SECTION 1. The Senate shall elect, in the manner hereinafter provided, a President, a President Pro Tempore, a Secretary, and a Sergeant-at-Arms.

These officers shall take their oath of office before entering into the discharge of their duties.

Sec. 2. The officer of the Senate shall be elected by the majority vote of all its Members. Should there be more than one candidate for the same office, a nominal vote shall be take; otherwise, the elections shall be by viva voce or by resolution.

Sec. 3. The President is the Chief Executive of the Senate. His duties and powers are as follows:

Sec. 4. The President Pro Tempore shall discharge the powers and duties of the President in the following cases:

Sec. 5. In the cases specified in subparagraph (c), Section 4 of this Rule, the President Pro Tempore shall serve as Acting President until the Senate shall have elected a new President.

Sec. 6. In case of the temporary absence of the President or the President Pro Tempore, the Majority Leader or in his absence, the Assistant Majority Leader, or any member designated by the president shall discharge the powers and duties of the president.

Sec. 7. The duties and powers of the Secretary are:

Sec. 8. The duties and powers of the Sergeant-at-Arms are:

Sec. 9. In the temporary absence or incapacity of the Secretary, the Deputy Secretary for Legislation shall act as such with all the powers and duties inherent in said office and in the case of the Sergeant-at-Arms, the person designated by the President to take his place shall temporarily serve as such officer.

Sec. 10. The term of office of the President, the President Pro Tempore, the Secretary and the Sergeant-at-Arms shall begin upon their election and end when their successors shall have been elected.

Sec. 11. Any vacancy in the office of the Secretary or office of the Sergeant-at-Arms shall be filed in accordance with Section 2 hereof: Provided, That when the vacancy occurs during a recess, the Deputy Secretary for Legislation shall be the Acting Secretary and the President of the Senate may designate an Acting Sergeant-at-Arms.

Sec. 12. In the first session following every periodic election of Senators, the Senate shall proceed with its organization. If in such organizational session there be neither President nor President Pro Tempore, the Secretary shall proceed in accordance with the provisions of subparagraph (c), Section 6 of Rule V.

Sec. 14. Whenever necessary, special committees shall be organized, the membership and jurisdiction of which shall be determined by the Senate President.

Sec. 15. Although a measure covers subject matters falling within the jurisdiction of more than one committee, it shall be referred to not more than two committee. However, measures involving the appropriation of funds or embodying tax or revenue proposals shall respectively be referred also to the Committee on Finance for the appropriation aspect or to the Committee on Ways and Means for the tax or revenue aspect. The first committee, mentioned in the order of referral shall be the primary committee, mainly responsible to submit a report to the Senate incorporating therein the appropriate recommendations of the secondary committee and the Committee on Finance or the Committee on Ways and Means, as the case may be.

Sec. 16. The transmittal of matters to the committees may be done with instructions through a motion by a majority of the Senators present.

Sec. 17. The membership of the permanent committees, including their respective Chairman, shall be chosen by the Senate. The Chairman of each committee may designate the Vice-Chairman or such Vice-Chairman of his committee and create such subcommittees as may be deemed necessary.

Sec. 18. The Chairman and the members of the permanent committees shall commence in the exercise of their duties upon their election. They shall cease when their successors shall have been elected or designated.

Sec. 19. The President Pro Tempore and both the Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate are ex officio members of all the permanent committees.

Sec. 20. Whenever a motion regarding who should be a member of a permanent committee is presented, no objection against the proposed membership of any Senator in particular shall be considered.

The objections, if any, must be formulated against the proposed membership therein as a whole.

Sec. 21. Every committee shall determine the frequency of its regular meetings. If it so desires, a committee may choose to hold its meetings or hearings on a weekend.

Special meeting may be called by the Chairman of a committee or by one-third of its members, but notice, including the agenda, place, and time of the meeting shall be given three days in advance to every member of the committee.

