SR2,52,2
1(12) Chief clerk: The officer elected to perform and direct the clerical and
2personnel functions of one of the houses.
SR2,52,33 (13) Committee chairperson: The head of a committee.
SR2,52,44 (14) Committee executive action: The action of a committee on any proposal.
SR2,52,65 (15) Committee of the whole: The membership of one house organized in
6committee for the discussion of a specific matter.
SR2,52,87 (16) Concurrence: The action by which one house agrees to a proposal or action
8of the other house.
SR2,52,109 (17) Conference committee: A committee of representatives to the assembly
10and of senators, appointed to resolve differences on a specific proposal.
SR2,52,1211 (18) Contested seat: A district in which 2 or more persons claim the right to
12represent the district.
SR2,52,1413 (20) Current membership: The members of one of the houses, omitting those
14who have resigned, have been removed, or have died.
SR2,52,1515 (22) Dilatory: To delay.
SR2,52,1716 (23) Division of the question: To break a question into 2 or more separate
17propositions.
SR2,52,2018 (24) Elected membership: The members of one of the houses, certified as
19elected in the last general election, including those who have subsequently resigned,
20have been removed, or have died.
SR2,52,2321 (25) Engrossed proposal: A proposal incorporating all adopted amendments
22and all approved technical corrections in the house of origin, whether or not it is
23reproduced as engrossed.
SR2,53,3
1(26) Enrolled proposal: A proposal that was passed, or adopted, and
2concurred in, incorporating any amendments and corrections that were approved by
3both houses.
SR2,53,44 (27) Expunge: To remove material from the record and thus undo some action.
SR2,53,95 (27m) Extraordinary session: The convening of the legislature by the
6assembly and senate committees on organization or by petition or joint resolution of
7the legislature to accomplish the business specified in the action calling the session.
8When used to continue a floorperiod of the regular session for a limited purpose, the
9extraordinary session is referred to as an extended session.
SR2,53,1110 (28) Fiscal estimate: A memorandum by a state agency pursuant to joint rules
1141 to 49, explaining the impact of a bill on state or local finances.
SR2,53,1312 (29m) Floor of the senate: That portion of the senate chamber that is reserved
13for members, senate officers, and persons granted the privilege of the floor.
SR2,53,1614 (30) Floor amendment: Any amendment offered for consideration at the 2nd
15reading stage, or for committee consideration, but not drafted by the legislative
16reference bureau.
SR2,53,1717 (31) Germaneness: The relevance or appropriateness of amendments.
SR2,53,1918 (32) Hearing: A committee meeting at which the public is invited to testify on
19a proposal or issue.
SR2,53,2020 (33) History: A record of actions on any given proposal.
SR2,53,2221 (33m) History file: The list of entries made by the chief clerk in the bulletin
22of proceedings, recording the actions of the legislature on a proposal.
SR2,54,223 (34) Incidental motions and requests: A group of motions and requests that
24generally relates to the proceedings, procedures, and subsidiary questions during
25debate, and that must be disposed of before proceeding to the main question under

1consideration. Incidental questions have lower precedence than privileged
2questions but higher precedence than subsidiary and main motions.
SR2,54,43 (35) Indefinite postponement: A motion to kill a proposal in its house of origin
4for a legislative session.
SR2,54,55 (36) Introduction: The formal presentation of a bill before one of the houses.
SR2,54,76 (37) Joint convention, also called joint session: A joint meeting of the senate
7and the assembly.
SR2,54,98 (38) Joint hearing: A hearing held by a joint committee or by committees of
9both houses.
SR2,54,1310 (39) Joint resolution: A proposal requiring adoption by both houses, to: a)
11express the opinion of the legislature; b) change joint rules of the legislature; c)
12propose an amendment to the state constitution; or d) propose or ratify an
13amendment to the U.S. constitution.
SR2,54,1414 (40) Joint rules: The common rules of procedure adopted by both houses.
SR2,54,1515 (41) Journal: The official publication of one of the houses.
SR2,54,1616 (42) Leave: Permission to be absent from one of the houses.
SR2,54,1717 (43) Legislative day: Any day on which the legislature is in session.
SR2,54,2118 (44) Main motions and questions: The final affirmative question concerning
19a proposal during any stage of its consideration or any motion made or question
20raised when no other matter is before the house. Main questions have lower
21precedence than privileged, incidental, and subsidiary questions.
SR2,54,2222 (45) Majority: One more than one-half.
SR2,54,2523 (46) Manual: The publication containing the rules of a house, the joint rules,
24the session schedule, the state constitution, alphabetical indexes, and other
25materials relevant to a legislator's job.
SR2,55,1
1(47) Member: A duly elected senator or representative to the assembly.
SR2,55,22 (48) Members present: Those members in attendance at a daily session.
SR2,55,33 (48m) Measure: Another term for proposal.
SR2,55,44 (49) Motion: A proposed action requiring approval by a vote of a house.
SR2,55,65 (50) Nonconcurrence: The refusal of one house to agree to a proposal or action
6of the other.
SR2,55,87 (50m) Offer: The formal presentation of a joint resolution, resolution,
8substitute amendment, amendment, or motion before a house.
SR2,55,109 (51) Opinion of the attorney general: A formal reply by the attorney general
10to a specific question.
SR2,55,1311 (52) Pair: A written agreement between 2 members on opposite sides of a
12question not to vote on that question while one or both are absent with leave, thereby
13permitting the absent member to influence the outcome of a vote.
