Drafting and Offering Amendments

The motion to amend is among the most basic in the House and in committee. Its purpose is to allow a member to make changes in a measure under consideration. In committee and under "open" rules, members often have wide latitude in the kinds of amendments which they can offer; during consideration of measures under a "structured" process on the floor, the amendment process is more limited and predictable. In either case, there are a number of issues to be considered during the drafting and markup process. Both open and structured amendment processes during floor consideration are usually conducted in the Committee of the Whole, which is structured to allow for amendment debate.