This resolution immediately sets the House of Representatives on a fast track to debate and vote on H.R. 999, a bill designed to protect access to and the provision of contraceptives.
Lizzie Fletcher
Representative
TX-7
This resolution establishes an expedited process for the House to immediately consider and vote on H.R. 999, a bill aimed at protecting an individual's access to contraceptives and a provider's ability to offer contraception and related information. The process bypasses standard procedural hurdles, limiting debate to one hour before moving directly to a final vote. This ensures swift consideration of the legislation protecting contraceptive access.
House Fast-Tracks Contraception Access Bill (H.R. 999): Debate Limited to One Hour
This resolution is the legislative equivalent of putting the pedal to the floor. It doesn't deal with policy itself, but with procedure—specifically, how fast the House of Representatives is going to vote on a bill (H.R. 999) designed to protect an individual’s right to access birth control and a provider’s right to offer it. The core message here is speed: the House is waiving standard procedural hurdles to ensure this bill gets a vote with minimal delay.
Clearing the Runway for H.R. 999
When a bill goes through Congress, there are usually lots of opportunities for members to raise procedural objections—called “points of order”—that can slow things down or even kill a bill. This resolution wipes those objections off the table immediately for H.R. 999. Think of it like a legislative express lane. They are considering the bill as if it’s already been read, and they are immediately moving to debate. This means less time for the opposition to gum up the works, but it also means less time for the public and members to scrutinize every last detail.
The One-Hour Clock and the Final Vote
This is where the rubber meets the road. The entire debate on this bill is strictly limited to one hour, split evenly between the majority and minority parties. For everyday people, this means that the discussion on a bill affecting fundamental healthcare access will be extremely brief. After that short hour, the House moves straight to a final vote, only allowing for one potential procedural move before that—a motion to send the bill back to committee. If you’re a busy person who relies on their representative to thoroughly debate policy, this restriction means the arguments for and against the bill will be condensed down to essential talking points, limiting the opportunity for detailed amendments or lengthy discussion on potential real-world complications.
What Happens Next: The Senate Deadline
If the House passes H.R. 999, the resolution includes a firm deadline: the Clerk of the House must officially send the bill over to the Senate within one week. This might seem like a minor administrative detail, but it’s another mechanism to ensure the bill keeps moving forward without unnecessary administrative delays. This procedural resolution is all about making sure the underlying policy—protecting access to contraception—gets a fast and clean vote in the House and moves quickly to the next step in the legislative process.