The roll was taken. The vote was: Ayes-17, Noes-16. The decision of the Chair stands as the judgement of the Senate.
[Note:] The bill related to the maximum benefit and contribution limits under the Wisconsin Retirement System. The amendment repealed the 5-year vesting requirement to receive an annuity under the Wisconsin Retirement System.
SENATE RULE 50. Amendments must be germane, general statement. (1) No standing committee shall report any substitute or amendment for any proposal originating in either house referred to such committee nor shall the senate consider any substitute or amendment which relates to a different subject, is intended to accomplish a different purpose, would require a relating clause essentially different from the relating clause of the original proposal or would totally alter the nature of the original proposal.
(7) A substitute or amendment relating to a specific subject or to a general class is not germane to a bill relating to a different specific subject, but an amendment limiting the scope of the proposal is germane.
Point of order based on incorrect information
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Assembly Journal of October 30, 2001 .......... Page: 483
Point of order:
Representative Black moved that the rules be suspended and that Assembly Bill 294 be withdrawn from the committee on Labor and Workforce Development and taken up at this time.
Ruling on the point of order:
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese ruled the motion dilatory under Assembly Rule 69.
Representative Black appealed the ruling of the Chair.
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese ruled that a motion to appeal the ruling of the Chair was not in order because his ruling was not made on a point of order raised under Assembly Rule 62.
[Note:] Assembly Rule 69. Dilatory motions.
(1) When it appears to the presiding officer that any motion or procedure is being used for the purpose of delay, the presiding officer shall declare it dilatory and out of order.
(2) Two consecutive identical motions are dilatory unless significant business has intervened between the motions.
(3) Two consecutive motions to adjourn are not be in order unless other significant business has intervened between the motions or unless no other business is pending before the assembly.
(4) While a motion remains undecided pending the presiding officer's ruling on a point of order taken under advisement, it is dilatory to enter a substantially similar motion on the same question, but it is proper to request an expansion of the question under advisement.
Assembly Rule 62 (6) Any member may appeal a ruling of the presiding officer on any point of order. When an appeal is made, the question is: "Shall the decision of the chair stand as the decision of the assembly?"
MASON'S MANUAL
Sec. 230. When an Appeal Is in Order
1. The proper method of taking exception to a ruling of a presiding officer is by appeal. All questions of order are decided by the presiding officer, subject to appeal by any member. It is the responsibility of the presiding officer to rule on points of order in a fair and impartial manner.
3. When a presiding officer rules a motion out of order and refuses to present it to the house, the proper procedure is to appeal from the presiding officer's decision. It is not proper for a member to put a question to vote which has been ruled out of order by the presiding officer.
Sec. 240. Purpose of Points of Order.
1. It is the duty of the presiding officer to enforce the rules and orders of the body without delay and without waiting to have the presiding officer's attention called to breaches of order. It is also the right of every member who notices a breach of order or of a rule to insist upon its enforcement. This is called raising a question or point of order, because the member puts to the presiding officer the question as to whether there has been a breach of order or of the rules. It is the duty of the presiding officer to maintain order and enforce the rules.
2. A point of order is the parliamentary device that is used to require a deliberative body to observe its own rules and to follow established parliamentary practice.
3. Any request for compliance with the rules is in effect a point of order and is subject to the same rules.
4. The presiding officer is not required to decide any point of order not directly presented in the proceedings of the body.
Assembly Journal of March 7, 2002 .......... Page: 751
Point of order:
Representative Carpenter rose to a point of order that Speaker Pro Tempore Freese should have recognized Representative Young prior to Representative Ladwig. Representative Young was standing immediately following the vote of passage on Assembly Bill 872.
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese stated that it has been a precedent of the Assembly that the Chair will recognize members of leadership prior to other members of the Assembly. (Assembly Rule 91).
Representative Carpenter withdrew his point of order.
[Note:] Assembly Rule 56 (2) When 2 or more members rise at the same time, the presiding officer shall announce the order that the members may speak. Any such decision is final.
Assembly Rule 91 (2) Established precedents of both houses, long-established custom, opinions of the attorney general interpreting rules and precedents, and other leading parliamentary authorities such as Mason's manual may be used in the interpretation of both the assembly rules and the rules in Jefferson's manual.
