Blue-Slip Resolution / Star Print / Blue Slip (CongressionalGlossary.com)

From the Congressional Glossary – Including Legislative and Budget Terms

Blue-Slip Resolution / Star Print / Blue Slip

Blue-Slip Resolution: House resolution ordering the return to the Senate of a Senate bill or amendment that the House believes violates the constitutional prerogative of the House to originate revenue measures.

Article I, Section 7, clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution is known as the Origination Clause because it provides that “All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives.” As generally understood in both the House and Senate, this clause carries two kinds of prohibitions. First, the Senate may not originate any measure that includes a provision for raising revenue, and second, the Senate may not propose any amendment that would raise revenue to a non-revenue measure. The Senate, however, may generally amend a House-originated revenue measure as it sees fit. These prohibitions can be enforced in either the House or the Senate, and there are ample precedents for both.

Star Print: A reprint of a measure, amendment, or committee report to correct errors in a previous printing. The first page carries a small black star. Rarely used today, with technology mitigating the need.

A “Blue Slip” is a blue-paper form “that Senate Judiciary Committee chairs send to home-state senators asking if they approve of judicial nominees in their states.” “Senate GOP used “blue slips” to block Obama judicial nominees, but now wants to trash the practice,” by Russell Wheeler, Brookings, May 25, 2017.

Also see

• Amendment
• Bills
• Resolution
• § 6.11 Legislation Glossary, in Congressional Deskbook
• Chapter 1.B. Constitutional Provisions; Chapter 4.D. Special Rules; Chapter 5.D. Holds; Chapter 7.H. Appropriations; Chapter 8.B. Nominations; in Congressional Procedure.

More

• Article I, Section 7
• Cannon’s Precedents, Volume 6, Chapter 180 – Prerogatives of the House as to Revenue Legislation – FDsys
• “The Origination Clause of the U.S. Constitution: Interpretation and Enforcement,” CRS Report RL31399 (24-page PDF)
• “Bills and Resolutions: Examples of How Each Kind Is Used,” CRS Report 98-706 (7-page PDF)
• “Resolving Legislative Differences in Congress: Conference Committees and Amendments Between the Houses,” CRS Report 98-696 (40-page PDF)
• “Blue-Slipping: Enforcing the Origination Clause in the House of Representatives,” CRS Report RS21236 (4-page PDF)
• “House Committee Markups: Manual of Procedures and Procedural Strategies,” CRS Report R41083 (220-page PDF)
• “Blue-Slipping: Enforcing the Origination Clause in the House of Representatives,” CRS Report R46556 (10-page PDF)
• “Enrollment of Legislation: Relevant Congressional Procedures,” CRS Report RL34480 (10-page PDF)
• “The History of the Blue Slip in the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, 1917-Present,” CRS Report RL32013 (35-page PDF)
• “The Blue Slip Process for U.S. Circuit and District Court Nominations (1917-Present),” CRS Report R44975 (21-page PDF)
• “The Blue-Slip Process in the Senate Committee on the Judiciary: Background, Issues, and Options,” CRS Report RS21674 (8-page PDF)
• “History and Context of the Blue Slip Courtesy,” Senate Judiciary Committee, November 2, 2017 (6-page PDF)
• The President’s Nominations to Federal Courts
• Senatorial Courtesy (CongressionalGlossary.com)

Courses

• Congressional Operations Briefing – Capitol Hill Workshop
• Drafting Federal Legislation and Amendments
• Writing for Government and Business: Critical Thinking and Writing
• Custom Training
• Drafting Effective Federal Legislation and Amendments in a Nutshell, Audio Course on CD
• Congress, the Legislative Process, and the Fundamentals of Lawmaking Series, a Nine-Course series on CD

Publications

Legislative Drafter’s Deskbook: A Practical Guide

Pocket Constitution

Citizen’s Handbook to Influencing Elected Officials: A Guide for Citizen Lobbyists and Grassroots Advocates

Congressional Procedure

CongressionalGlossary.com, from TheCapitol.Net