Standing rules of the United States Senate - wikipedia Standing rules of the United States Senate This article is part of a series on the United States Senate History of the United States Senate Members Current members ( by seniority by class ) Former members Hill committees ( DSCC NRSC ) United States Vice President ( list ) President pro tempore ( list ) Presiding officer Party leaders Party leadership of the United States Senate Democratic Caucus Republican Conference Politics and procedure Advice and consent Blue slip Closed session ( list ) Cloture Committees ( list ) Executive session Morning business Filibuster Nuclear option Recess appointment Quorum Quorum call Salaries Saxbe fix Seal Holds Senatorial courtesy Standing Rules Traditions Unanimous consent Vice Presidents ' tie - breaking votes Places United States Capitol Senate chamber Senate Reception Room Senate office buildings ( Dirksen Hart Russell ) The Standing Rules of the Senate are the parliamentary procedures adopted by the United States Senate that govern its procedure. The Senate 's power to establish rules derives from Article One, Section 5 of the United States Constitution : `` Each House may determine the rules of its proceedings... '' There are currently 44 rules, with the latest revision having been adopted on January 24, 2013. ( The Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006 lobbying reform bill introduces a 44th rule on earmarks ). The stricter rules are often waived by unanimous consent. The Constitution provides that a majority of the Senate constitutes a quorum to do business. Under the rules and customs of the Senate, a quorum is always assumed to be present unless a quorum call explicitly demonstrates otherwise. Any senator may request a quorum call by `` suggesting the absence of a quorum '' ; a clerk then calls the roll of the Senate and notes which members are present. In practice, senators almost always request quorum calls not to establish the presence of a quorum, but to temporarily delay proceedings without having to adjourn the session. Such a delay may serve one of many purposes ; often, it allows Senate leaders to negotiate compromises off the floor or to allow Senators time to come to the Senate floor to make speeches without having to constantly be present in the chamber while waiting for the opportunity. Once the need for a delay has ended, any senator may request unanimous consent to rescind the quorum call. During debates, senators may only speak if called upon by the presiding officer. The presiding officer is, however, required to recognize the first senator who rises to speak. Thus, the presiding officer has little control over the course of debate. Customarily, the Majority Leader and Minority Leader are accorded priority during debates, even if another senator rises first. All speeches must be addressed to the presiding officer, using the words `` Mr. President '' or `` Madam President. '' Only the presiding officer may be directly addressed in speeches ; other Members must be referred to in the third person. In most cases, senators do not refer to each other by name, but by state, using forms such as `` the senior senator from Virginia '' or `` the junior senator from California. '' There are very few restrictions on the content of speeches ; there is no requirement that speeches be germane to the matter before the Senate. The Standing Rules of the United States Senate provide that no senator may make more than two speeches on a motion or bill on the same legislative day. ( A legislative day begins when the Senate convenes and ends with adjournment ; hence, it does not necessarily coincide with the calendar day. ) The length of these speeches is not limited by the rules ; thus, in most cases, senators may speak for as long as they please. Often, the Senate adopts unanimous consent agreements imposing time limits. In other cases ( for example, for the Budget process ), limits are imposed by statute. In general, however, the right to unlimited debate is preserved. The filibuster is an obstructionary tactic used to defeat bills and motions by prolonging debate indefinitely. A filibuster may entail, but does not actually require, long speeches, dilatory motions, and an extensive series of proposed amendments. The longest filibuster speech in the history of the Senate was delivered by Strom Thurmond, who spoke for over twenty - four hours in an unsuccessful attempt to block the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. The Senate may end a filibuster by invoking cloture. In most cases, cloture requires the support of three - fifths of the Senate ; however, if the matter before the Senate involves changing the rules of the body, a two - thirds majority is required. Cloture is invoked very rarely, particularly because bipartisan support is usually necessary to obtain the required supermajority. If the Senate does invoke cloture, debate does not end immediately ; instead, further debate is limited to thirty additional hours unless increased by another three - fifths vote. When debate concludes, the motion in question is put to a vote. In many cases, the Senate votes by voice vote ; the presiding officer puts the question, and Members respond either `` Aye ! '' ( in favor of the motion ) or `` No ! '' ( against the motion ). The presiding officer then announces the result of the voice vote. Any senator, however, may challenge the presiding officer 's assessment and request a recorded vote. The request may be granted only if it is seconded by one - fifth of the senators present. In practice, however, senators second requests for recorded votes as a matter of courtesy. When a recorded vote is held, the clerk calls the roll of the Senate in alphabetical order ; each senator responds when his or her name is called. Senators who miss the roll call may still cast a vote as long as the recorded vote remains open. The vote is closed at the discretion of the presiding officer, but must remain open for a minimum of 15 minutes. If the vote is tied, the Vice President, if present, is entitled to a casting vote. If the Vice President is not present, however, the motion is resolved in the negative. On occasion, the Senate may go into what is called a secret, or closed session. During a closed session, the chamber doors are closed, and the galleries are completely cleared of anyone not sworn to secrecy, not instructed in the rules of the closed session, or not essential to the session. Closed sessions are quite rare, and are usually held only under certain circumstances where the Senate is discussing sensitive subject - matter such as information critical to national security, private communications from the President, or even to discuss Senate deliberations during impeachment trials. Any Senator has the right to call a closed session as long as the motion is seconded. Budget bills are governed under a special rule process called `` Reconciliation '' that disallows filibusters. Reconciliation was devised in 1974 but came into use in the early 1980s. The rules by number The Standing Rules of the Senate detail the rules of order of the United States Senate. The latest version was adopted on April 27, 2000 and comprises the following 43 rules. The Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006 introduces a 44th rule on earmarks. SR Rule I : Appointment of a Senator to the Chair SR Rule II : Presentation of Credentials and Questions of Privilege SR Rule III : Oaths SR Rule IV : Commencement of Daily Sessions SR Rule V : Suspension and Amendment of the Rules SR Rule VI : Quorum - Absent Senators May Be Sent For SR Rule VII : Morning Business SR Rule VIII : Order of Business SR Rule IX : Messages SR Rule X : Special Orders SR Rule XI : Papers - Withdrawal, Printing, Reading of, and Reference SR Rule XII : Voting Procedure SR Rule XIII : Reconsideration SR Rule XIV : Joint Resolutions, and Preambles Thereto SR Rule XV : Amendments and Resolutions SR Rule XVI : Appropriations and Amendments to General Appropriation Bills SR Rule XVII : Reference to Committees ; Motions to Discharge ; Reports of Committees ; and Hearings Available SR Rule XVIII : Business Continued from Session to Session SR Rule XIX : Debate SR Rule XX : Questions for Order SR Rule XXI : Session with Closed Doors SR Rule XXII : Precedence of Motions SR Rule XXIII : Privilege of the Floor SR Rule XXIV : Appointments of Committee SR Rule XXV : Standing Committees SR Rule XXVI : Committee Procedure SR Rule XXVII : Committee Staff SR Rule XXVIII : Conference Committees ; Reports ; Open Meetings SR Rule XXIX : Executive Sessions SR Rule XXX : Executive Session - Proceedings on Treaties SR Rule XXXI : Executive Session - Proceedings on Nominations SR Rule XXXII : The President Furnished with Copies of Record Executive Sessions SR Rule XXXIII : Senate Chamber - Senate Wing of the Capitol SR Rule XXXIV : Public Financial Disclosure SR Rule XXXV : Gifts SR Rule XXXVI : Outside Earned Income SR Rule XXXVII : Conflict of Interest SR Rule XXXVIII : Prohibition of Unofficial Office Accounts SR Rule XXXIX : Foreign Travel SR Rule XL : Franking Privilege and Radio and Television Studios SR Rule XLI : Political Fund Activity ; Definitions SR Rule XLII : Employment Practices SR Rule XLIII : Representation by Members SR Rule XLIV : Congressionally Directed Spending and Related Items References Jump up ^ 113TH CONGRESS : 1ST SESSION S. RES. 16 : Amending the Standing Rules of the Senate, January 24 ( legislative day, January 3 ), 2013 External links Wikisource has original text related to this article : Standing Rules of the Senate Official text, Standing Rules of the Senate Standing Rules of the Senate, One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, November 4, 2013 United States Congress House of Representatives Senate ( 114th ← 115th → 116th ) Lists of congressional lists Members and leaders Members Current By length of service Freshmen Youngest members Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico Delegates Senate Current by seniority Dean of the Senate Former U.S. Senators living Earliest serving Earliest living Expelled or censured Classes Born outside the U.S. House Current by seniority Dean of the House Former U.S. Representatives living Oldest living Earliest serving Expelled, censured, and reprimanded Leaders Senate