One-third of all the regular members of the committee shall constitute a quorum but in no case shall it be less than two. The presence of ex officio members may be considered in determining the existence of a quorum. However, the committee may authorize a fewer number of members to conduct public hearings on bills pending before it or to gather facts in aid of legislation.

Sec. 22. Unexplained absences in five successive committee meetings may operate to relinquish regular membership therein.

Sec. 23. The committee shall hold sessions to discuss, decide and submit a report on all matters transmitted to them. The report must be signed by the majority of the members thereof.

A regular member of a committee shall hold presumed to have concurred in the report and shall be precluded from opposing the same unless he enters his objection thereto or files with the Secretary of the Senate his dissenting vote within two session days after the Committee Report is included in the Order of Business or unless, upon satisfactory explanation made by the member concerned, the President should allow otherwise.

Sec. 24. Should a secondary committee submit its report without the report of the primary committee having been submitted, such report of the secondary committee will be referred to the committee on rules for proper disposition.

Sec. 25. In case a bill or joint resolution is reported out by a committee which contains an appropriation, revenue or tax aspect, the report shall be referred by the primary committee to the committee on finance or to committee on ways and means, as the case may be.

Sec. 26. If the secondary committee fails to submit its recommendations within two (2) weeks from request, it shall be deemed to have waived its right to make a recommendation, in which case the primary committee may report out the measure.

Sec. 27. Whenever two committees submit conflicting reports, both reports shall be referred to the Committee on Rules.

Sec. 28. Reports on privileged subjects shall be submitted to the Senate while in session, either by the Chairman of the committee or a duly authorized member thereof, and the same may not be withdrawn on petition of the Chairman or the committee itself without the consent of the Senate.

Sec. 29. If the reports submitted are unfavorable, they shall be transmitted to the Archives of the Senate together with the matters to which they refer, unless five Senators shall in the following session move for their inclusion in the Calendar for Ordinary Business, in which case the President shall so order.

Sec. 30. Should any committee fail to render a report on any bill or resolution referred to it within thirty session days after such reference, if the Senate is in regular session, or within ten session days in case of special sessions, five Senators may move, in writing, for its inclusion in the Calendar for Ordinary Business and the President shall so order it.

Sec. 31. When a report is returned to a committee or is transmitted to another, unless it is returned for purposes of conducting further public hearings on new matters arising after the report, all previous proceedings in connection therewith shall be deemed to be avoid and that matter in question shall revert to its original status.

Sec. 32. The following committees are authorized to submit at any time their reports on any matter within their jurisdiction: The Committee on Rules; the Committee on Finance, and the Committee on accounts.

Sec. 33. The motion for the study of any report submitted by the Committee on Rules, Ethics and Privileges shall always be in order, and while the report is pending consideration no motion may be entertained unless it is a motion to adjourn; if this latter motion is disapproved, no dilatory motion on the aforesaid report shall be admitted.

Sec. 34. In the event that the Senate does not agree with the House of Representatives on the provision of any bill or joint resolution, the differences shall be settled by a conference committee of both Houses which shall meet within ten days after their composition.

The President shall designate the members of the Senate panel in the conference committee with the approval of the Senate.

Each Conference Committee Report shall contain a detailed and sufficiently explicit statement of the changes in, or amendments to the subject measure, and shall be signed by a majority of the members of each House panel, voting separately.

A comparative presentation of the conflicting House and Senate provisions and a reconciled version thereof with the explanatory statement of the conference committee shall be attached to the report.

The consideration of such report shall not be in order unless the report has been filed with the Secretary of the Senate and copies thereof have been distributed to the Members.

The presentation of reports of conference committees shall always be in order when available, except when the journal is being read or a question of order or a motion to adjourn is pending, or while the Senate is voting or ascertaining the presence of a quorum; and when received, the question of proceeding to the consideration of the report shall be determined without debate.

Sec. 35. By means of a motion approved by a majority of the Senators present, the Chair shall assign for reconsideration, as a Special Order, any matter which has been reported out by the corresponding committee or which does not require such report.

