Congressional Briefing Conference: Capitol Hill Workshop

Intensive 3-day Congressional Operations Briefing and Seminar

Judiciary Committee hearing on e-fairness, from Rep. Mike Pence

Congressional decision-making is driven by politics, policy and process. This engaging workshop and seminar on legislative operations provides the full Capitol Hill experience as our Washington-based experts focus on these 3 P’s. They discuss the policy-making process and the legislative agenda, help you understand the congressional budget process, and demystify the culture of the U.S. Congress.

You will gain a solid understanding of:

• Congressional operations and the legislative process
• How public and foreign policy become law
• Congressional politics and leadership
• Congressional budgeting today
• The role of OMB in the legislative process
• Effective communication with Congress
• How the media covers the Hill
• How Congress affects every federal agency
• Current campaign and election trends
• How members of Congress advance their legislative, public policy and political agendas
• How personal and committee staff work
• How you can build win/win relationships with congressional staff

Attend a congressional hearing and see the process in action.

June 13-15, 2012, 8:30 am – 4 pm all three days.

Where: Location in Washington, DC will be announced on web site before course.


Approved for 1.7 CEUs from George Mason University.

This is a required course for the Certificate in Congressional Operations and for the Certificate in Communication and Advocacy.

For more information, including agenda and secure online registration, see CongressionalBriefingConference.com

This course and any combination of its topics can be tailored for custom on-site presentation at your location and is available via the GSA Schedule.

Congressional Briefing Conference: Capitol Hill Workshop

Intensive 3-day congressional operations workshop

Senate Antitrust Subcommittee, by John Taylor

Congressional decision-making is driven by politics, policy and process. In this engaging 3-day Congressional Briefing Conference, Washington-based experts discuss these 3 P’s and help you understand the complete policy-making process.

You’ll get a solid understanding of:

• Congressional operations and the legislative process
• How public and foreign policy become law
• Congressional politics and leadership
• Congressional budgeting today
• The role of OMB in the legislative process
• Effective communication with Congress
• How the media covers the Hill
• Current campaign and election trends
• How members of Congress advance their legislative, public policy and political agendas
• How personal and committee staff work
• How you can build win/win relationships with staffers

Attend a congressional hearing and see the process in action.

June 13-15, 2012, 8:30 am – 4 pm all three days.

Where: Location in Washington, DC will be announced on web site before course.


Approved for 1.7 CEUs from George Mason University.

This is a required course for the Certificate in Congressional Operations and for the Certificate in Communication and Advocacy.

For more information, including agenda and secure online registration, see CongressionalBriefingConference.com

This course and any combination of its topics can be tailored for custom on-site presentation at your location and is available via the GSA Schedule.

Congressional Operations Briefing and Seminar: Capitol Hill Workshop

Intensive 3-day congressional operations workshop

Senate Antitrust Subcommittee, by John Taylor

Congressional decision-making is driven by politics, policy and process. In this engaging 3-day Congressional Briefing Conference, Washington-based experts discuss these 3 P’s and help you understand the complete policy-making process.

You’ll get a solid understanding of:

• Congressional operations and the legislative process
• How public and foreign policy become law
• Congressional politics and leadership
• Congressional budgeting today
• The role of OMB in the legislative process
• Effective communication with Congress
• How the media covers the Hill
• Current campaign and election trends
• How members of Congress advance their legislative, public policy and political agendas
• How personal and committee staff work
• How you can build win/win relationships with staffers

Attend a congressional hearing and see the process in action.

June 13-15, 2012, 8:30 am – 4 pm all three days.


Approved for 1.7 CEUs from George Mason University.

Where: Washington, DC

This is a required course for the Certificate in Congressional Operations and for the Certificate in Communication and Advocacy.

For more information, including agenda and secure online registration, see CongressionalBriefingConference.com

This course and any combination of its topics can be tailored for custom on-site presentation at your location and is available via the GSA Schedule.

Congressional Operations Briefing and Seminar: Capitol Hill Workshop

Intensive 3-day congressional operations workshop

Senate Antitrust Subcommittee, by John Taylor

Congressional decision-making is driven by politics, policy and process. In this engaging 3-day Congressional Briefing Conference, Washington-based experts discuss these 3 P’s and help you understand the complete policy-making process.

