This omnibus resolution establishes special House rules for considering multiple bills concerning water pollution, investment companies, electricity supply chains, natural gas coordination, and the disinterment of a veteran's remains.
Austin Scott
Representative
GA-8
This resolution establishes special rules for the House of Representatives to consider several bills addressing water pollution, investment company regulations, electricity supply chains, utility standards, natural gas authorizations, and the disinterment of a veteran's remains. It sets strict limits on debate, specifies which amendments are in order, and waives various procedural objections for each measure. The overall effect is to streamline the process for debating and voting on these distinct legislative items.
| Party | Total Votes | Yes | No | Did Not Vote |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | 220 | 215 | 1 | 4 |
Democrat | 213 | 0 | 210 | 3 |
House Rules Change: Debate on Water, Energy, and Finance Bills Slashed to One Hour, Amendments Blocked
This isn't a bill about policy; it's a bill about process—specifically, how five major policy bills dealing with everything from water pollution to natural gas permits and investment funds are going to be handled on the House floor. Think of it as the legislative equivalent of a high-speed chase where all the stop signs are removed, and only the driver gets to choose the music.
The Legislative Fast Lane: What This Resolution Does
This resolution sets up special, highly restrictive rules for debating and voting on six different pieces of legislation. For the five major policy bills (H.R. 3898, H.R. 3383, H.R. 3638, H.R. 3628, and H.R. 3668), the rules are surprisingly uniform and incredibly tight. The key takeaway is that the usual checks and balances that allow for robust debate and open amendments are being bypassed to speed things up significantly. For instance, debate on each of these complex bills is limited to one hour total, split between two people. That’s less time than a lunch break to discuss changes to environmental law and the energy grid.
No Points of Order, No Problem?
Perhaps the most concerning piece of this resolution is the systematic waiving of all points of order against both the consideration of the bills and the provisions within the bills. A point of order is essentially a procedural challenge—it’s how members flag things like unconstitutional language, provisions that violate House rules (like adding unrelated policy riders), or language that exceeds the scope of the committee that wrote it. By waiving all points of order, this resolution shields the underlying bills from basic scrutiny. If you’re a small business owner concerned about a new regulation tucked into one of these bills, you lose the ability for your representative to challenge that provision based on procedural grounds.
Amendments: Pre-Approved and Non-Negotiable
If you thought you could just show up and offer a smart amendment to fix a flaw in one of these bills, think again. This resolution strictly limits amendments to a specific, pre-approved list printed in the Rules Committee report. Not only must you be the designated member to offer the amendment, but in most cases, these amendments are not amendable themselves. They are take-it-or-leave-it proposals. This means that if a bill about electricity supply chains (H.R. 3638) has a provision that could hike your utility bill, any attempt to moderate that provision with a compromise amendment is effectively blocked unless it was already on the approved list. This concentrates power over the final text in the hands of a few key leaders.
Real-World Policy on the Chopping Block
The bills being fast-tracked cover massive policy areas that touch your wallet and your environment:
- Water Pollution (H.R. 3898): Changes to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, which affects everything from farming to construction permits.
- Investment Funds (H.R. 3383): Amending the Investment Company Act of 1940 to allow closed-end companies to invest in private funds—a major shift in financial regulation that could affect future retirement investments.
- Energy Reliability (H.R. 3628 & H.R. 3638): Bills dealing with electricity supply chain security and requiring states to consider reliable generation when setting utility standards. These changes could directly impact the cost and stability of the electricity powering your home and office.
By severely limiting debate and amendments on such consequential legislation, this resolution ensures quick passage but at the cost of thorough legislative review. For everyday citizens, this means less time for your elected officials to uncover unintended consequences or negotiate better outcomes before the policy becomes law.