sr23
Senate Rule 23.
Committee not to be absent. Members of a committee, except a conference committee, may not be absent by reason of their appointment during the sitting of the senate, without special leave.
sr24
Senate Rule 24.
Committee quorum; subcommittees. A majority of any committee constitutes a quorum for the transaction of business. For the purpose of determining a quorum of a committee necessary to transact business, and with the consent of the committee chairperson, a member who participates in a meeting of the committee by telephone or by other means of telecommunication or electronic communication is considered present. Subcommittees may be appointed to take charge of any part of the committee's business and to report to the committee. Motions to reconsider may be made in committee, before the papers are reported to the senate. Rereference gives the committee full power to act without reconsidering its former action.
sr25
Senate Rule 25.
Business in committees; notice of meeting. sr25(1)(b)(b) Except as provided in par.
(d), public notice of every meeting of a committee shall be given at least 24 hours before the commencement of the meeting, unless the committee on senate organization determines that for good cause such notice is impossible or impractical. In no case may notice be provided less than 2 hours in advance of a meeting. A public notice may be amended at any time to delay the commencement of the meeting or to delete items from the agenda of the meeting.
sr25(1)(c)(c) The public notice under par.
(b) shall be posted on the bulletin board of each house. The notice shall indicate the day, hour, and place of the meeting and the number, author, and relating clause of each proposal to be considered. If an unintroduced proposal will be considered at the meeting, the notice shall indicate the draft number assigned to the proposal by the legislative reference bureau and the relating clause of the proposal, and shall indicate that copies of the draft proposal are available at the chief clerk's office. The chairperson shall provide a copy of the draft proposal to the chief clerk before publishing the notice. The chief clerk shall make available copies of the draft proposal to any person who requests such copies. Whenever a scheduled meeting is canceled, the chairperson shall immediately notify the chief clerk and post cancellation notices on the bulletin boards of each house.
sr25(1)(d)(d) Paragraph
(b) does not apply to any meeting of the committee on senate organization that is called solely for the purpose of scheduling business before the senate or adopting resolutions of which the sole purpose is scheduling business before the senate or assembly.
sr25(2)(2) Except as provided under rules
41 (1) (e) and
46 (2) (c), a proposal or other matter that has been referred to committee is within the sole jurisdiction of the majority of the committee. A directive with respect to the committee's action thereon, other than a motion to withdraw from the committee, is not in order.
sr25(4)(a)(a) 1. A committee member who was recorded as present at an executive session may vote by polling on a proposal, amendment, appointment, or proposed administrative rule considered at that executive session. The committee member may vote by polling on all applicable motions.
2. If a committee member was not recorded as present at an executive session, the committee member may not vote by polling on a proposal, amendment, appointment, or proposed administrative rule considered at that executive session unless the chairperson of the committee determines that voting by polling is necessary in an emergency for the preservation of the public peace, health, safety, or welfare. If the chairperson determines that a committee member may vote by polling, the committee member may vote on all applicable motions.
sr25(4)(am)
(am) A committee may not conduct an executive session on a proposal, amendment, appointment, or proposed administrative rule by ballot unless the proposal, amendment, appointment, or proposed administrative rule has lain over for at least 24 hours. The committee on senate organization may determine that for good cause such a layover is impossible or impractical. In no case, however, may a proposal, amendment, appointment, or proposed administrative rule be made available to the public less than 2 hours before a ballot is circulated. The ballots shall be in a form prescribed by the chief clerk. A member may change his or her vote if the change will not affect the outcome of the vote and if the proposal, amendment, appointment, or proposed administrative rule has not been reported out of committee. In no case, however, may a member change his or her vote later than 24 hours after the ballot is due as provided in the executive session notice.
sr25(4)(b)
(b) If a chairperson of a committee elects to vote by ballot under par.
(am), public notice shall be posted on the bulletin board of each house prior to the circulation of the ballot as provided under sub.
(1) (b) and
(d). The notice shall indicate the day and hour when the ballot will be circulated and the number, author, and relating clause of each proposal to be considered. If an unintroduced proposal will be considered, the notice shall indicate the draft number assigned to the proposal by the legislative reference bureau and the relating clause of the proposal, and shall indicate that copies of the draft proposal are available at the chief clerk's office. The chairperson shall provide a copy of the draft proposal to the chief clerk before posting the notice. The chief clerk shall make available a copy of the draft proposal to any person who requests a copy.
sr25(5)
(5) Unless otherwise ordered by the chairperson, an individual in any room in which a senate meeting is being conducted:
sr25(5)(a)
(a) Shall be quiet at all times.
sr25(5)(b)
(b) Shall be seated at all times.
sr25(5)(c)
(c) May not display signs or other objects.
sr25(6)
(6) Insofar as applicable, the rules of the senate apply to the procedures of standing committees and special committees.
sr26
Senate Rule 26.