You’ll get a solid understanding of:

• Congressional operations and the legislative process
• How public and foreign policy become law
• Congressional politics and leadership
• Congressional budgeting today
• The role of OMB in the legislative process
• Effective communication with Congress
• How the media covers the Hill
• Current campaign and election trends
• How members of Congress advance their legislative, public policy and political agendas
• How personal and committee staff work
• How you can build win/win relationships with staffers

Attend a congressional hearing and see the process in action.

June 13-15, 2012, 8:30 am – 4 pm all three days.


Approved for 1.7 CEUs from George Mason University.

Where: Washington, DC

This is a required course for the Certificate in Congressional Operations and for the Certificate in Communication and Advocacy.

For more information, including agenda and secure online registration, see CapitolHillWorkshop.com

This course and any combination of its topics can be tailored for custom on-site presentation at your location and is available via the GSA Schedule.

Continue reading ‘Congressional Operations Briefing and Seminar: Capitol Hill Workshop – How Congress Works, in Washington, DC’ »

Amendments to a measure in the Senate can be offered at almost any time while the measure is under consideration. In addition, an amendment can be debated for an unlimited amount of time. In most cases, an amendment can relate to any subject, even if it is unrelated to the measure that is actually being amended.

Whenever a measure is under consideration on the floor of the Senate, committee amendments are always considered first. The Senate typically agrees by unanimous consent to committee amendments as part of a package. These are known as en bloc amendments.

Amendments may be printed or unprinted. Printed amendments are offered in advance of floor consideration of a measure and they are printed in the Congressional Record. While a bill’s sponsor will typically call up his own amendment, it is possible for any senator to call up a printed amendment. Unprinted amendments are not available in advance. They may be drafted on the floor while the measure is being considered.

Usually, Senate amendments do not need to relevant, or germane, to the measure. Amendments that are non-relevant are referred to as riders. Measures may contain several non-relevant amendments. These are often referred to as Christmas-tree bills.

Relevancy is necessary for general appropriations bills. These include bills on which cloture has been invoked as well as concurrent budget resolutions and measures that are regulated by unanimous consent time agreements.

An amendment may also be classified as either a first degree or second degree amendment. A first degree amendment changes the text of the measure that is under consideration. A second degree amendment proposes changes to the text of a first degree amendment.

There can also be perfecting amendments and substitute amendments. Perfecting amendments modify or change language. Substitute amendments add new language to existing text. A perfecting amendment is considered to be a second degree amendment, and they are always voted on prior to substitute amendments.

A motion to table is often used in order to avoid voting directly on an amendment. Table refers to killing a provision. Any Senator may choose to make a motion to table that is non-debatable. A Senator may announce that they will offer a motion to table an amendment but will not actually do so until debate has taken place. By agreeing to a motion to table, the Senate will not vote directly on the amendment and as a result will avoid having to vote against it.

To learn more about the amendment process, consider signing up for TheCapitol.Net’s 3-day workshop Advanced Legislative Strategies.

Source: Congressional Deskbook, by Michael L. Koempel and Judy Schneider, Section 8.220 Senate Amendment Procedure.

For detailed information about the legislative process, see these resources from TheCapitol.Net:

• Congressional Deskbook: The Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Congress, by Michael L. Koempel and Judy Schneider
• Live courses in Washington, DC:
  • Congress in a Nutshell: Understanding Congress
  • Congressional Dynamics and the Legislative Process
  • Advanced Legislative Strategies
  • Capitol Hill Workshop
• Capitol Learning Audio Courses:
  • Congress, the Legislative Process, and the Fundamentals of Lawmaking, A Nine Course Series
  • Congressional Committees and Party Leadership: Who Controls the Congressional Agenda
  • House Rules Committee: Gatekeeper to the Floor
  • Understanding the Path of Legislation

Filibusters are made possible in part due to Senate rules providing that when a senator is recognized to speak regarding a pending measure there are few limitations. Debate is typically unlimited regarding pending measures. Once a senator is recognized, she can yield to another senator for the purpose of a question, but the senator that has been recognized still controls the floor. When a senator continues to speak for an extended period of time it is known as a filibuster.

photo credit: jpmueller99

Throughout the history of America, there have been some notable instances in which extended filibusters occurred in the Senate. The longest filibuster to date is credited to Strom Thurmond, who spoke for 24 hours and 18 minutes on the civil rights bill in 1957. Wayne Morse spoke for 22 hours and 26 minutes on the Tidelands oil bill in 1953. William Proxmire actually held the floor for more than 25 hours in 1961; however, he yielded the floor to other senators for several hours during that time period.