Sec. 36. Whenever two or more matters shall have been designated for reconsideration as a Special Order, they shall be considered successively, unless a majority of the Senators present decide otherwise.

Sec. 37. If, after a matter has been assigned for reconsideration, the Senate is unable to consider it on the appointed day, said matter shall retain its corresponding place in the Calendar for Special Orders, unless a majority of the Senators present decide otherwise.

Sec. 38. Matters which the Senate has already begun to discus and whose consideration has been suspended without a prior motion expressly requesting their postponement shall occupy a place of preference in the Calendar for Special Orders of the next session, in the order in which they were called.

Sec. 39. The Senate shall meet in session at three o'clock in the afternoon on week days, except when the Senate decides otherwise.

Sec. 40. The President may postpone, after consultation with Majority Leader and the Minority Leader, respectively, the holding of the session on a day to day adjournment due to force majuere or the occurrence of an emergency which may prevent the convening of the Senate.

Sec. 41. The Senate shall convene once every year for its regular session. It shall continue to be in session for such number of days as it may determine in its legislative calendar, subject only to such limitations as may be provided by the Constitution; Provided, That the President of the Senate in consultation with the Majority and Minority Leaders and upon agreement with the Speaker of the House of the Representatives may reconvene the Senate in session without need of a call by the President of the Philippines, at any time during a recess as provided in the legislative calendar, to consider urgent legislative matters; or in case of a vacancy in the Office of the Vice-President, to confirm the nominee of the President for the position in accordance with Section 9, Article VII of the Constitution, or to determine the inability of the President of the Philippines to discharge the powers and duties of his office upon the written declaration of a majority of all the Members of the Cabinet in accordance with Section 11, Article VII of the Constitution, or convene in joint session during any voluntary or compulsory recess to:

Sec. 42. On the first session day of each week, the Senate shall observe a one-minute prayer or invocation to be led by a member of the Senate, followed by the singing of the national anthem. On every session day thereafter, the prayer or invocation, as the case may be; shall immediately follow the opening of the session.

Sec. 43. Except during the election of officers as provided in Section 2, a majority of the Senators shall constitute a quorum and, in its absence, a smaller number may adjourn from day to day and may compel the attendance of absent Members in the manner provided in Section 99 hereof.

Sec. 44. Should the question of a lack of quorum be raised, the Chair, without debate, shall immediately proceed to a verification thereof by causing the reading of the roll of the Senators and announcing forthwith the result.

Sec. 45. The Senate shall have three calendars, to wit:

A Calendar for Ordinary Business, in which shall be included the bills reported out by the committees in the order in which they were received by the Office of the Secretary; the bills whose consideration has been agreed upon by the Senate without setting the dates on which to effect it; and, also the bills whose consideration has been postponed indefinitely;

A Calendar for Special Orders, in which the bills and resolutions shall be arranged successively and chronologically, according to the order in which they were assigned for consideration; and

A Calendar for Third Reading, in which be included all bills and joint resolutions approved on second reading.

Sec. 46. Messages of the President of the Philippines and those from the House of the Representatives may be read at any time by the Senate, except during voting or the reading of the Journal or when a point of order or a motion to adjourn is pending resolution.

Sec. 47. The Secretary shall duly inform the House of Representatives of the action taken by the Senate on any bill or resolution originating in the House of the Representatives or request the latter's approval of the bills or resolutions approved by the Senate; the Secretary shall likewise transmit either by himself or by any of his duly authorized representatives any message or communication of the Senate.

Sec. 48. The Secretary shall prepare for each session an Order of Business in which shall be listed:

Sec. 49. The matters mentioned in the preceding section which have to be acted upon by the Senate shall be referred to the proper committee; otherwise they shall be transmitted to the Archives of the Senate.

Sec. 50. The Senate shall keep a Journal of its proceedings which shall contain a succinct and accurate account of what has taken place in every session.

Sec. 51. The following be inserted in full in the Journal:

And in condensed form:

It shall also include a list of Members who responded to the roll call, those who arrived at the session hall after the roll call, and those who are on official business/mission authorized by the Senate President. Those who are absent shall be recorded.