The precedent of the Assembly that the Chair will recognize members of leadership prior to other members of the Assembly is a Wisconsin addition to the basic practice noted by Mason's Manual:
MASON'S MANUAL
Sec. 91. Recognition of Members
3. The following rules should guide the presiding officer in determining whom to recognize:
(a) The first member rising and requesting recognition is entitled to the floor over others.
(b) When two or more members ask recognition at the same time, the one first rising is entitled to prior recognition.
(c) When two or more members arise at the same time, the one first addressing the presiding officer is entitled to be first recognized.
(d) The presiding officer has the authority to designate the member who is first to speak, subject only to points of order and appeals in case of flagrant or persistent unfairness.
4. In recognizing members, it is the custom for the presiding officer to alternate between those favoring and those opposing the pending question.
5. The presiding officer has the right to inquire for what purpose a member arises to ascertain whether the member proposes business which is in order or a motion which has a higher precedence.
Point of order: general
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Assembly Journal of February 20, 2003 .......... Page: 75
Point of order:
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese stated that the question before the Assembly was passage of Assembly Bill 3.
Representative Black rose to the point of order that the pending question before the Assembly was not passage of Assembly Bill 3 because there was a pending privileged resolution which takes precedence.
Representative Gard requested a call of the Assembly. There were sufficient seconds.
Representative Gard asked unanimous consent that the call of the Assembly be lifted. Granted.
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese stated that the question before the Assembly was passage of Assembly Bill 3.
Representative Black rose to the point of order that the pending question before the Assembly was not passage of Assembly Bill 3 under Assembly Rule 65 (1)(i) because there was a pending privileged resolution which takes precedence.
Ruling on the point of order:
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese ruled the point of order out of order because he already ruled that the resolution was not privileged.
[Note:] Assembly Rule 65 (1) When a main question is under debate the following privileged motions and requests are in order if appropriate under the rules governing motions, requests, and proposals:
Assembly Rule 65 (1) (i) To offer and ask consideration of a privileged resolution [rules 33 and 43].
2 0 0 1 A S S E M B L Y
Assembly Journal of January 30, 2001 .......... Page: 37
Point of order:
Representative Carpenter rose to the point of order that Assembly Joint Resolution 16 was not properly before the Assembly because the Assembly Rules had not been adopted.
Ruling on the point of order:
The Chair (Representative Duff) ruled the point of order not well taken.
[Note:] Assembly Rule 92. Continuity of assembly rules. The rules of the assembly remain in effect until amended or rescinded by the assembly. At the beginning of a new biennial session, the rules of the assembly in effect at the conclusion of the preceding regular session remain in force until superseded by assembly rules adopted in the new session of the legislature.
Assembly Journal of March 8, 2001 .......... Page: 137
Point of order:
Representative Freese rose to the point of order that the motion of nonconcurrence in Senate Bill 2 was not properly before the Assembly under Assembly Rule 65 (2) and (3) because there were pending amendments.
Ruling on the point of order:
The Chair (Representative Duff) ruled the point of order well taken.
[Note:] Assembly Rule 65 (2) When a main question is under debate the following subsidiary motions are in order if appropriate under the rules governing motions and proposals:
Assembly Rule 65 (3) (intro.) The motions and requests listed in subs. (1) and (2) have precedence in the order in which they are listed. While any motion or request is pending, motions or requests of the same or lower precedence are not in order, except that:
Assembly Journal of October 30, 2001 .......... Page: 483
Point of order:
Representative Black moved that the rules be suspended and that Assembly Bill 294 be withdrawn from the committee on Labor and Workforce Development and taken up at this time.
Ruling on the point of order:
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese ruled the motion dilatory under Assembly Rule 69.
Representative Black appealed the ruling of the Chair.
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese ruled that a motion to appeal the ruling of the Chair was not in order because his ruling was not made on a point of order raised under Assembly Rule 62.
[Note:] Assembly Rule 69. Dilatory motions.
(1) When it appears to the presiding officer that any motion or procedure is being used for the purpose of delay, the presiding officer shall declare it dilatory and out of order.
(2) Two consecutive identical motions are dilatory unless significant business has intervened between the motions.
(3) Two consecutive motions to adjourn are not be in order unless other significant business has intervened between the motions or unless no other business is pending before the assembly.