The modern approach to filibusters is often referred to as the tag-team approach. In this approach a senator will speak for a period of time and then yield to another senator. In a situation in which several senators participate in an extended period of debate it can actually take some time for the Senate to recognize that a filibuster is being conducted. As a result, the mere threat of a filibuster carries significant weight in the Senate.

Debate within the Senate is limited only under certain situations. These situations include when:

• Cloture is invoked
• Debate is limited by unanimous consent
• The Senate operates under a unanimous consent time agreement
• The Senate considers a motion to table
• The Senate considers a measure governed by a rule-making statute

Each senator is prohibited from speaking more than twice on the same subject on the same legislative day under Senate rules. Due to the fact that each amendment is considered to be a different subject, the two-speech rule is actually not a practical limit on debate.

To learn more about how Congress works, consider these courses held in DC: Congressional Dynamics and the Legislative Process, Advanced Legislative Strategies, or our Capitol Hill Workshop.

Reference: Congressional Deskbook, by Michael L. Koempel and Judy Schneider, Section 8.210 Consideration and Debate on the Senate Floor-Filibusters

For detailed information about the legislative process, see these resources from TheCapitol.Net:

• Congressional Deskbook: The Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Congress, by Michael L. Koempel and Judy Schneider
• Live courses in Washington, DC:
  • Congress in a Nutshell: Understanding Congress
  • Congressional Dynamics and the Legislative Process
  • Advanced Legislative Strategies
  • Capitol Hill Workshop
• Capitol Learning Audio Courses:
  • Congress, the Legislative Process, and the Fundamentals of Lawmaking, A Nine Course Series
  • Congressional Committees and Party Leadership: Who Controls the Congressional Agenda
  • House Rules Committee: Gatekeeper to the Floor
  • Understanding the Path of Legislation

In preparing to work with members of Congress, it is important to understand the differences between the House and the Senate. The more you understand about each chamber of Congress, the better prepared you will be to gain support for your issue.

photo credit: Ewan-M

At 435 members, the House is the larger chamber. The Senate has 100 members with two senators from each state. Representatives serve shorter terms, two years, while Senators serve longer terms of six years. There are four calendars for the House: Union, House, Private and Discharge. The Senate has two calendars: Legislative and Executive.

In terms of procedure, the House has less procedural flexibility and more rule restraints than the Senate. In the House, power is more concentrated in the leadership and less evenly distributed among members. Leadership in the House is much stronger than in the Senate, where power is usually more evenly distributed.

Debate within the House is always restricted, while debate within the Senate is rarely restricted. Debate ending motions within the House occur by majority vote of 218 members. In the Senate, cloture is invoked by a vote of 60 Senators.

In the House, constituency is much narrower than in the Senate. In the House, the constituency is limited to each House District. In the Senate, the constituency is larger and involves an entire state.

In communicating with members of Congress, keep in mind that representatives are less reliant on staff. On the other hand, Senators are often more reliant on staff.

Finally, the House adjourns at the end of the day while the Senate recesses at the end of most days.

To learn more about the differences between the House and the Senate, see CongressByTheNumbers.com and Congressional Dynamics and the Legislative Process.

Reference: Lobbying and Advocacy, by Deanna Gelak, Section 4.9 Differences between the House and the Senate at a Glance, and the Congressional Deskbook, §§ 8.150-8.151.

For more information about congressional operations and effective advocacy in Washington, see these resources from TheCapitol.Net

• Lobbying and Advocacy: Winning Strategies, Resources, Recommendations, Ethics and Ongoing Compliance for Lobbyists and Washington Advocates, by Deanna Gelak
• Persuading Congress, by Joseph Gibson
• Congressional Deskbook: The Practical and Comprehensive Guide to Congress, by Michael L. Koempel and Judy Schneider
• Lobbyist Registration and Compliance Handbook
• Live and custom training courses:
  • Congressional Dynamics and the Legislative Process
  • Capitol Hill Workshop
  • Using Grassroots, Coalitions, and the Media to Get Your Message Heard
  • Advocacy Campaigns in Washington
  • Strategies for Working with Congress: Effective Communication and Advocacy on Capitol Hill
  • Capitol Hill Day / National Advocacy Day
• Capitol Learning Audio Courses:
  • Building and Nurturing Your Grassroots Campaign
  • Visiting Capitol Hill for First Time Grassroots Advocates: An Introductory Course
  • How to Organize a Capitol Hill Day
  • How to Work the Hill Like a Pro