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Chapter 3

On the floor

What happens when a bill is debated: the votes needed, the motions you’ll hear, and how the two chambers settle differences.

How many votes it takes

51 / 26

A constitutional majority, needed to pass a bill: a majority of all members (House / Senate), not just those voting.

67 / 34

Two-thirds, needed to override a veto and for some procedural moves.

Absent ≠ no

Members who are absent or excused don’t count as no, but a bill still needs 51 or 26 yes votes, so every absence makes passing harder.

Reading a roll call

Yeas / NaysYes and no votes. Final passage is always a recorded roll call, printed in the Journal.
Absent or not votingNot in the chamber or didn’t vote.
ExcusedGiven permission to be away, for illness or other business.
Party-line voteMost of one party voted yes and most of the other voted no. Funnel tracks how often each member breaks from their party.
Explanation of voteA written note a member files in the Journal to explain a vote or say how they would have voted.

Calendars and the order of business

CalendarThe list of bills eligible for floor debate. “Placed on calendar” means a committee approved it.
Ways and Means / Appropriations calendarWhere tax and spending bills wait. They’re exempt from the funnel.
Unfinished business calendarWhere bills that were debated but not finished wait to be taken up again.
Debate listThe bills leaders plan to bring up on a given day; often the best sign a vote is coming.
Time certainA bill scheduled for debate at a specific time.

Motions you’ll hear

DeferredDebate is put off for now, often because the votes aren’t there yet.
Motion to reconsiderAsks for a new vote. Often filed right after a vote to keep the bill from moving until it’s settled.
Laid on the table / taken from the tableSet aside indefinitely, then brought back.
Suspension of rulesSetting aside the normal rules, usually to move fast at the end of session. Takes extra votes.
Point of orderA challenge that something breaks the rules. The presiding officer rules on it.
Out of order / not germaneAn amendment or motion the presiding officer refuses to consider, often because it’s off topic.
Previous questionA motion to end debate and vote now.
WithdrawnPulled by its sponsor.
Indefinitely postponedKilled, without a straight yes-or-no vote on the bill itself.

When the chambers disagree

If the Senate amends a House bill, it goes back to the House, which can concur (accept the change) or refuse to concur. The Senate can then recede (drop its change) or insist. If both insist, a conference committee of members from each chamber writes a compromise, and both chambers vote on its report, with no further amendments allowed.

Messages carry bills between chambers. An immediate message sends a bill right away instead of waiting for the end of the day, a sign leaders want it to move.

The end of session

The last days are a scramble: the budget bills, the big policy deals (often as strike-everything amendments), and long nights. Sessions end with adjournment sine die, Latin for “without a day”, meaning no date is set to come back.

After sine die, the Governor’s 30-day clock runs on bills passed late in session.

Next chapter

The funnel →

The two deadlines that decide which bills are still alive.