Rules and Procedures
Boys State Legislature
Rule 1 – Quad-Cameral Legislature
1. The House of Representatives will work with the Senate to pass legislation. Any legislation passing either the House or Senate must be referred to the other body for consideration.2. The Assembly will work with the Forum to pass legislation. Any legislation passing either the Assembly or Forum must be referred to the other body for consideration.
3. Legislation passing the House or Senate will not be referred to the Assembly or Forum. Likewise, legislation passing the Assembly or Forum will not be referred to the House or Senate.
Rule 2 – Officers and Employees
1. At the beginning of the session, each legislative body shall elect a presiding officer and a presiding officer pro tempore. A majority of the votes shall be necessary to elect, assuming a quorum is present. A quorum shall consist of a majority of the entire membership of that particular legislative body. The oath of office shall be administered immediately after the election of the presiding officer and pro tempore.2. The presiding officer in the House shall be known as the Speaker. The presiding officer in the Assembly shall be known as the Speaker. The presiding officer of the Senate shall be known as the President. The presiding officer of the Forum shall be known as the President.
3. The presiding officer of each house shall appoint a reading clerk, a bill messenger, a bill clerk, a copy clerk and two or more pages from the attaché pool assigned to that legislative body. The employees of the House and Senate are called attaches.
Rule 3 – The Presiding Officer
1. The presiding officer shall preserve order and decorum. Each shall have general control of the respective houses and of the corridors and rooms assigned to the house. Each shall have the power to clear the galleries and lobby in case of disturbances.
2. The presiding officer may sign all bills and other documents arising from the action of the respective houses, and shall decide questions of order.
3. The presiding officer may name any member to perform the duties of the chair. The person appointed may not serve in that capacity longer than one sitting. When the presiding officer is absent, and a member has not been appointed to hold the chair, Pro Tempore of that legislative body shall preside. The presiding officer is not required to vote, but shall vote on issues when necessary to break a tie.
Rule 4 – The Clerk of the House/Assembly and the Secretary of the Senate/Forum
2. The reading clerk and the reading secretary shall announce the roll call in their respective houses and shall read all bills, voter resolutions and communications. They shall also be trained to operate the voting machines.
Rule 5 – The Sergeant-at-Arms
2. The Sergeant-at-Arms shall clear the house of all persons not authorized by the members to be present.
1. All members are required to be present and to vote, unless excused or necessarily absent. The presiding officer of each house shall make the proposed excuses known to the house, and if there is no objection, the excuse shall be granted.
2. After each meeting is called to order, the members shall be considered present, even though they may not be at their desks or actually in the chamber at all times. However, a member may ask for a quorum call at any time to insure that at least a majority of the members are present.
3. As soon as the legislative body has elected its officers and completed its organization, it shall be in order for a member to move that the presiding officer appoint a committee of three to notify the other house that it is organized and ready for business.
4. Members of the House and Assembly will address the same as that of the bill. When the question of the amendment has been resolved, debate returns to the bill. The amendment must be identified by the bill's numbered line where the amendment is to be made. The amendment may add, strike, insert, or delete any part of the bill. Amendments may take the following form:
i. Amendment to the Bill
ii. Amendment to the Amendment
iii. Substitute to the Amendment
iv. Amendment to the Substitute
9. When a bill passes either the House or the Senate, it is signed by the chair and sent via bill messenger to the other house for immediate consideration. When a bill passes either the Assembly or the Forum, it is signed by the chair and sent via bill messenger to the other house for immediate consideration. The Rules & Calendar Committee often gives the new bill priority so that if the bill passes both houses, the Governor has ample time to consider it before the end of the session. If both houses agree with the bill but pass it in different versions, the bill is sent to a conference committee. This usually happens when one house passes an amendment to the bill and the other house passes the bill in its original form. The presiding officers of each house will appoint three members from each house for each conference committee needed. The committee, on behalf of the Legislature, will reach a compromise on the bill.
10. A bill must pass both houses in the exact same form before it can be sent to the Governor. The bill only becomes law if the Governor agrees and signs the bill. At Boys State, out of more than 200 bills filed, only a handful will be signed into Boys State law.
11. If the Governor disagrees with a bill, he vetoes the bill and it is sent back to the Legislature. Both passing legislative bodies can override the Governor's veto if both houses vote again and the bill passes by a two-thirds majority in both houses.
Rule 7 – Daily Order of Business in the Chamber
1. A quorum must be present at the beginning of each session
2. Invocation
3. Announcements
4. New bills presented for first reading
5. Calendar Committee report
6. Special order calendar
7. Resolutions
Rule 8 – Procedure for Debate of Each Bill
1. At the beginning of the first session, each bill ready to be presented will be read by title only. The Clerk will number the bills in the order received. This procedure is called the First Reading.
2. The first ten bills chosen to be debated on the floor are placed in sequence on the calendar. The order of the calendar is subject to approval by the Chair.
3. The first few bills on the calendar are copied by the bill copier.
4. As each bill comes up for debate, the chair shall request the reading clerk to read the bill in full.
5. The sponsor of the bill shall have two minutes to explain the bill. (This is the “authorship speech”.)
6. There will then be a two-minute question period directed toward the sponsor. All those asking questions must first seek recognition of the chair.
7. The first speaker after the sponsor will be a member opposing the bill (a con speaker). Pro and con speakers shall alternate until debate is ended and a vote is then taken for final passage of the bill. Votes for final passage of bills are taken using the chamber’s voting machines.
