New Senate Rules Designed to Speed Things Up

New Senate rules on the filibuster, adopted Thursday after weeks of negotiations and the threat of a crisis in Congress’s upper chamber, don’t do away with many of the old roadblocks that had ground the Senate almost to a halt, but they will drastically shorten the distance between the hurdles and lower their height for easier clearance.

Under the rules that existed for the last Congress, Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, could call up a bill on a Monday and immediately file a motion to at least take it up. That Wednesday, one hour after convening the Senate, he would then have to call a vote, and if he could muster 60 supporters, the bill would have 30 hours of “postcloture” debate before it was formally taken up for considration. In other words, it took a week just to get to a bill, said Martin P. Paone, executive vice president of the lobbying firm Prime Policy Group and a longtime Democratic Senate floor manager.

Under the new rules, if Mr. Reid agrees to give Republicans two amendments, he could call up a bill Monday morning, then four hours later vote to formally take it up, with only a majority of senators needed. What had taken a week would be done in less than a day.

If Mr. Reid and Senator Mitch McConnell, the Republican leader, along with seven Democratic and seven Republican senators, sign on to a bill, no amendments need be guaranteed. The vote to take up the bill could be taken the day after Mr. Reid asks to take it up. Sixty votes would be needed, but the 30 hours of “postcloture” time would be dispensed with. Under that route, what had taken a week would take 24 hours.

“I think it came out very well, in a classic case of how the Senate is supposed to work,” Mr. Paone said. “Ea! ch side gave something, each side got something.”

The nomination process is similarly collapsed. If 60 votes can be secured for most nominations, no more than eight hours of further debate would be needed before a final vote, down from 30. In the case of district judges, that postvote debate time would be no more than two hours. Only 21 administration positions â€" along with circuit court and Supreme Court nominees â€" would still face the 30-hour delay.