership of |
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| 21 | 21 | | the committee. |
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| 22 | 22 | | (e) If a new speaker is elected to fill a vacancy in the |
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| 23 | 23 | | office after the appointment of standing committees, the new |
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| 24 | 24 | | speaker may not alter the composition of any standing committee |
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| 25 | 25 | | before the end of the session, except that the new speaker may: |
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| 26 | 26 | | (1) vacate the new speaker's membership on any |
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| 27 | 27 | | committee; |
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| 28 | 28 | | (2) make committee appointments for the member who was |
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| 29 | 29 | | removed as speaker; |
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| 30 | 30 | | (3) designate a different member of a standing |
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| 31 | 31 | | committee as committee chair; and |
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| 32 | 32 | | (4) fill vacancies that occur on a committee. |
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| 33 | 33 | | (f)(1) A member shall be removed as chair and vice-chair of |
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| 34 | 34 | | all standing and procedural committees the member serves on, but |
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| 35 | 35 | | shall retain his or her membership on the committee, if a majority |
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| 36 | 36 | | of the house adopts a motion to remove a committee chair or |
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| 37 | 37 | | vice-chair for any of the following reasons: |
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| 38 | 38 | | (A) the member is absent from the sessions of the |
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| 39 | 39 | | house without leave under Rule 5, Section 3, for more than seven (7) |
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| 40 | 40 | | cumulative days during any regular session; |
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| 41 | 41 | | (B) the member is absent from the sessions of the |
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| 42 | 42 | | house without leave under Rule 5, Section 3, for more than three (3) |
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| 43 | 43 | | cumulative days during any special session; |
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| 44 | 44 | | (C) the member is absent from the sessions of the |
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| 45 | 45 | | house without leave under Rule 5, Section 3, for more than fourteen |
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| 46 | 46 | | (14) cumulative days, with the intent to cause a lack of quorum |
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| 47 | 47 | | under Rule 5, Section 1, during the past six (6) months. |
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| 48 | 48 | | (2) A motion under Subdivision (1) must be seconded by |
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| 49 | 49 | | twenty-five (25) members, of whom the speaker may be one, and shall |
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| 50 | 50 | | be recognized as a privileged motion if otherwise in order. |
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| 51 | 51 | | (3) A motion under Subdivision (1) is not in order |
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| 52 | 52 | | unless a member has previously provided at least twenty-four hour's |
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| 53 | 53 | | notice of intent to make the motion by addressing the house when the |
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| 54 | 54 | | house is in session and stating that a member intends to make a |
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| 55 | 55 | | motion for the removal of a member(s) as chair or vice-chair of a |
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| 56 | 56 | | standing or procedural committee. |
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| 57 | 57 | | (4) A member that is subject to a motion under |
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| 58 | 58 | | Subdivision (1) is permitted, but not obligated, to address the |
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| 59 | 59 | | house for not more than 10 minutes on a motion being considered by |
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| 60 | 60 | | the full house under Subdivision (1). The time limits established |
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| 61 | 61 | | by this rule shall include time consumed in yielding to questions |
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| 62 | 62 | | from the floor. The time limit established by this rule shall not |
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| 63 | 63 | | be extended. |
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| 64 | 64 | | (5) No member may be subject to a motion under |
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| 65 | 65 | | Subdivision (1) more than once during any regular or special |
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| 66 | 66 | | session. |
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| 67 | 67 | | (6) A motion under Subdivision (1) is incidental to a |
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| 68 | 68 | | call of the house, under Rule 5, Section 7. |
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| 69 | 69 | | (g) The speaker may not appoint a member as a chair or |
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| 70 | 70 | | vice-chair of any committee if the member was removed as a chair or |
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| 71 | 71 | | vice-chair of any committee during the previous twelve (12) months |
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| 72 | 72 | | pursuant to Subsection (f). |
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| 73 | 73 | | BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the |
