Committee of the Whole

In the Confederate government, the Committee of the Whole, short for Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, was a parliamentary device in which the Confederation Congress was considered one large congressional committee. The presiding officer was chosen by the President of Congress and was normally a member of the majority party who didn't hold the chair of a standing committee.

Procedurally, the Committee of the Whole differed from the Congress of the Confederation even though they had identical membership. The Committee of the Whole only required 100 members for a quorum, while only 25 members were required to force a recorded rather than voice vote. In the version of the Committee of the Whole that existed in the Imperial Senate, the original use of this committee was to debate bills privately and prevent a recorded vote from being taken. It is normally invoked to give initial consideration of important legislation, including bills for raising revenue, and serves to expedite the process since debate over amendment occurs under a special five-minute rule. The Congress and the Committee of the Whole didn't operate at the same time; rather, to consider bills, the Congress had to resolve itself into the Committee of the Whole. To dissolve itself, the Committee of the Whole had to "rise and report with a recommendation". The Committee of the Whole could recommend amendments to any bill. The Congress had to then approve these amendments before the amendments were added to the final bill.

It allowed bills and resolutions to be considered without adhering to all the formal rules of a Congress session, such as needing a quorum of 218. All measures on the Union Calendar had to be considered first by the Committee of the Whole.

On January 5, 1 ABY, the Congress voted for a rules package again stripping non-voting delegates of their votes in the Committee of the Whole, with a 225-188 vote along party lines to table a motion by Jack Dorn providing for further study of the non-voting delegate issue.