8. If an amendment to a bill is to be introduced, it must be presented in writing at the clerk's desk. The author of the amendment must be recognized as a pro speaker on the bill. The procedure for debate of the amendment is the same as that of the bill. When the question of the amendment has been resolved, debate returns to the bill. The amendment must be identified by the bill's numbered line where the amendment is to be made. The amendment may add, strike, insert, or delete any part of the bill. Amendments may take the following form:
i. Amendment to the Bill
ii. Amendment to the Amendment
iii. Substitute to the Amendment
iv. Amendment to the Substitute
9. When a bill passes either the House or the Senate, it is signed by the chair and sent via bill messenger to the other house for immediate consideration. When a bill passes either the Assembly or the Forum, it is signed by the chair and sent via bill messenger to the other house for immediate consideration. The Rules & Calendar Committee often gives the new bill priority so that if the bill passes both houses, the Governor has ample time to consider it before the end of the session. If both houses agree with the bill but pass it in different versions, the bill is sent to a conference committee. This usually happens when one house passes an amendment to the bill and the other house passes the bill in its original form. The presiding officers of each house will appoint three members from each house for each conference committee needed. The committee, on behalf of the Legislature, will reach a compromise on the bill.
10. A bill must pass both houses in the exact same form before it can be sent to the Governor. The bill only becomes law if the Governor agrees and signs the bill. At Boys State, out of more than 200 bills filed, only a handful will be signed into Boys State law.
11. If the Governor disagrees with a bill, he vetoes the bill and it is sent back to the Legislature. Both passing legislative bodies can override the Governor's veto if both houses vote again and the bill passes by a two-thirds majority in both houses.
Rule 9 – How to Write a Boys State Bill
See the "How to Write A Bill" Page.Rule 10 – Resolutions
1. Resolutions differ from bills in that they do not call for an action or law. Resolutions are statements of feelings or opinions of the Legislature. Resolutions say "This is what we think; this is what should be." Unlike bills, resolutions offer reasons to support the position statement.2. In the Florida Legislature, resolutions are used to solidify an opinion. They are also used to offer constitutional amendments or written as a memorial or request to the United States Congress.
3. Resolutions should begin as follows: “Be it Resolved by the Legislature of the Boys State of Florida. "
4. Each resolution at Boys State will have two readings and is put on the daily agenda as a separate calendar, following the Special Order Calendar of bills.
Rule 11 – Voting
1. Voting takes place when debate on a motion or a bill has ended. First the chair restates the motion or has the clerk (secretary) read the title of the bill. Then he calls for a voice vote. All those in favor of the motion say "aye". Then all those opposed say "nay". If the chair cannot tell which side has the majority he may ask for "division of the House,” which is a re-vote by standing and sitting. A division may be requested by any five members.2. The chair may elect to use the voting machines as a tool to publicly record the vote of each member while at the same time efficiently and exactly dividing the house. If a motion is made by a member that the chair believes will be agreed to unanimously, he will say, "without objection, the motion is so ordered.” He may also ask for "unanimous consent" to take an action which he perceives will have no opposition. If a member has an objection, the proposed action requires a vote.
Rule 12 – Decorum and Order
1. The President and Speaker must be fair, democratic and generally impartial during debate. The chair must have a feel for the direction in which his legislative body is headed. He then decides as debate progresses which motions are appropriate and should be entertained. The chair does not have to entertain every motion made from the floor. At times, the chair may determine a motion or a member to be out of order. His ruling is generally final, as it is his responsibility to keep the debate moving. Motions made which slow progress should not be considered. The success of the legislative body will be determined by how well the chairs maintain order and keep debate moving forward.2. When a motion is made, the chair shall state it. The chair shall not entertain any dilatory, delaying, trivial or superfluous motions.
3. Boys State Legislators have a long and proud legacy of treating the chambers with reverence. The chambers will remain clean and be left cleaner than when Boys State arrived.
4. Only mature, professional behavior will be permitted on the House and Senate floor.
5. All members must be recognized by the Chair before they may speak on the floor. Only one member will be recognized at a time.
6. Because unrestrained discussion would lead to chaos, order is of prime importance in the conduct of meetings. It is achieved by the general practice of permitting only one subject and one speaker to be in order at a time. More specifically, the rules state that only one main motion may be considered at a time. A main motion may be set aside temporarily, but until it is disposed of -- referred to committee, postponed, tabled, approved or disapproved by the legislative body -- it is a pending question, and no other principle question can be taken up. The principle is further implemented by the requirement that speakers address themselves to the subject under discussion and not stray from it.
Rule 13 – Parliamentary Rules
Like the Florida Legislature, specific rules of debate at Boys State have been established. This set of rules is unique to the Florida American Legion Boys State Legislature and establishes the following principles:
1. All motions from the floor must begin with the words, "I move."2. The chair has the final say on which motions will be entertained.
3. The purpose of having our parliamentary rules is to be democratic. The system enables all members to express their opinion on a question, then let the majority make the decision. The system is also efficient. It helps the houses meet without confusion or delay.
4. Thomas Jefferson wrote in the preface to his book, The Manual of Parliamentary Practice, written for the U.S. Senate, that the rules should ensure "accuracy in business, economy of time, order, uniformity, and impartiality." Boys State rules proscribe to this belief.
5. At Boys State, to answer questions of unusual situations, the legislature uses as a standard authority,
The (Sturgis) Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure, written by Alice F. Sturgis.