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| 74 | 74 | | 87th Legislature, that Rule 5, Section 8, of the permanent rules of |
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| 75 | 75 | | the House of Representatives of the 87th Legislature is amended to |
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| 76 | 76 | | read as follows: |
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| 77 | 77 | | Sec. 8. Securing a Quorum. (a) When a call of the house is |
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| 78 | 78 | | moved for one of the above purposes and seconded by 15 members (of |
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| 79 | 79 | | whom the speaker may be one) and ordered by a majority vote, the |
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| 80 | 80 | | main entrance to the hall and all other doors leading out of the |
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| 81 | 81 | | hall shall be locked and no member permitted to leave the house |
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| 82 | 82 | | without the written permission of the speaker. The names of members |
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| 83 | 83 | | present shall be recorded. All absentees for whom no sufficient |
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| 84 | 84 | | excuse is made may, by order of a majority of those present, be sent |
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| 85 | 85 | | for and arrested, wherever they may be found, by the |
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| 86 | 86 | | sergeant-at-arms or an officer appointed by the sergeant-at-arms |
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| 87 | 87 | | for that purpose, and their attendance shall be secured and |
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| 88 | 88 | | retained. The house shall determine on what conditions they shall |
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| 89 | 89 | | be discharged. Members who voluntarily appear shall, unless the |
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| 90 | 90 | | house otherwise directs, be immediately admitted to the hall of the |
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| 91 | 91 | | house and shall report their names to the clerk to be entered in the |
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| 92 | 92 | | journal as present. |
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| 93 | 93 | | (b) Until a quorum appears, should the roll call fail to |
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| 94 | 94 | | show one present, no business shall be transacted, except to compel |
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| 95 | 95 | | the attendance of absent members or to adjourn. It shall not be in |
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| 96 | 96 | | order to recess under a call of the house. |
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| 97 | 97 | | (c) Any member without sufficient excuse who fails to appear |
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| 98 | 98 | | in the hall within twenty-four (24) hours of a call of the house, or |
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| 99 | 99 | | within twenty-four (24) hours of the appointed time for the member |
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| 100 | 100 | | to appear pursuant to any written permission of the speaker, shall |
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| 101 | 101 | | be fined a sum equal to two times the member's per diem per day the |
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| 102 | 102 | | member is absent without excuse during a call of the house. Such |
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| 103 | 103 | | fine shall be remitted to the sergeant-at-arms and made payable to |
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| 104 | 104 | | the Texas House of Representatives. |
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| 105 | 105 | | (d) Any member without sufficient excuse who fails to appear |
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| 106 | 106 | | in the hall within forty-eight (48) hours of a call of the house, or |
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| 107 | 107 | | within forty-eight (48) hours of the appointed time for the member |
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| 108 | 108 | | to appear pursuant to any written permission of the speaker, shall |
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| 109 | 109 | | be re-designated as having zero years and zero days of cumulative |
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| 110 | 110 | | service as a member of the house of representatives for purposes of |
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| 111 | 111 | | seniority under these Rules and any privileges appurtenant thereto. |
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| 112 | 112 | | There shall be no method by which to reinstate the seniority of a |
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| 113 | 113 | | member that has been re-designated as having zero years and zero |
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| 114 | 114 | | days of cumulative service as a member of the house of |
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| 115 | 115 | | representatives for purposes of seniority under this subsection. |
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| 116 | 116 | | (e) Any member without sufficient excuse who fails to appear |
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| 117 | 117 | | in the hall within seventy-two (72) hours of a call of the house, or |
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| 118 | 118 | | within seventy-two (72) hours of the appointed time for the member |
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| 119 | 119 | | to appear pursuant to any written permission of the speaker, shall |
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| 120 | 120 | | be removed as chair and vice-chair of all standing and procedural |
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| 121 | 121 | | committees the member serves on, but shall retain his or her |
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| 122 | 122 | | membership on the committee. |
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