Schedule of committee activities. The chairperson of each senate committee shall file with the chief clerk a copy of each notice of a public hearing or executive session before that committee in accordance with rule
25 (1). The chairperson shall file the copy of the notice with the chief clerk immediately after posting the notice. All such notices shall be published, on a daily basis, on the legislature's website.
sr27
Senate Rule 27.
Committee reports. sr27(1)(1)
The chairperson of the committee to which any proposal is referred shall report, in the format specified by the chief clerk, the action of the committee and the date thereof, and shall authenticate the same by personal signature.
sr27(2)
(2) Each committee to which a proposed administrative rule is referred under rule
46 (2) (am) shall submit a report within the review period specified in section
227.19 (4) (b) of the statutes in the form specified in this rule, authenticated by the personal signature of the chairperson or cochairpersons. Whenever a committee schedules a public hearing or a meeting with an agency representative concerning a proposed rule, or whenever modifications to a proposed rule are agreed to be made or received, the committee shall notify the chief clerk of the date of the event or action and this shall be recorded in the history file for the proposed administrative rule.
sr27(3)
(3) Any amendment or substitute amendment submitted to a standing committee for the committee's consideration shall be reported out of committee only if adoption is recommended or if sub.
(4) applies. An amendment or substitute amendment not reported out of committee may, upon motion, be revived by the vote of the majority of the members present while the proposal is still in the amendable stage.
sr27(4)(a)(a)
A committee may report out a proposal or appointment without recommendation only if the vote is tied. The committee report shall indicate the numerical vote on the motion on which the recommendation is based.
sr27(4)(b)(b) Notwithstanding par.
(a), the chief clerk shall record in the journal that a proposal is reported without recommendation whenever the proposal is withdrawn from committee under rule
18 or
41 (1) (d).
sr27(5)
(5) Whenever a proposal is reported by or withdrawn from committee, all amendments or substitute amendments to the proposal shall remain in the jacket envelope regardless of the committee's action thereon.
sr27(6)
(6) If a committee reports out an amendment or substitute amendment to a proposal that is rereferred to another committee, the succeeding committee's action on the proposal shall supersede the prior committee's action for purposes of consideration of the proposal on the senate floor. This subsection shall not apply to proposals referred to and withdrawn from the joint committee on finance by the committee on senate organization under rule
41 (1) (e).
sr28
Senate Rule 28.
Minority reports. Any member dissenting from a report of a committee may, at the time of the committee's final vote on the matter, notify the chairperson of his or her intent to file a minority report stating the reasons and conclusions. A minority report must be filed with the committee chairperson no later than the 2nd business day after the committee's vote. A minority report, if decorous in language and respectful to the senate, shall be entered at length on the journal.
Chapter 4:
PROPOSALS — PROCEDURE
sr29
Senate Rule 29.
Copies of proposals. The primary author of a proposal to be introduced or offered shall present copies of it to the chief clerk, enclosed in a jacket envelope as provided in rule
30.
sr30
Senate Rule 30.
Filing of proposals. sr30(1)(1)
The legislative reference bureau shall provide jacket envelopes of a suitable size to hold a proposal and the papers pertaining thereto, respectively, without folding or rolling. The clerk may not file any paper for any purpose, the cover of which has been either folded or rolled. The jacket envelopes must be distinguishable from those of the assembly by color.
sr30(2)
(2) The legislative reference bureau shall enter the relating clause and drafting number of the proposal on the envelope, and the clerk shall enter the proposal number, the date on which it is introduced or offered, the name of the member or committee introducing or offering it, and the name of the committee of reference in the history file for the proposal. Only those documents specified by the chief clerk may be placed in the envelope.
sr30(3)
(3) The chief clerk shall also enter in the history file for the proposal:
sr30(3)(a)
(a) The date of each public hearing on the proposal.
sr30(3)(b)
(b) All motions and the disposition thereof.
sr30(3)(c)
(c) The date, and the resolution number, if any, of a request for an opinion of the attorney general on the proposal and the date on which the opinion was returned.
sr30(3)(d)
(d) The reproduction of a proposal with all adopted amendments engrossed therein.
sr30(3)(e)
(e) Any clerical correction of the proposal made as authorized by rule
31.
sr30(3)(f)
(f) Any other appropriate information, as determined by the chief clerk.
sr31
Senate Rule 31.
Clerical corrections to proposals. sr31(1)(1)
The chief clerk shall correct minor clerical errors in any proposal, such as errors in orthography or grammar, or the use of one word for another, such as “affect" for “effect," wrong numbering or references, whether the errors occur in the original proposal or in any amendment thereto.
sr31(2)
(2) The chief clerk shall insert the enacting or usual enabling clause in any proposal before its passage or adoption if the same has been omitted. When necessary, the chief clerk shall correct the title of any bill so that the title shows the sections affected, the subject to which the bill relates, and the making of an appropriation, if such is made by the bill.
sr31(3)
(3) The chief clerk shall enter any corrections made by the clerk under this rule in the journal.
sr31(4)
(4) The current edition of Webster's New International Dictionary is the standard.
sr32
Senate Rule 32.
