VOTING BY ELECTRONIC DEVICE

In the full House, when the Speaker or the Chair announces that the yeas and nays are ordered, or announces that a quorum is not present thereby making a record vote automatic, it is taken by electronic device. The way in which a Member casts their vote by electronic device is as follows:

1. Insert voting card into the nearest voting station; the blue "open" light will go off.

2. The Member should then press the appropriate button: "yea", "nay" or "present."

3. Members should go to another station and reinsert their card until light comes on and verifies the vote cast at the first station.

4. Members should also visually check the voting board to make sure they are recorded and that the light next to their name corresponds with their action.

5. If a Member does not have his or her voting card, the Member should go to the table in the Well and obtain an appropriate voting card from the boxes placed there (green for yea, red for nay). The member signs it, and gives it to the Tally Clerk who sits to the left (as the Member faces the rostrum) of the Reading Clerk's rostrum on the second level of the podium. The Clerk will then register the Member’s vote in the computer, but the Member should visually check the board to make sure their vote is recorded correctly.

6. If a Member decides during a vote that he or she wants to change a vote, the Member may simply reinsert the card into a voting station and press the appropriate button during the first 10 minutes of a 15-minute vote, or at any time during a 5-minute vote. However, during the last 5 minutes of a 15-minute vote, a change in a Member’s vote can only be made by going to the Well, taking a card from the table, signing it, and handing it to the Tally Clerk on the rostrum. The Clerk then registers the change and a statement will appear in the Congressional Record indicating that the Member changed his or her vote. If a Member uses this procedure to change a vote, he or she should be sure to check the board to see that it reflects the change. Members should also keep in mind that any change made during a 5-minute vote can be made by machine and no statement about the change will appear in the Congressional Record, unless it comes after the voting stations are closed and before the result of the vote is announced.

   NOTE: Once the roll call ends and other business begins, the vote is final -- no further voting or changing is permitted. However, Members may make or turn in a statement announcing how they would have voted had they been present or correcting a mistaken vote. Such an explanatory statement will be inserted in the Congressional Record at the point immediately after the vote. A suggested script for such an explanatory statement on missed or mistaken votes may be obtained from the Floor staff. It is important to remember that this statement does not affect whether or how a Member has been recorded on the vote.

7. Rule VIII, clause 3, specifically prohibits any Member from allowing another person to cast his or her vote and from casting the vote of another Member.

8. The allotted time under clause 5(a) of Rule I for a quorum call or recorded vote under the House rules is "not less than 15 minutes". It is the prerogative of the Speaker or presiding officer whether or not to allow additional time beyond the 15 minutes. Often Members will hear other Members calling "regular order" when an electronic vote extends beyond 15 minutes under the mistaken impression that recorded votes are limited to 15 minutes -- they are not limited. The regular order is to allow more time on recorded votes if the Chair desires. It has been the custom of the House since the 104th Congress to attempt to "limit" these 15 minute votes to 17 minutes. The Chair will allow all Members who are on the Floor before the final announcement to be recorded, but generally will not hold the vote open to accommodate requests through the Cloakrooms for Members "on their way."