Providing for consideration of the joint resolution (H.J.Res.4) proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to provide that debate upon legislation pending before the Senate may not be brought to a close without the concurrence of a minimum of three-fifths of the Senators.

Key Points

• This resolution sets the "ground rules" for how the House of Representatives will handle a specific proposal to change the U.S. Constitution. It decides how much time members get to speak and what kinds of changes can be made to the proposal during the meeting.
• The proposal being discussed would require at least 60 out of 100 Senators to agree before they can stop debating a bill and move to a final vote. This is currently a Senate rule, but this proposal would make it a permanent part of the Constitution.
• Under these rules, the House would have one hour of debate, with the time split equally between those who support the idea and those who oppose it. After that hour, the House would take a vote on the actual Constitutional amendment.
• Passing this resolution does not change the law or the Constitution yet. It is a procedural step that clears the path for the House to officially vote on the proposed amendment.

Impact Analysis

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