Committee of the Whole (United States House of Representatives)

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In the United States House of Representatives, a Committee of the Whole House is a congressional committee that includes all members of the House. In modern practice there is only one such committee, the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, which has original consideration of all bills on the Union Calendar.^[1] While assembled, the House may resolve itself temporarily into a Committee of the Whole House. Business can then proceed with various procedural requirements relaxed. At the conclusion of business, the committee resolves to "rise" and reports its conclusions (typically in the form of an amended bill) or lack of conclusion to the speaker.

When the House resolves into a Committee of the Whole House, the speaker appoints another member to the chair, and this member is responsible for delivering the committee's report. Conventionally, the speaker appoints a member of the majority party who does not hold the chair of a standing committee. A Committee of the Whole House requires 100 members for a quorum as compared to the House's majority of 218, while only 25 members are required to force a recorded (rather than voice) vote as compared to the typical requirement of one-fifth of the members present.