Sec. 52. The reading of the Journal shall not be interrupted or suspended except by unanimous consent of the Senate, and no motion to amend it shall be entertained once it has been read and approved.

Sec. 53. The reading of the Journal may be dispensed with by unanimous consent, in which case the Journal shall be deemed to have been approved.

Sec. 54. If a Senator finds any error in the Journal, the reading of which was dispensed with, he shall, verbally in open session, call the attention of the Senate to this fact and move for its correction not later than three session days subsequent to that in which the reading of said Journal was dispensed with.

Sec. 55. The Journal of the Senate shall from time to time be printed and published under the direction of the Secretary, and its distribution and the number of copies to be printed shall be determined by the Senate in a resolution to that effect.

Sec. 56. The Senate shall keep and preserve a Record of its sessions which shall be printed and published.

The said Record shall reflect in detail everything that has been said, done and read in the sessions of the Senate, in such a manner as to express faithfully everything that takes place therein.

In all cases, the messages of the President of the Philippines and those from the House of the Representatives shall be inserted in toto in the said Record.

Sec. 57. Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding section, the speeches of the Senators shall be revised in style and form prior to their publication.

To this end, the Debate Reporters Service shall transmit to their respective authors a copy of their speeches for correction within a period of seven (7) days counted from the date of receipt thereof by such authors.

If the author of the aforementioned speeches fails to make the correction or revision within the period stated above, it shall be understood that he delegates the said revision or correction to the Debate Reporters Service.

Persons soliciting copies of these speeches shall be furnished only after revision has been accomplished.

Sec. 58. Every bill or resolution must be signed by one or more Senators.

If its author is the committee called to study it and recommendations relative thereto are made in accordance with Rule XI, the measures should be signed by the chairman of the committee or by the member who takes his place and should be submitted with the corresponding report attached thereto.

Sec. 59. Consolidated and Substitute Bills — A consolidated or substitute bill made by a committee shall have as authors every member who has signed any of the original bills or resolutions consolidated or substituted for, in the order their names appear in the latter and according to the date of the filing thereof. In case the Chairman or any member of the committee desires to be an author of the consolidated or substitute bill, his name be added after the name of the last author in accordance with the order provided herein.

Sec. 60. All bills and resolutions shall be filed with the Office of the Secretary whatever the Senates is in session or not.

Sec. 61. No bill or joint resolution reported out by a committee within ten (10) days prior to the closing of the ordinary session shall be considered unless it be with the express consent of a majority of the Senators present. This Rule may not be suspended impliedly.

Sec. 62. Simple and concurrent resolutions shall be presented at least one day before their consideration, unless a majority of the Senators present decide otherwise.

Sec. 63. Prior to their final approval, bills and joint resolutions shall be read at least three times.

Sec. 64. For the purpose of this Rule, bills shall be considered as read:

On first reading, when they are read for transmittal to the corresponding committee.

This provision to the contrary notwithstanding, when a committee bill is presented with a report, the reading of the same, together with the title of the bill, shall be considered as first reading.

On second reading, when they are sponsored and submitted for the consideration of, and amendment by, the Senate.

On third reading, when after having been approved on second reading, they are submitted with or without amendments for the approval of the Senate.

Sec. 65. The first reading shall be confined to its title; the second shall consist in the reading of the bill in the form recommended by the corresponding committee; and the third, in the form it will be after approval on second reading.

Sec. 66. Notwithstanding the preceding section, the second and third reading may be limited only to the title of the bill or resolutions, if a motion to that effect is approved by a majority of the Senators present.

Sec. 67. No bill shall be passed by the Senate unless it has passed three readings on separate days, and printed copies thereof in its final form have been distributed to the members before its passage, except when the President of the Philippines certifies to the necessity of its immediate enactment to meet a public calamity or emergency pursuant to Section 26, Subsection 2, Article VI of the Constitution.

