Congress Bills: Senate Approval For Laws?

Bills are a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law. They can be introduced by a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, or be proposed during their election campaign. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee, which will research, discuss, and make changes to it. The bill is then put before the chamber to be voted on. If the bill passes one body of Congress, it goes through a similar process in the other body. Once both bodies vote to accept a bill, they must work out any differences between the two versions. Then, both chambers vote on the same version of the bill. If it passes, they present it to the president. The president can approve the bill and sign it into law, or refuse to approve it, which is called a veto. If the president chooses to veto a bill, Congress can vote to override that veto and the bill becomes a law.

The role of the House of Representatives

The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. There are also 6 non-voting members, representing the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and four other US territories. Members of the House are elected every two years and must be 25 years of age, a US citizen for at least seven years, and a resident of the state they represent. The House has several powers assigned exclusively to it, including the power to initiate revenue bills, impeach federal officials, and elect the President in the case of an Electoral College tie.

The House of Representatives plays a crucial role in the legislative process. Laws begin as ideas, and a representative must sponsor a bill for it to be introduced to Congress. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee for review. There are 23 House committees, with 104 subcommittees, and each committee oversees a specific policy area. If the bill is approved by the committee, it is reported to the floor of the House and placed on a calendar for consideration. The House has a structured debate process, where each member who wishes to speak only has a few minutes, and the number and kind of amendments are usually limited. If the bill passes by a simple majority (218 out of 435), it then moves to the Senate.

After the Senate reviews and votes on the bill, a conference committee, consisting of members from both the House and the Senate, works to reconcile any differences between the two versions of the bill. The resulting bill then returns to the House and the Senate for final approval. If the bill passes both chambers of Congress, it is sent to the President for consideration. The President can choose to sign the bill into law or veto it. If the President vetoes the bill, Congress may override the veto with a two-thirds vote in both the House and the Senate.

The role of the Senate

The Senate is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress, the other being the House of Representatives. The Senate is composed of 100 Senators, with two Senators representing each state. Senators are elected to six-year terms by the people of each state, and their terms are staggered so that about one-third of the Senate is up for reelection every two years. Senators must be 30 years of age, US citizens for at least nine years, and residents of the state they represent.

The Senate has several powers that are exclusive to it. These include the power to confirm the President's appointments that require consent, and to provide advice and consent to ratify treaties. The House of Representatives must also approve appointments to the Vice Presidency and any treaty that involves foreign trade. Additionally, the Senate tries impeachment cases for federal officials referred to it by the House.

The Senate also has the power to initiate legislation. A bill can be introduced by any member of the Senate, and it is then assigned to a committee for study. The bill may be accepted, amended, or rejected by the committee. If the committee releases the bill, it is put on a calendar to be voted on, debated, or amended. If the bill passes by a simple majority (51 out of 100), it moves to the House of Representatives.

Once a bill has been passed by both the Senate and the House, it is sent to the President for consideration. The President can choose to sign the bill into law, or veto it and send it back to Congress. If the President takes no action within 10 days and Congress is still in session, the bill becomes law. However, if Congress adjourns before the 10 days are up and the President takes no action, the bill dies and Congress must start the legislative process anew if it still wants to pass the legislation.

The President's options

The President has several options when it comes to bills passed by Congress. Here are the steps leading up to the President's involvement and the options available:

The Legislative Process

• A bill is introduced to Congress, and anyone can write it, but only members of Congress can propose legislation.
• The bill is then referred to the appropriate committee for review. There are several committees in the House and the Senate, each overseeing specific policy areas.
• The committee may accept, amend, or reject the bill. If accepted, the bill is reported to the full committee, where the process is repeated.
• The full committee may also choose to accept, amend, or reject the bill. If accepted, it is reported to the floor of the respective chamber (House or Senate).
• The majority party leadership then decides when to place the bill on the calendar for consideration.
• The bill is debated and voted on. In the House, the debate process is structured, while in the Senate, it is unlimited.
• If the bill passes both chambers, a Conference Committee, consisting of members from both chambers, is formed to reconcile any differences between the House and Senate versions.
• The Conference Committee produces a conference report, which is the final version of the bill.
• Each chamber then votes again to approve the conference report.
• Depending on where the bill originated, the final text is then enrolled by either the Clerk of the House or the Secretary of the Senate and presented for their signatures.
• The bill is then sent to the President.
• Sign the bill into law: If the President agrees with the bill, they can sign it, and it becomes law.
• Veto the bill: If the President disagrees with the bill, they can veto it and send it back to Congress.
• Take no action: If Congress is in session and the President takes no action within 10 days, the bill becomes law.
• Pocket Veto: If Congress adjourns before the 10-day period is up and the President takes no action, the bill dies. This is called a pocket veto, and Congress must start the legislative process anew if they still want to pass the bill.
• Override the veto: If the President vetoes the bill, Congress can override the veto by passing the bill again in each chamber with a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate.

The legislative process

Step 1: Idea for a Bill

The idea for a bill can come from a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, be proposed during their election campaign, or be petitioned by people or citizen groups.

Step 2: Introduction of a Bill to Congress

Once an idea for a bill has been formed, it must be introduced to Congress. Anyone can write a bill, but only members of Congress can introduce legislation. Some important bills are traditionally introduced at the request of the President, such as the annual federal budget.

Step 3: Referral to Committee

After being introduced, a bill is referred to the appropriate committee for review. There are 17 Senate committees, with 70 subcommittees, and 23 House committees, with 104 subcommittees. The committees are subject to change with each new Congress as required for the efficient consideration of legislation. Each committee oversees a specific policy area, and the subcommittees take on more specialized policy areas.

