Procedures of the United States Congresslausines

Act of Congress: "Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled."

Joint resolution: "Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled."

Quorum and vote[edit]

See also: Voting methods in deliberative assemblies

The Constitution specifies that a majority of members constitutes a quorum to do business in each house. The rules of each house provide that a quorum is assumed to be present unless a quorum call demonstrates the contrary. Representatives and senators rarely force the presence of a quorum by demanding quorum calls; thus, in most cases, debates continue even if a majority is not present.

Both houses use voice voting to decide most matters; members shout out "aye!" or "no!", and the presiding officer announces the result. The Constitution, however, requires a recorded vote on the demand of one-fifth of the members present. If the

esult of the voice vote is unclear, or if the matter is controversial, a recorded vote usually ensues. The Senate uses roll-call votes; a clerk calls out the names of all the ators, each senator stating "aye" or "no" when his or her name is announced. The House reserves roll-call votes for the election of the Speaker, as a roll-call of all 435 representatives takes quite some time; normally, members vote by electronic device. In the case of a tie, the motion in question fails. In the Senate, the Vice President may (if present) cast the tiebreaking vote.

A series of many votes in a row is known as vote-a-rama; this is most commonly a series of amendments on a budget resolution or a bill in the reconciliation process, but may be done on any bill.^[15][16]

References[edit]

1. 
   ^ “How Our Laws Are Made” infographic by Mike Wirth and Dr. Suzanne Cooper-Guasco for Sunlight Foundation “Design for America Competition” 2010, sources: “How Our Laws Are Made” Archived2008-08-21 at the Wayback Machine by John V. Sullivan (Rev. 6.24.07 thomas.loc.gov) and What is a Lobbyist? - wiseGEEK and Reconciliation in the Senate - Brookings Institution Archived 2012-01-18 at the Wayback Machine.
   
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