A bill or joint resolution filed as a substitute or a consolidated version of a bill or joint resolution previously certified by the President pursuant to Section 26, Subsection 2, Article VI of the Constitution shall likewise be certified for it to be considered for immediately enactment by the Senate.

Sec. 68. After the opening of the session and the dispatch and assignment of the various matters appearing in the Order of Business the President shall declare in order, in the arrangement in which they appear, the consideration of the matters contained in the Calendar for Special Orders.

Sec. 69. Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding section regarding the order of succession, the Senate may, through a motion and with the support of a majority of the Senators present, forthwith consider any other measure.

Sec. 7. The Senate shall adopt the following procedure in the consideration of bills and joint resolutions:

Sec. 71. Simple or concurrent resolutions shall not be subject to the procedure for second and third reading prescribed in Section 71.

Sec. 72. Whenever a Senator wishes to speak, he shall rise and request the President or the Presiding Officer to allow him to have the floor, which consent shall be necessary before he may proceed.

If various Senators wish to have the floor, the President or Presiding Officer shall recognize the one who first made the request.

Sec. 73. No Senator shall interrupt another without the latter's consent, which may not obtained except through the President or Presiding Officer.

Sec. 74. The sponsor may consume as much a time as he deems necessary to express the contents and purposes of the bill. Subsequent speakers for or against a bill may consume two hours each for debates on bills or other matters, provided they are not on amendments.

Sec. 75. On amendments, not more than thirty minutes may be consumed by each speaker.

Sec. 76. The time spent in parliamentary interpellations shall be discounted from the allowed for debates.

Sec. 77. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Rule regarding the time that each speaker may consume, the Senate may reduce or extend it with the consent of a majority of the Senators present when by reason of the nature or urgency of the bill the public interest so requires.

Sec. 78. When a bill or resolution with a preamble is submitted to a vote, the body of the measure shall first be voted on, and, afterwards, the preamble. Its author or the committee which reported the said bill or resolution may withdraw the preamble at any time before nominal voting thereon. Thereafter, upon motion duly made, the preamble may be placed on the table and such act shall not affect the status of the bill itself.

Sec. 79. All bills and resolutions shall be subject to amendments; but in order that the amendments may be considered, they should be presented concretely and specifically in the course of the debate, indicating the page and the line in which the amendments are proposed to be made, and in writing, if a majority of the Senators present so decide.

Sec. 80. Whenever a Senator wishes to retain in a measure some words or phrases which have been substituted or deleted by the committee that reported it, an amendment to that effect must be presented as if such words or phrases have never appeared on the bill.

Sec. 81. Not more than one amendment to the original amendment shall be considered.

No amendment by substitution shall be entertained unless the text thereof is submitted in writing.

Any of said amendments may be withdrawn before a vote is taken thereon.

Sec. 82. No amendment which seeks the inclusion of a legislative provision to the subject matter of a bill (rider) shall be entertained.

Sec. 83. No amendment setting aside sums of money for the payment of a claim shall be entertained in an appropriation bill, unless it be to comply with the provisions of a certain law, or with the terms of an agreement duly entered into by the government, and all these be set forth in the proposed amendment.

Sec. 84. A bill or resolution shall not be amended by substituting it with another which covers a subject distinct from that proposed in the original bill or resolution.

Sec. 85. Amendments to the title of a bill or resolution shall be in order after text thereof has been perfected.

Sec. 86. Motions other than those subject of Section 80 in the preceding Rule may be presented orally, but a majority of the Senators present may require that they be done in writing and read by the Secretary before proceeding to their consideration.

Sec. 87. The sponsor of any motion or measure may withdraw or modify it before its amendments or resolution or before a nominal vote is ordered on the same; but a motion to reconsider duly seconded may not be withdrawn without the consent of the one who seconded the said motion.

Sec. 88. While a motion or bill resolution is being discussed, no other motion shall be entertained except the following and in the order in which they appear below:

All motions to adjourn or suspend a session or to hold executive sessions shall be resolved without debate.

