Number: RL31685
Title: Proposals to Reform Holds in the Senate
Authors: Walter J. Oleszek, Government and Finance Division 
Abstract: Holds are an informal senatorial custom unrecognized in Senate rules or precedents. They allow Senators to give notice to their respective party leader that certain measures or matters should not be brought up on the floor. This report examines, over a more than three decade period, a wide range of proposals to reform holds. In general, the objective of these recommendations is not to abolish holds but to infuse more accountability, uniformity, and transparency in their use and to make it clear that holds are not a veto on the majority leader's prerogative of calling up measures or matters. The historical record underscores that it has been difficult to revise a practice, now a regular feature of the Senate's workways, that provides parliamentary influence and leverage to every Senator.
Pages: 14
Date: December 20, 2007