(4) While a motion remains undecided pending the presiding officer's ruling on a point of order taken under advisement, it is dilatory to enter a substantially similar motion on the same question, but it is proper to request an expansion of the question under advisement.
Assembly Rule 62 (6) Any member may appeal a ruling of the presiding officer on any point of order. When an appeal is made, the question is: "Shall the decision of the chair stand as the decision of the assembly?"
MASON'S MANUAL
Sec. 230. When an Appeal Is in Order
1. The proper method of taking exception to a ruling of a presiding officer is by appeal. All questions of order are decided by the presiding officer, subject to appeal by any member. It is the responsibility of the presiding officer to rule on points of order in a fair and impartial manner.
3. When a presiding officer rules a motion out of order and refuses to present it to the house, the proper procedure is to appeal from the presiding officer's decision. It is not proper for a member to put a question to vote which has been ruled out of order by the presiding officer.
Sec. 240. Purpose of Points of Order.
1. It is the duty of the presiding officer to enforce the rules and orders of the body without delay and without waiting to have the presiding officer's attention called to breaches of order. It is also the right of every member who notices a breach of order or of a rule to insist upon its enforcement. This is called raising a question or point of order, because the member puts to the presiding officer the question as to whether there has been a breach of order or of the rules. It is the duty of the presiding officer to maintain order and enforce the rules.
2. A point of order is the parliamentary device that is used to require a deliberative body to observe its own rules and to follow established parliamentary practice.
3. Any request for compliance with the rules is in effect a point of order and is subject to the same rules.
4. The presiding officer is not required to decide any point of order not directly presented in the proceedings of the body.
Assembly Journal of October 30, 2001 .......... Page: 483
Point of order:
Representative Carpenter rose to the point of order that Assembly Bill 576 was not properly before the Assembly because it was required to be referred to the joint committee on Finance under section 13.093, Wisconsin Statutes.
Ruling on the point of order:
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese ruled the point of order not well taken.
[Note:] Section 13.093 (1), stats., has been interpreted by presiding officers as not requiring referral in the first house because the statute uses "before being passed".
13.093(1) All bills introduced in either house of the legislature for the appropriation of money, providing for revenue or relating to taxation shall be referred to the joint committee on finance before being passed.
Assembly Journal of October 30, 2001 .......... Page: 484
Point of order:
Representative Carpenter rose to the point of order that Assembly Bill 576 was not properly before the Assembly under Article 8, Section 10 of the Wisconsin Constitution.
Ruling on the point of order:
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese ruled the point of order not well taken.
[Note:] The bill created an airline loan guarantee program.
Article VIII, 10 Internal improvements. Section 10. Except as further provided in this section, the state may never contract any debt for works of internal improvement, or be a party in carrying on such works.
(2) The state may appropriate money in the treasury or to be thereafter raised by taxation for:
(b) The development, improvement and construction of airports or other aeronautical projects.
MASON'S MANUAL
Sec. 242. Limitations on Use of Points of Order
1. It is not the duty of the presiding officer to rule upon any question which is not presented in the course of proceedings. It is not the presiding officer's right to rule upon the constitutionality or legal effect or expediency of a proposed bill since that authority belongs to the house.
Sec. 578. Limitations on Presiding Officer
6. It is not the right of the presiding officer to rule upon the constitutionality of bills as that authority belongs to the house.
Assembly Journal of October 30, 2001 .......... Page: 485
Point of order:
Representative Black moved that the rules be suspended and that Assembly Bill 294 be withdrawn from the committee on Labor and Workforce Development and taken up at this time.
Ruling on the point of order:
The Chair (Representative Duff) ruled the motion not timely because Assembly Bill 294 was already under advisement for a previous point of order.
Representative Black appealed the ruling of the Chair.
The Chair (Representative Duff) ruled that a motion to appeal the ruling of the Chair was not in order because his ruling was not made on a point of order raised under Assembly Rule 62.
[Note:] Assembly Rule 62 (6) Any member may appeal a ruling of the presiding officer on any point of order. When an appeal is made, the question is: "Shall the decision of the chair stand as the decision of the assembly?"
Assembly Rule 69. Dilatory motions. (1) When it appears to the presiding officer that any motion or procedure is being used for the purpose of delay, the presiding officer shall declare it dilatory and out of order.
(2) Two consecutive identical motions are dilatory unless significant business has intervened between the motions.