Sec. 89. The following shall be considered privileged motions:

All the foregoing motions shall not be debatable, and shall have precedence in their consideration according to the order abovementioned.

Sec. 90. Any Senator who voted with the majority may move for the reconsideration of a measure on the same day it was decided by the Senate or within the next two session days. If the Senate disapproves the motion, no other motion to reconsider shall be entertained unless it be by unanimous consent.

Sec. 91. It a motion for reconsideration, approved by the Senate, refers to a measure already with the House of the Representatives, an advice shall be sent to the latter with a request for the return of the measure and to render ineffective any action taken thereon.

Sec. 92. Acts and language which offend a Senator or any public institution shall be deemed unparliamentary.

Sec. 93. No Senator, under any circumstances, shall use offensive or improper language against another Senator or against any public institution.

Sec. 94. When a Senator, by word or deed, violates any Rule of the Senate, the President, motu proprio or at the instance of another Senator, may call him to order. The Senator concerned shall immediately take his seat if he happens to have the floor; and, in case the point of order raised has been sustained by the President or Presiding Officer, said Senator shall not continue speaking without the consent of the Senate. The motion permitting the Senator concerned to continue speaking shall be resolved without debate.

Sec. 95. When a Senator is called to order for using unparliamentary language, any other Senator may ask that the objectionable words be read for the information and decision of the Senate.

Sec. 96. Upon the recommendation of the Committee on Rules, Ethics and Privileges, the Senate may punish any Member for disorderly behavior and, with the concurrence of two-thirds of the entire membership, suspended or expel a Member. A penalty of suspension shall not exceed sixty calendar days.

Sec. 97. Except as provided in Section 40, Rule XIV, hereof, the President of the Senate cannot suspend or adjourn a session of the Senate without a previous motion or resolution to that effect, which should be approved by a majority of the Senators present.

Sec. 98. Notwithstanding the provision of the preceding section, the lack of quorum shall compel the President to adjourn the session, unless by means of motion, which shall not be subject to debate, a majority of the Senators present agree to its suspension and ask the President or Presiding Officer to order the Sergeant-at-Arms to require the appearance of the absent Members or, if it is deemed necessary, to order their arrest so as to form the necessary quorum.

Sec. 99. The Senate adjourns for a congressional recess:

Recess includes:

Sec. 100. When a treaty is received in the Senate for its concurrence, the same shall be referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. After the Committee has reported the treaty to the Senate, the second reading of the treaty shall take place and during this period it shall be opened to general debate and to amendments. After the close of the debate, the treaty shall be voted upon and once approved shall pass to its third reading.

Any action taken by the Senate on the treaty shall be set forth in a resolution prepared by the Committee on Foreign Relations. This resolution shall be printed and distributed to the Senators as a bill on third reading.

Three days after the distribution of the resolution of the Senate with printed copies of the treaty attached thereto, the resolution shall be submitted for nominal voting and, if two-thirds of all the Senators approve it, the treaty shall be deemed approved, and in the contrary case, disapproved.

Consideration of the treaty shall be resumed from session to session until approval or non-approval.

All proceedings on treaties terminate upon the expiration of the term of the Senators elected in the preceding elections and the same shall be taken up in the succeeding sessions of the Senate, as if presented for the first time.

Sec. 101. The reading and inclusion of any documents in the Record of the Senate as well as in the Journal may be ordered upon request of a Senator after his brief explanation of the object of his request; but if objected to, the motion shall be submitted to a vote without debate.

Sec. 102. The reading and inclusion of documents that are not of public interest shall not be allowed.

Sec. 103. No written explanation of vote, speech or any other documents shall be included in the Record as well as in the Journal if the member manifesting his interest to have the same included fails to submit such document within seven (7) days from the time he made the manifestation.

Sec. 104. All points of order may be raised at any time during the session and the President shall resolve them. The decisions of the President may be appealed to the Senate upon motion of any Senator.

The motion to lay on the table an appeal shall always be in order, and if the Senate resolves the motion in the affirmative, the decision of the President or Presiding Officer shall be deemed to have been sustained.

