RULES AND ORDERS OF THE Assembly of the State of New-York, ADOPTED JANUARY 6, 1854. 1. Upon the appearance of a quorum, the Speaker, Appearance having taken the chair, and the members being called of a quorum. to order, the journal of the preceding day shall be read, to the end that any mistakes therein may be corrected Reading the by the House; and in all cases of the absence of a minutes. quorum, the members present may take such measures as shall be necessary to procure the attendance of ab sent members; and the Speaker, with the consent of Absence of the majority of the members present, may adjourn from quorum. day to day until a quorum shall appear. business. 2. After the reading and approving of the journal, Order of the order of business, which shall in no case be departed from except by the unanimous consent of the House, shall be as follows: 1. The Presentation of Petitions. 4. Messages from the Governor. 5. Communications from the State Officers. 6. Messages from the Senate. 7. Third Reading of Bills. 8. Notices. 9. Introduction of Bills. Motions for reference. General orders. Priority of business. Speaker to preserve order. Speaker's vote. 10. Motions and Resolutions. 12. Special Orders of the Day. 13. General Orders of the Day; but Messages from the Governor, Communications from State Officers, and Messages from the Senate, may be received at any time. 3. Motions for reference to different committees shall be put in the following order: 1. To the Committee of the Whole. 2. To a Standing Committee. 3. To a Select Committee; but no Bill or other matter shall be considered in Committee of the Whole until the same is printed. 4. No bill shall be ordered to a third reading without having been acted on in committee of the whole. 5. The Speaker shall cause the clerk to make a list, in the order in which they were referred, of all bills, resolutions and reports of committees, and other proceedings of the House which are committed to a committee of the whole, and not made a special order of the day for any particular day; which list shall be called "The General Orders of the Day." 6. All questions relating to the priority of business, that is, the priority of one question or subject matter over another, under the same order of business, shall be decided without debate. 7. The Speaker shall preserve order and decorum, and shall decide all questions of order, which decision shall be final unless an appeal is taken to the House. On every appeal from the decision of the Speaker, he shall have the right in his place to assign his reason for his decision. He shall also have the right to substitute any member to perform the duties of the chair, but such a substitution shall not extend beyond one day, unless by leave of the House. 8. When the House shall be equally divided, including the Speaker's vote, the question shall be lost. |