President ( list ) President pro tempore ( list ) Majority and minority leaders Assistant party leaders Democratic Caucus ( Chair Secretary Policy Committee Chair ) Republican Conference ( Chair Vice-Chair Policy Committee Chair ) House Speaker Leaders Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group Democratic Caucus Republican Conference Districts List Apportionment Caucuses, women and minorities Congressional caucus African Americans in the House Congressional Black Caucus African Americans in the Senate Arab and Middle - Eastern members Asian Pacific American members Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Hispanic and Latino members Congressional Hispanic Caucus Congressional Hispanic Conference Jewish members LGBT members LGBT Equality Caucus Native American members Women in the House Congressional Caucus for Women 's Issues Women in the Senate Related By length of service historically Powers, privileges, procedure, committees, history and media Powers Article I Copyright Commerce ( Dormant ) Contempt of Congress Declaration of war Impeachment Naturalization `` Necessary and Proper '' Power of enforcement Taxing / spending Privileges and benefits Salaries Franking Immunity Procedure Act of Congress ( list ) Appropriation bill Blue slip Budget resolution Censure Closed sessions House Senate Cloture Concurrent resolution Continuing resolution Dear Colleague letter Discharge petition Engrossed bill Enrolled bill Expulsion Joint resolution Joint session ( list ) Lame - duck session Majority of the majority ( Hastert Rule ) Multiple referral Procedures ( House ) Quorum call Reconciliation Rider Saxbe fix Sponsorship Suspension of the rules Unanimous consent Veto Line - item veto Pocket veto Veto override Senate - specific Advice and consent Classes Executive communication Executive session Filibuster Jefferson 's Manual Senate Journal Morning business Nuclear option Presiding Officer Recess appointment Reconciliation Riddick 's Senate Procedure Senate hold Senatorial courtesy Seniority Standing Rules Tie - breaking votes Traditions Treaty Clause Committees Chairman and ranking member Of the Whole Conference Discharge petition Hearings Markup Oversight List ( Joint ) List ( House ) List ( Senate ) Select and special Standing Subcommittees Items Gavels Mace of the House Seal of the Senate History Biographical Directory Congressional apportionment Divided government House Gerrymandering Party control Senate Senate election disputes Senatorial memoirs Representative memoirs Media C - SPAN Congressional Quarterly The Hill Politico Roll Call Capitol Complex Legislative offices Congressional staff Government Accountability Office ( Comptroller General ) Architect of the Capitol Capitol Police ( Capitol Police Board ) Capitol Guide Service ( Capitol Guide Board ) Congressional Budget Office ( CBO ) Compliance Library of Congress Government Publishing Office ( GPO ) Technology Assessment Offices Senate Curator Historical Library House Congressional Ethics Emergency Planning, Preparedness, and Operations Interparliamentary Affairs Law Revision Counsel Library Employees Senate Secretary Chaplain Curator Historian Librarian Pages Parliamentarian Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper House Chaplain Chief Administrative Officer Clerk Doorkeeper Floor Operations Floor Services Chief Historian Pages ( Page Board ) Parliamentarian Postmaster Reading Clerk Sergeant at Arms Library of Congress Congressional Research Service ( reports ) Copyright Office ( Register of Copyrights ) Law Library Poet Laureate THOMAS Adams Building Jefferson Building Madison Building Government Publishing Office Public Printer Congressional Pictorial Directory Congressional Record Official Congressional Directory United States Government Manual Serial Set Statutes at Large United States Code Capitol Brumidi Corridors Congressional Prayer Room Crypt Dome Statue of Freedom Rotunda Hall of Columns Statuary Hall Visitor Center The Apotheosis of Washington Statue of Freedom Declaration of Independence painting Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States Apotheosis of Democracy First Reading of the Emancipation Proclamation of President Lincoln Surrender of General Burgoyne Surrender of Lord Cornwallis Revolutionary War Door Columbus Doors Westward the Course of Empire Takes Its Way Vice President 's Room Vice Presidential Bust Collection Office buildings Senate Dirksen Hart Mountains and Clouds Russell House Building Commission Cannon Ford Longworth O'Neill Rayburn Other facilities Botanic Garden Health and Fitness Facility House Recording Studio Senate chamber Old Senate Chamber Old Supreme Court Chamber Power Plant Webster Page Residence Subway Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Standing_Rules_of_the_United_States_Senate&oldid=821321907 '' Categories : Parliamentary procedure United States Senate Standing Rules of the United States Senate Talk About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 19 January 2018, at 19 : 08 ( UTC ). 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Question: when is the president of the senate allowed to vote
Answer: If the vote is tied