From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms
Yield the Floor


Senate: A senator who has been recognized to speak yields the floor when she completes her remarks and terminates her recognition.
FILIBUSTER – SEN. PAUL YIELDS THE FLOOR
House: In certain procedural circumstances, most often when the House is amending legislation under an “open” special rule, legislators instead seek recognition to speak, usually for up to five minutes, directly from the presiding officer. A member of the House who has been recognized can yield to another during debate, but continues to hold the floor; and the time used by the member yielded to is taken from the time allocated to the member holding the floor.
Also see Controlled Time; Recognize / Recognition; Special Rule; Yield / Yielding; Yield Time.
More
- “Debate and Motions on the House Floor,” CRS Report 98-827 (6-page PDF
)
- “Speaking on the House Floor: Gaining Time and Parliamentary Phraseology,” CRS Report RS22991 (11-page PDF
)
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