<P> House and Senate rules forbid conferees from inserting in their report matter not committed to them by either House . But conference committees sometimes do introduce new matter . In such a case, the rules of each House let a member object through a point of order, though each House has procedures that let other members vote to waive the point of order . The House provides a procedure for striking the offending provision from the bill . Formerly, the Senate required a Senator to object to the whole bill as reported by the conference committee . If the objection was well - founded, the Presiding Officer ruled, and a Senator could appeal the ruling of the Chair . If the appeal was sustained by a majority of the Senate, it had precedential effect, eroding the rule on the scope of conference committees . From fall 1996 through 2000, the Senate had no limit on the scope of conference reports, and some argued that the majority abused the power of conference committees . In December 2000, the Senate reinstated the prohibition of inserting matters outside the scope of conference . The rule changed again with the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act, enacted in September 2007 . Now any single Senator may raise a point of order against subject matter newly inserted by the conference committee without objecting to the rest of the bill . Proponents of the measure may move to waive the rule . The affirmative vote of 60 Senators is required to waive the rule . If the point of order is not waived and the Chair rules that the objection is well - founded, only the offending provision is stricken from the measure, and the Senate votes on sending the balance of the measure back to the House . </P> <P> Most times, the conference committee produces a conference report melding the work of the House and Senate into a final version of the bill . A conference report proposes legislative language as an amendment to the bill committed to conference . The conference report also includes a joint explanatory statement of the conference committee . This statement provides one of the best sources of legislative history on the bill . Chief Justice William Rehnquist once observed that the joint conference report of both Houses of Congress is considered highly reliable legislative history when interpreting a statute . </P> <P> Once a bill has been passed by a conference committee, it goes directly to the floor of both houses for a vote, and is not open to further amendment . In the first house to consider the conference report, a Member may move to recommit the bill to the conference committee . But once the first house has passed the conference report, the conference committee is dissolved, and the second house to act can no longer recommit the bill to conference . </P> <P> Conference reports are privileged . In the Senate, a motion to proceed to a conference report is not debatable, although Senators can generally filibuster the conference report itself . The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 limits debate on conference reports on budget resolutions and budget reconciliation bills to ten hours in the Senate, so Senators cannot filibuster those conference reports . </P>

Where does a bill go next if the conference committee succeeds