Step 4: Committee Consideration

A bill is first considered in a subcommittee, where it may be accepted, amended, or rejected entirely. If the members of the subcommittee agree to move a bill forward, it is reported to the full committee, where the process is repeated. Throughout this stage, the committees and subcommittees call hearings to investigate the merits and flaws of the bill. They invite experts, advocates, and opponents to appear before the committee and provide testimony, and can compel people to appear using subpoena power if necessary.

Step 5: Reporting to the Floor

If the full committee votes to approve the bill, it is reported to the floor of the House or Senate, and the majority party leadership decides when to place the bill on the calendar for consideration. If a bill is particularly pressing, it may be considered right away. Others may wait for months or never be scheduled at all.

Step 6: Floor Consideration and Passage

When the bill comes up for consideration, the House has a very structured debate process. Each member who wishes to speak only has a few minutes, and the number and kind of amendments are usually limited. In the Senate, debate on most bills is unlimited — Senators may speak to issues other than the bill under consideration during their speeches, and any amendment can be introduced. Senators can use this to filibuster bills under consideration, a procedure by which a Senator delays a vote on a bill — and by extension its passage — by refusing to stand down. A supermajority of 60 Senators can break a filibuster by invoking cloture, or the cession of debate on the bill, and forcing a vote. Once debate is over, the votes of a simple majority pass the bill.

Step 7: Referral to the Other Chamber

A bill must pass both houses of Congress before it goes to the President for consideration. Though the Constitution requires that the two bills have the exact same wording, this rarely happens in practice.

Step 8: Conference Committee

To bring the bills into alignment, a Conference Committee is convened, consisting of members from both chambers. The members of the committee produce a conference report, intended as the final version of the bill. Each chamber then votes again to approve the conference report.

Step 9: Enrollment

Depending on where the bill originated, the final text is then enrolled by either the Clerk of the House or the Secretary of the Senate, and presented to the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate for their signatures. The bill is then sent to the President.

Step 10: Presidential Action

When receiving a bill from Congress, the President has several options. If the President agrees substantially with the bill, he or she may sign it into law, and the bill is then printed in the Statutes at Large. If the President believes the law to be bad policy, he or she may veto it and send it back to Congress. Congress may override the veto with a two-thirds vote of each chamber, at which point the bill becomes law and is printed.

There are two other options that the President may exercise. If Congress is in session and the President takes no action within 10 days, the bill becomes law. If Congress adjourns before 10 days are up and the President takes no action, then the bill dies and Congress may not vote to override. This is called a pocket veto, and if Congress still wants to pass the legislation, they must begin the entire process anew.

The Legislative Branch's powers

The Legislative Branch of the US government is made up of the House of Representatives and the Senate, together forming the United States Congress. The Constitution grants Congress the sole authority to enact legislation and declare war, the right to confirm or reject many Presidential appointments, and substantial investigative powers.

The House of Representatives

The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. There are also 6 non-voting members, representing the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and four other territories of the United States: American Samoa, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands. The presiding officer of the chamber is the Speaker of the House, elected by the Representatives.

The House has several powers assigned exclusively to it, including the power to initiate revenue bills, impeach federal officials, and elect the President in the case of an Electoral College tie.

Members of the House are elected every two years and must be 25 years of age, a US citizen for at least seven years, and a resident of the state (but not necessarily the district) they represent.

The Senate

The Senate is composed of 100 Senators, 2 from each state. Senators are elected to six-year terms by the people of each state and their terms are staggered so that about one-third of the Senate is up for reelection every two years. Senators must be 30 years of age, US citizens for at least nine years, and residents of the state they represent.

The Vice President of the United States serves as President of the Senate and may cast the decisive vote in the event of a tie in the Senate.

The Senate has the sole power to confirm Presidential appointments that require consent, and to provide advice and consent to ratify treaties. However, the House must also approve appointments to the Vice Presidency and any treaty that involves foreign trade. The Senate also tries impeachment cases for federal officials referred to it by the House.

Passing Legislation

The process of passing legislation begins with the introduction of a bill to Congress. Anyone can write it, but only members of Congress can introduce legislation. A bill is first considered in a subcommittee, where it may be accepted, amended, or rejected. If the members of the subcommittee agree to move a bill forward, it is reported to the full committee, where the process is repeated. The committees and subcommittees call hearings to investigate the merits and flaws of the bill, inviting experts, advocates, and opponents to provide testimony, and can compel people to appear using subpoena power if necessary.

If the full committee votes to approve the bill, it is reported to the floor of the House or Senate, and the majority party leadership decides when to place the bill on the calendar for consideration. When the bill comes up for consideration, the House has a very structured debate process, whereas in the Senate, debate on most bills is unlimited. A bill must pass both houses of Congress by majority vote before it goes to the President for consideration.

Though the Constitution requires that the two bills have the exact same wording, this rarely happens in practice. To bring the bills into alignment, a Conference Committee is convened, consisting of members from both chambers. The members of the committee produce a conference report, intended as the final version of the bill. Each chamber then votes again to approve the conference report.

The President has several options when receiving a bill from Congress. If the President agrees with the bill, they may sign it into law. If the President disagrees with the bill, they may veto it and send it back to Congress. Congress may override the veto with a two-thirds vote of each chamber, at which point the bill becomes law.

There are two other options that the President may exercise. If Congress is in session and the President takes no action within 10 days, the bill becomes law. If Congress adjourns before 10 days are up and the President takes no action, then the bill dies and Congress may not vote to override. This is called a pocket veto, and if Congress still wants to pass the legislation, they must begin the process anew.

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