Sec. 105. It shall be discretionary for the President to submit to the Senate for resolution any point of order which may be raised.

Sec. 106. Questions of privilege are those affecting the rights, privileges, reputation, conduct, decorum and dignity of the Senate or of its Members as well as the integrity of its proceedings.

Sec. 107. When there is no quorum or when the roll is being called, no question of privilege may be raised unless it relates to the procedure of ascertaining the existence of said quorum.

Sec. 108. Only the motion to adjourn shall have precedence over question of privilege and privileged motions.

Sec. 109. After the consideration of the matters contained in the Calendar for Special Orders, a Senator may forthwith request for and avail of the privilege to speak for one hour on any matter of public interest.

If more than one Senator wishes to avail of the same privilege, the Senator who first announced his intention shall be given priority.

The period of time allowed in this section may, upon motion of the Senator on the floor; be extended for such time as may be necessary for him to finish his speech unless a majority of all Senators vote against such extension.

Sec. 110. Voting shall be:

Sec. 111. In votings by viva voce the affirmative vote shall be taken first, and then the negative vote.

Sec. 112. If there is any doubt as to the result, the President, on is own initiative or upon petition of any Senator, shall proceed to the counting of the affirmative and the negative votes.

In this case, the President shall request the Senators who voted in the affirmative to raise their hands and, after taking note of their number, he shall request those who voted in the negative to do the same.

After counting the votes, he shall announce the final result.

Sec. 113. In nominal votings, the Secretary shall call alphabetically the names of the Senators present and each Senator shall answer yes or no upon being called.

Immediately thereafter, the Secretary shall inform the President about the result of the voting, and the latter forthwith shall in turn announce it to the Senate.

Sec. 114. The voting shall always be nominal whenever it concerns:

Sec. 115. The President shall not be obliged to vote except when his vote is decisive.

Sec. 116. The vote of a Senator absent from the session at the moment he is called to vote shall not be counted.

Sec. 117. No Senator shall be permitted to vote on any measure after the President has announced the result of the voting.

Sec. 118. Voting shall not be interrupted except on a question of quorum.

Sec. 119. The unanimous consent to any action proceeding may be given expressly or impliedly.

Sec. 120. The Rules shall be suspended only when a motion presented by the Committee on Rules to that effect is approved by a majority of the Senators present, there being a quorum.

Sec. 121. When a motion to suspend the Rules is pending, one motion to adjourn may be entertained. If the latter is lost, no similar motion shall be entertained until the vote is taken on the motion to suspend.

If the Senate votes to suspend the Rules, it shall forthwith proceed to consider the measure.

Sec. 122. Unfinished business at the end of the session shall be taken up at the next session in the same status.

All pending matters and proceedings shall terminate upon the expiration of one Congress, but may be taken by the succeeding Congress as if presented for the first time.

Sec. 123. The petitions and memorials of private persons shall be considered by the Senate only when clearly and duly signed by their authors. Those coming from a foreign national or State should furthermore be transmitted through the Office of the President of the Republic of the Philippines.

Sec. 124. Any Department Secretary, Cabinet Member, the Governor of the Bangko Sentral or head of a government financial institution may be summoned by the Senate, through a resolution adopted by it, or upon his own initiative with the consent of the President of the Philippines, appear before the Senate, for information on any matter pertaining to his department.

The resolution adopted by the Senate shall state specifically and clearly the questions to be answered and the date and hour when the Department Secretary, Cabinet Member, Governor of the Bangko Sentral or head of government financial institution shall appear and give the information desired. No question shall contain arguments, include offensive or unparliamentary language or expressions; pertain to sub judice matters; refer to the internal affairs of a foreign country or contain unwarranted discourtesy to it.

Within three (3) days from receipt of said resolution, the Department Secretary, Cabinet Member, Governor of the Bangko Sentral or head of government financial institution shall appear and answer the questions therein, unless the Senate requires him to comply therewith at a specified date and time.

Interpellations shall not be limited to written questions, but may cover matters related thereto.