Reference to proposals and other matters. When first considered and thereafter each time that a proposal is considered after business relating to another subject has intervened, it shall be identified in the journal by number and relating clause. Thereafter all reference to the proposal or petition either in the journal or in messages must be by number only, except in the journal where the ayes and noes are entered.
sr33
Senate Rule 33.
Introduction or offering of new proposals; admissibility of identical proposals; admissibility of resolutions in special session. sr33(1)(1)
A member may introduce or offer new proposals in accordance with rule
46 (1). Before a member introduces or offers a new proposal to the senate, the legislative reference bureau shall prepare the proposal in the proper form, and with the requisite number of copies for introduction or offering. A proposal may not be received if it contains handwritten changes in the copies prepared by the legislative reference bureau.
sr33(2)
(2) A senate proposal identical with one already rejected may not be introduced or offered. However, an assembly bill or joint resolution that is identical to a senate bill or joint resolution previously rejected by the senate may be considered for concurrence and any bill repealing a former act of the same biennial session may be introduced or offered.
sr34
Senate Rule 34.
Proposals to be on file one day before action. sr34(1)(1)
All bills and joint resolutions, and all resolutions except those privileged for immediate consideration under rule
69, after introduction, must lay over at least 24 hours before being considered for passage, adoption, or concurrence.
sr34(2)
(2) The requirement for a one-day layover does not apply to amendments, but a copy of the full text of each amendment shall be made available to the members before adoption of the amendment.
sr35
Senate Rule 35.
Three separate readings. Every bill, and every joint resolution proposing an amendment to the constitution, must receive 3 separate readings by relating clause prior to its passage or adoption except where otherwise provided, but may not receive 2 readings on the same day.
sr36
Senate Rule 36.
First reading; reference to committee. sr36(1)(1)
On the first reading, every bill requiring 3 readings under rule
35 and all resolutions not privileged by rule
69 shall be referred to the appropriate committee. The president shall determine the appropriate committee under rule
46 and the referral shall be printed in the journal under the proper order of business. This rule applies to proposals originating in either house.
sr36(1m)(a) (a) Whenever a senate proposal or petition is introduced or offered and referred or an assembly proposal is received and referred, the referral by the president constitutes the proposal's first reading.
sr36(1m)(b)
(b) Whenever a senate proposal or petition is introduced or offered and referred or an assembly proposal is received and referred on a day on which the senate does not meet, the chief clerk's act of recording the proposal in the journal constitutes the proposal's first reading.
sr36(2)(a)(a)
Except as provided in par.
(c), all bills introduced in the senate which by statute require reference in the senate to a particular committee shall be so referred upon first reading and all assembly bills when received from the assembly shall be so referred upon first reading except where the assembly record on the bill discloses that the statutory requirement has been satisfied by reference to the committee in the assembly.
sr36(2)(b)
(b) Only one such reference is required under this rule and the adoption of an amendment does not require rereference, but rereference may be ordered by the senate at any time before passage or concurrence or as provided under rules
41 (1) (e) and
46 (2) (c).
sr36(2)(c)
(c) The president may refer a bill that pertains only incidentally to a matter of concern to a joint survey committee directly to the committee appropriate to the major substance of that bill, and in that case shall direct the appropriate joint survey committee to prepare its report on the bill while that bill is in the possession of the other committee. This rule does not suspend the requirement that the report of the appropriate joint survey committee must be received before the bill is given its 2nd reading.
sr36(2m)
(2m) Bills referred to a statutory joint survey committee shall, upon report by that committee, be referred by the president to the appropriate standing committee of the senate.
sr36(3)
(3) Whenever a proposal or other matter is referred to a special committee and the special committee makes its report thereon, the referral and report have the same effect as a reference to and a report by a standing committee.
sr37
Senate Rule 37.
Second reading; ordering to a 3rd reading. sr37(1)(1)
Before a bill, or a joint resolution proposing an amendment to the constitution, is amended or ordered to a 3rd reading it shall be read a 2nd time by relating clause.
sr37(2)
(2) All amendments to a proposal shall be retained in the original jacket for the proposal.
sr37(3)
(3) Amendments to a substitute amendment already adopted are in order before the bill or resolution is ordered engrossed and read a 3rd time without reconsideration of the adoption of the substitute amendment.
sr37(4)
(4) Any proposal ordered to a 3rd reading is considered engrossed.
sr38
Senate Rule 38.
Third reading; question. sr38(1)(1)
Upon the 3rd reading of the bill the question is: “This bill having been read 3 separate times, the question is, “Shall the bill pass' or “Shall the bill be concurred in'," as the case may be, or other appropriate language may be used. A proposal on the calendar for 3rd reading is not subject to amendment but it may, on motion or by unanimous consent, be referred back to 2nd reading for the consideration of proposed amendments. The motion requires a majority vote and is debatable.
