Understanding Lawmaking: A Step-By-Step Guide To Legislative Process

Learning about how a bill becomes a law is an important part of understanding the legislative process. This transformation from bill to law involves multiple steps and the involvement of different branches of the US government. The process is long and complex, with many opportunities for a bill to die before it becomes a law. The steps outlined in the How a Bill Becomes a Law 15 Steps Worksheet provide a comprehensive guide to this journey, shedding light on each stage and making it easier to understand.

The role of the committee

The committee may also choose to hold hearings to better understand the implications of the bill and gather expert opinions. If the committee does not take any action on a bill, or decides to stop working on it, the bill is said to have "died in committee" and will not become a law.

If the committee requires more information before deciding the fate of the bill, it is sent to a subcommittee. Here, the bill is closely examined and expert opinions are gathered before it is sent back to the committee for approval. Once the committee has approved a bill, it is sent or reported to the House floor for debate.

The conference committee

Once the Conference Committee has reached an agreement, the bill is sent back to the House and the Senate for a vote. If the bill passes both chambers, it is then sent to the President.

Quorum and voting

Quorum:

Quorum refers to the minimum number of members of a group or organisation that must be present for a meeting to be considered valid. In the context of Congress, a quorum is required for any official proceedings, including debates and votes on bills. The presence of a quorum ensures that decisions are made with a sufficient number of members contributing their perspectives and votes.

Voting:

Once a bill has been introduced, debated, and amended as needed, it proceeds to the voting stage. There are different methods for voting on a bill in the US House of Representatives:

• Viva Voce (Voice Vote): The Speaker of the House asks Representatives for their verbal votes, with supporters saying "aye" and opponents saying "no."
• Division: The Speaker requests that Representatives who support the bill stand up and be counted, and then the same is done for those who oppose it.
• Recorded: Representatives cast their votes using an electronic voting system, selecting yes, no, or present if they choose not to vote.

After a bill is voted on in the House, it moves to the Senate, where a simple voice vote is typically used. Senators who support the bill say "yea," while those who oppose it say "nay."

If a bill passes in both the House and the Senate, it is then sent to the President for approval. The President has several options at this stage, including signing and passing the bill into law, vetoing it, or doing nothing (a pocket veto). If the President vetoes the bill, Congress can attempt to override the veto by holding another vote. If two-thirds of both the House and the Senate support the bill, the veto is overridden, and the bill becomes a law.

What is a model bill?

A model bill, also called a model act, model law, or model legislation, is a proposed version of a bill that serves as a guide for lawmakers when drafting the final version to be introduced to a legislative body for voting. In other words, it is a preliminary version of a bill that helps lawmakers shape and finalise the legislation before it is presented for voting.

The process of turning an idea into a law is long and arduous. It involves several stages, including ideation and creation, presentation to the legislature, committee analysis, debate, voting, and presidential approval. A model bill is an important step in this process as it helps lawmakers ensure that the final bill is well-drafted and takes into account the necessary considerations.

Anyone in the country can come up with an idea for a bill. However, for it to become a law, a senator or representative must present the idea to the House or Senate. The person who submits the bill is known as the sponsor, and they work with other senators or representatives to create a solution and gain support for the bill. Once the bill has a sponsor and sufficient support, it is introduced in the House of Representatives by placing it in a special box called the hopper.

The model bill, therefore, acts as a template and guide for lawmakers to refer to when drafting and finalising the legislation. It helps ensure that the bill is well-constructed and takes into account the necessary legal and technical considerations before it is introduced and voted on.

What is a veto?

A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In most cases, a veto is used by a president or monarch to stop a bill from becoming a law. The word "veto" comes from the Latin for "I forbid".

In the context of a bill becoming a law, a veto is when the president refuses to approve a bill, returning it to the chamber of Congress that originated it. The president's objections are then read aloud, and the bill is debated again. The veto power is defined in Article 1, Section 7 of the US Constitution.

There are different types of vetoes, including absolute vetoes, which cannot be overridden, and qualified vetoes, which can be overridden by a supermajority vote. In the United States, a two-thirds vote of the House and Senate can override a presidential veto.

The veto is one of the main tools that the executive has in the legislative process, and it is most commonly found in presidential and semi-presidential systems. In parliamentary systems, the head of state often has a weak veto power or none at all.

Frequently asked questions