The appearance of a Department Secretary, Cabinet Member, the Governor of the Bangko Sentral or head of a government financial institution shall be conducted in executive session when the security of the State or the public interest so requires and the President of the Philippines so states in writing.

The appearance of a Department Secretary, Cabinet Member, Governor of the Bangko Sentral or head of a government financial institution shall be scheduled on Tuesdays at five o'clock in the afternoon, unless the Senate decides otherwise.

When a Member of the Cabinet desires to be heard by the Senate on any matter pertaining to his department which is pending consideration in the Senate, a request to that effect shall be sent to the President of the Senate for his approval.

Sec. 125. The executive sessions of the Senate shall be held always behind closed doors. In such sessions, only the Secretary, the Sergeant-at-Arms, and/or such other persons as may be authorized by the Senate may be admitted to the session hall.

Sec. 126. Executive sessions shall be held whenever a Senator so requests it and his petition has been duly seconded, or when the security or the State or public interest so requires. Thereupon, the President shall order that the public be excluded from the gallery and the doors of the session hall be closed.

The Senator who presented the motion shall then explain the reasons which he had for submitting the same.

The minutes of the executive sessions shall be recorded in a separate book.

Sec. 127. The President as well as Senators and the officials and employees of the Senate shall be absolutely refrain from divulging any of the confidential matters taken up by the Senate, and all proceedings which might have taken place in the Senate in connection with the said matters shall be likewise considered as strictly confidential until the Senate, by two-thirds vote of all its Members, decides to lift the ban of secrecy.

Sec. 128. Any Senator who violates the provisions contained in the preceding section may, by a two-thirds vote of all the Senators, be expelled from the Senate, and if the violator is an official or employee of the Senate, he shall be dismissed.

Sec. 129. Whenever upon the request of the Senate or of any of its committees, the President of the Philippines or a Department Secretary sends to the Senate or to any of its committees certain confidential documents in connection with any matter pending therein; all proceedings relative to said documents shall be held behind closed doors and shall not be published without the consent of a majority of the Senators present in the session.

Sec. 130. All documents filed with the Senate after consideration shall be kept and preserved in the Archives of the Senate. No memorial, petition or any other document confidential in nature may be copied, withdrawn or taken away from the Archives or the Secretary or of any committee without the permission of the Secretary.

Sec. 131. When the documents sought to be copied or withdrawn are in the opinion of the Senate not confidential in nature, the Secretary may issue certified copies thereof.

Sec. 132. Legislative committee secretaries of the Senate Secretariat shall deliver to the Archives within seven (7) days after final adjournment of the Congress, all papers and documents in their possession which are related to legislative measures referred to their respective committees.

Sec. 133. If the President of the Philippines vetoes a bill or any part thereof, he shall return the bill with his objections to the House where it originated. If the Senate is the House of the origin, it shall enter the objections at large in the Journal, and proceed to reconsider the bill or item or items vetoed.

During reconsideration, the Senate shall proceed to vote by yeas and nays on the bill or vetoed item or items thereof. The yeas and nays with the names of the Members voting shall be recorded in the Journal. If the bill or vetoed is passed by a vote of two-thirds of all Senators, it shall be sent together with the objections, to the House of the Representatives, which shall likewise reconsider the same.

Sec. 134. If there is no Rule applicable to a specific case, the precedents of the Legislative Department of the Philippines shall be resorted to, and as a supplement to these, the Rules contained in Jefferson's Manual, Riddick's Precedents and Practices, and Hind's Precedents.

Sec. 135. At the start of each session in which the Senators elected, in the preceding elections shall begin their term of office, the President may endorse the Rule to the appropriate committee for amendment or revision.

The Rules may also be amended by means of a motion which should be presented at least one day before its consideration, and the vote of the majority of the Senators present in the session shall be required for its approval.

Sec. 136. These Rules shall take effect on the date of their adoption and shall remain in force until they are amended or repealed.

Adopted, July 24, 1995.

* Adopted on July 25, 1995.