SR2,55,1514 (53) Parliamentary inquiry: A request for an explanation of a legislative rule
15or procedure.
SR2,55,1616 (54) Passage: Final approval in the first house of a bill introduced in that house.
SR2,55,1817 (55) Petition: A request that one of the houses take a particular course of
18action.
SR2,55,2019 (56) Point of order: A request that the presiding officer rule on some matter
20of parliamentary procedure.
SR2,55,2221 (57) Precedent: A previous ruling, decision, or action used to interpret
22legislative rules.
SR2,55,2523 (57d) President: A member of the senate, elected by the membership to preside
24over the senate and carry out the duties as described in the senate rules, the joint
25rules, and the statutes.
SR2,56,2
1(57m) President pro tempore: A member of the senate, elected by the
2membership to carry out the duties of the president in his or her absence.
SR2,56,33 (58) Previous question: A motion that debate on a proposal be ended.
SR2,56,84 (59) Privileged motions and requests: A group of motions and requests
5relating to basic questions concerning the meetings, organization, rules, rights, and
6duties of the senate and having the highest precedence for consideration. Privileged
7motions and requests take precedence over incidental, subsidiary, and main
8questions.
SR2,56,109 (60) Proposal: A resolution, joint resolution, or bill put before a house for
10consideration.
SR2,56,1111 (61) Question: A statement before one of the houses for decision.
SR2,56,1312 (62) Quorum: A majority of the current membership of one of the houses, unless
13otherwise required by the state constitution.
SR2,56,1414 (63) Recess: A temporary suspension of business during a day of the year.
SR2,56,1615 (64) Reconsideration: A motion to nullify a decision and again consider and
16vote on the question involved.
SR2,56,1817 (65) Regular order of business: The regular sequence of deliberations on any
18legislative day.
SR2,57,219 (66) Regular session: The biennial session of the legislature established by the
20constitution and by section 13.02 of the statutes. The Wisconsin legislature convenes
21in the capitol on the first Monday of January in each odd-numbered year at 2 p.m.
22to take the oath of office, to select officers, and to organize itself for the conduct of its
23business, but if the first Monday falls on January 1 or 2, the legislature organizes on
24January 3. Daily meetings begin in January of each year and continue throughout

1the biennium until the final adjournment of the session. "Session" is also often used
2to refer to the daily meetings of the legislature.
SR2,57,63 (67) Rejection: An action for the adverse and final disposition of: a) a
4resolution or joint resolution for the biennial session of the legislature; b) an
5amendment or substitute amendment with regard to one specific document; c) the
6application of a motion to the current situation; and d) the report of a committee.
SR2,57,87 (68) Remain informal: A temporary suspension of proceedings in one of the
8houses.
SR2,57,119 (69) Request: A proposed action that does not require a vote because: a)
10unanimous consent has been asked for; or 1g) the presiding officer has the authority
11to take or order the requested action.
SR2,57,1512 (70) Rescind: An action by which one of the houses nullifies an action or actions
13on a proposal so as to enable the house to again consider a proposal from a given
14stage. When such motion prevails, the house resumes its consideration of a proposal
15at the stage indicated in the motion.
SR2,57,1716 (71) Resolution: A proposal: a) expressing the opinion of one of the houses;
17or b) changing the rules of one of the houses.
SR2,57,1818 (73) Roll call day: A legislative day on which any roll call is taken.
SR2,57,1919 (74) Roll call vote: A vote on which each member voting is recorded by name.
SR2,57,2120 (75) Rules of procedure: The legislative rules that govern the conduct of
21legislative business.
SR2,57,2222 (76) Ruling: The presiding officer's decision on a point of order.
SR2,57,2523 (77) Senate chamber: The entire area south of the northern-most doors of the
24senate, including the floor, staff lobby, press lobby, visitor's galleries, and hallways,
25but excluding the offices of the senate officers.
SR2,58,2
1(78) Sergeant at arms: The officer elected by the members to perform and
2direct the police and custodial functions of one of the houses.
SR2,58,33 (79) Sine die adjournment: The final adjournment of a legislative session.
SR2,58,54 (84) Special session: The convening of the legislature by the governor to
5accomplish a special purpose for which convened.
SR2,58,66 (85) Stage: One of the formal steps in the legislative process.
SR2,58,77 (86) Standing committee: A permanent legislative committee.
SR2,58,118 (87) Subsidiary motions: A group of motions that change, or delay or accelerate
9the consideration of, a proposal before a house. Subsidiary motions have lower
10precedence than privileged and incidental questions, but higher precedence than
11main motions.
SR2,58,1412 (88) Substitute amendment: An amendment that, if accepted, takes the place
13of the original proposal. The term more accurately describes a "substitute bill" or
14"substitute resolution."
SR2,58,1815 (90) Suspension of the rules: A motion requiring the support of two-thirds
16of the members present and by which a special action on a specific proposal is
17accomplished despite the existence of a rule blocking the action. Any suspension of
18the rules is temporary.
SR2,58,2019 (92) Unanimous consent: A request for a specific purpose; if an objection is not
20heard, it is assumed that the request has the consent of the entire body.
SR2,58,2221 (93) Veto: The action by which a bill or a part thereof is rejected by the
22governor.
SR2,58,2423 (94) Voice vote: A vote taken by asking the members in favor of a question to
24say "aye" simultaneously and then the members opposed to likewise say "no."
SR2,58,2525 (End)
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