H.R. 985 - Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act of 2017

Bill Text

    Rules Committee Print 115-5 PDF XML

    Showing the text of H.R. 985 as ordered reported and H.R. 906 as reported by the Committee on the Judiciary; with conforming changes.
            ::  Included in these conforming changes are a new short title and title designations.

    Text of H.R. 985 PDF XML

    Fairness in Class Action Litigation Act of 2017 (as reported)

    Text of Committee Reports of Bills Contained in Rules Committee Print 115-5

            ::  H. Rept. 115-18—Report to accompany H.R. 906  PDF
            ::  H. Rept. 115-25—Report to accompany H.R. 985  PDF

Rule Information

COMMITTEE ACTION:
REPORTED BY VOICE VOTE on Wednesday, March 8, 2017.

FLOOR ACTION ON H. RES. 180: 
Agreed to by record vote of 233-184after agreeing to the previous question by record vote of 233-186, on Thursday, March 9, 2017.

MANAGERS: Collins/Slaughter

1. Structured rule for H.R. 720.

2. Provides one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary.

3. Waives all points of order against consideration of the bill.

4. Provides that the bill shall be considered as read.

5. Waives all points of order against provisions in the bill.

6. Makes in order only those amendments printed in part A of the Rules Committee report. Each such amendment may be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question.

7. Waives all points of order against the amendments printed in part A of the report.

8. Provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions.

9. Structured rule for H.R. 985.

10. Provides one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary.

11. Waives all points of order against consideration of the bill.

12. Makes in order as original text for the purpose of amendment an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 115-5 and provides that it shall be considered as read.

13. Waives all points of order against that amendment in the nature of a substitute.

14. Makes in order only those further amendments printed in part B of the Rules Committee report. Each such amendment may be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question.

15. Waives all points of order against the amendments printed in part B of the report.

16. Provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions.

Amendments (click headers to sort)

#Version #Sponsor(s)PartySummaryStatus
12Version 1Cicilline (RI)DemocratExempts service members, veterans, and their families from the information production requirements under title II of the bill.Submitted
7Version 1Conyers (MI)DemocratExempts civil rights actions from the bill's class action provisions.Made In Order
8Version 1Deutch (FL)DemocratStrikes the fee determination based on equitable relief provision.Made In Order
9Version 1Deutch (FL)DemocratCreates an exception for claims brought against the Treasury Department or the IRS by an organization applying for tax-exempt status alleging violations of First Amendment rights.Submitted
11Version 1Deutch (FL)DemocratStrikes the provision on conflicts of interest.Made In Order
13Version 1Espaillat (NY)DemocratExempts class action suits that allege an incident of discrimination based on gender or race.Submitted
17Version 1Espaillat (NY)DemocratExempts a claimant who is or has been living in public housing or any dwelling unit for which rental assistance provided under section 8.Made In Order
10Version 1Gonzalez, Vicente (TX)DemocratCreates an exception for actions brought by first responders or their family members.Submitted
3Version 1Goodlatte (VA)RepublicanMANAGER’S AMENDMENT Strikes the prohibition on the use of the same class counsel if the named plaintiff is a present or former client, or has a contractual relationship with, the class counsel. Carves out private securities litigation class actions from the conflict of interest and stay of discovery sections, gives federal courts 90 days to review the sufficiency of the allegations verification submissions made in the section on multi-district litigation, and makes other technical, conforming, and clarifying changes.Made In Order
1Version 1Jackson Lee (TX)DemocratWithdrawn Limits disclosure of the plaintiff’s personal information to defendants and only that which is relevant to the plaintiff’s pending claims against the defendant.Withdrawn
4Version 1Jackson Lee (TX)DemocratReplaces the substantive text of the bill with a requirement that the bankruptcy asbestos trust report quarterly an aggregate list of demands received and payments made.Made In Order
5Version 1Johnson, Hank (GA)DemocratExempts civil actions alleging fraud. Made In Order
2Version 1Kildee (MI)DemocratExempts class action lawsuits that are brought under either the Safe Drinking Water Act or section 1983.Submitted
6Version 1Moore, Gwen (WI)DemocratExempts gender discrimination and sexual harassment claims from the bill's class action provisions. Submitted
14Version 1Soto (FL)DemocratCreates an exception for the bill’s required showing for class certification for claims for monetary relief arising from a mass shooting. Submitted
15Version 1Soto (FL)DemocratStrikes section 1721 to allow discovery to proceed while motions are pending.Made In Order
16Version 1Soto (FL), Peters, Scott (CA)DemocratCreates an exception for a claimant who is or has been a member of the Armed forces, a civilian employee of the Department of Defense, or a family member of either category. Submitted