(3) Two consecutive motions to adjourn are not be in order unless other significant business has intervened between the motions or unless no other business is pending before the assembly.
(4) While a motion remains undecided pending the presiding officer's ruling on a point of order taken under advisement, it is dilatory to enter a substantially similar motion on the same question, but it is proper to request an expansion of the question under advisement.
MASON'S MANUAL
Sec. 149. Appeals, Points of Order, Inquiries
See also Ch. 23, Secs. 230-235, Appeals; Ch. 24, Secs. 240-246, Points of Order; and Ch. 25, Secs. 250-254, Parliamentary Inquiries and Other Requests for Information.
1. In conducting its business, a legislative body may have questions relating to policy or procedure presented to it for decision on appeals from decisions on points of order. Appeals may involve important questions of policy and, therefore, appeals may take on all of the characteristics of a main motion and are subject, in general, to the same rules.
2. Points of order are presented to the presiding officer for determination. The decision of the presiding officer on points of order may always be questioned by the body on appeal and the question decided by the body itself.
Assembly Journal of October 30, 2001 .......... Page: 487
Point of order:
Representative Black rose to the point of order that the motion to suspend the rules and Assembly Bill 294 be withdrawn from the committee on Labor and Workforce Development and taken up at this time was in order.
Ruling on the point of order:
The Chair (Representative Duff) ruled the motion not timely because Assembly Bill 294 was already under advisement for a previous point of order.
[Note:] This may have been a parliamentary inquiry, not a point of order.
MASON'S MANUAL
Sec. 230. When an Appeal Is in Order 8. An answer to a parliamentary inquiry is not a decision and therefore cannot be appealed.
Sec. 149. Appeals, Points of Order, Inquiries
See also Ch. 23, Secs. 230-235, Appeals; Ch. 24, Secs. 240-246, Points of Order; and Ch. 25, Secs. 250-254, Parliamentary Inquiries and Other Requests for Information.
1. In conducting its business, a legislative body may have questions relating to policy or procedure presented to it for decision on appeals from decisions on points of order. Appeals may involve important questions of policy and, therefore, appeals may take on all of the characteristics of a main motion and are subject, in general, to the same rules.
2. Points of order are presented to the presiding officer for determination. The decision of the presiding officer on points of order may always be questioned by the body on appeal and the question decided by the body itself.
Assembly Journal of May 15, 2002 .......... Page: 851
Point of order:
Representative Freese rose to the point of order that Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 1, May 2002 Special Session was not germane to the Governor's Special Session call.
Ruling on the point of order:
Speaker Jensen ruled the point of order not timely because there were still simple amendments pending to Assembly substitute amendment 1 to Assembly Bill 1, May 2002 Special Session. Therefore, even if the substitute amendment was not germane to the special session call at this time, it could still be amended prior to its adoption to make it germane.
[Note:] The question before the assembly at that time was adoption of an amendment, not adoption of the substitute amendment.
Assembly Rule 66 (1) In addition to the motions and requests listed in rule 65 (1) and (2), and subject to the limitations imposed by other rules, the following incidental motions, requests, and questions are in order while a proposal or question is under debate:
(a) A point of order and appeal therefrom [rule 62].
(2) The motions, requests, and questions listed in sub. (1) do not have an order of precedence, can be initiated at any time they are timely, and shall be disposed of before any question to which they relate is returned to or any other incidental motion, request, or question is entertained.
The special session rules provide: Assembly Rule 93 (1) A proposal or amendment may not be considered by the assembly unless it is germane to the session call or pertains to the organization of the legislature.
MASON'S MANUAL
Sec. 241. When Point of Order May Be Raised
See also Sec. 149, Appeals, Points of Order, Inquiries.
5. A point of order must be raised at the time the particular question is pending. It is premature to raise a point of order against an amendment when an amendment of the amendment is pending or when a motion to recommit is pending.
1 9 9 9 A S S E M B L Y
Assembly Journal of May 2, 2000 .......... Page: 938
Point of order:
Representative Jensen rose to the point of order that the motion to take up Senate Bill 320 was not properly before the Assembly because the bill had died pursuant to Joint Rule 83 and Senate Joint Resolution 1 on March 30, 2000, when the last general business floorperiod ended.
Speaker Pro Tempore Freese took the point of order under advisement.
