Understanding Lawmaking: Activity Sheet For Curious Minds

Teaching students about how a bill becomes a law is a crucial aspect of civics and government education. While it can be a challenging topic to make engaging, there are many creative ways to help students understand the legislative process. This includes collaborative activities, games, and interactive simulations that bring the topic to life and provide context. Teachers can also incorporate current events and news into their lessons to show how the legislative process works in the real world.

The Legislative Branch

How a Bill Becomes a Law

All laws in the United States begin as bills. Before a bill can become a law, it must be approved by the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, and the President. Here is a step-by-step guide to this process:

• A bill is proposed: A Representative writes a bill and finds a sponsor for it. The Representative talks to other Representatives to get their support.
• The bill is introduced: In the U.S. House of Representatives, a bill is introduced when it is placed in the hopper, a special box on the side of the clerk's desk. A bill clerk assigns it a number that begins with H.R., and a reading clerk reads the bill to all the Representatives.
• The bill goes to committee: The bill is sent to a committee, which reviews, researches, and revises the bill. The committee may send the bill to a subcommittee for further examination and expert opinions before sending it back to the committee for approval.
• The bill is reported: Once the committee has approved the bill, it is sent to the House floor for debate. Representatives discuss the bill and recommend changes.
• The bill is voted on: There are three methods for voting on a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives: Viva Voce (voice vote), Division, and Recorded. If a majority of Representatives vote yes, the bill passes and is certified by the Clerk of the House before being delivered to the U.S. Senate.
• The bill is referred to the Senate: The bill goes through similar steps in the U.S. Senate. It is discussed in a Senate committee, reported to the Senate floor, and voted on. If it passes in the Senate, it is ready to go to the President.
• The bill is sent to the President: The President has three choices: sign and pass the bill, veto the bill, or do nothing (pocket veto). If the President vetoes the bill, it can be sent back to the U.S. House of Representatives, and if two-thirds of the Representatives and Senators still support it, the President's veto can be overridden, and the bill becomes a law.

Teaching the Legislative Branch

When teaching about the Legislative Branch and the process of how a bill becomes a law, it is important to go beyond just lecturing or displaying a flowchart. Here are some ideas for more engaging activities:

• Examine the Constitutional Wording: Provide students with the text of Article I, Section 7, which outlines the basic process of how a bill becomes a law.
• Provide Visual Examples: Use photos and visuals of Congress in action, such as a recent or landmark law being passed.
• Practice Sorting the Order: Create a sorting card activity where students put the steps of the legislative process in the correct order.
• Incorporate a Game: Set up stations around the room with questions about the legislative process, and have students move between stations to solidify their learning.
• Examine Current Legislation: Share news or official websites that show what legislation Congress is currently working on.

The role of committees

Committees play a crucial role in the legislative process, acting as gatekeepers and experts who scrutinize and shape bills before they reach the House floor for debate and voting. These committees are made up of groups of Representatives who specialize in specific topics such as agriculture, education, or international relations. Once a bill is introduced in the House of Representatives and given a number, the Speaker of the House assigns it to one of these committees.

Reviewing, Researching, and Revising

The committee's primary task is to review, research, and revise the bill. They delve into the details, examining the potential impact and feasibility of the proposed legislation. If they require additional information or expertise, the bill may be sent to a subcommittee for further examination and to gather expert opinions. This process ensures that bills are thoroughly vetted and refined before progressing further.

Voting to Send the Bill Back to the House Floor

After their review and revisions, committee members vote on whether to send the bill back to the House floor. This vote is an important checkpoint, as it determines whether the bill will advance in the legislative process. If the committee approves the bill, it is then reported to the House floor, where it will be debated and voted on by the full House of Representatives.

Amendments and Changes

During the committee stage, the bill may undergo significant changes. Committee members can propose amendments, make additions or deletions, and generally refine the bill to address any concerns or gaps. This collaborative process is designed to improve the quality of the legislation and ensure that it aligns with the relevant policy areas.

Expert Input and Consideration

The committee members, with their specialized knowledge, provide valuable insights and expertise. They can identify potential challenges, benefits, or unintended consequences of the bill. Their input helps shape the final version of the bill that will be presented to the House for debate and voting.

Subcommittees for Further Examination

In some cases, the committee may seek additional information or delegate specific aspects of the bill to a subcommittee. Subcommittees provide a more focused and specialized review, often engaging with experts in the field to gather opinions and data. This step ensures that complex or technical bills receive the necessary attention to detail.

The Conference Committee

When a bill passes in one chamber of Congress, it moves to the other chamber, where it undergoes the same legislative steps. However, it is not uncommon for the second chamber to make amendments or introduce changes to the bill. In such cases, a Conference Committee is convened to reconcile the discrepancies and produce a single, agreed-upon version of the bill.

During the committee's deliberations, members may propose and vote on amendments, strike down provisions, or add new sections to the bill. This back-and-forth negotiation process can be lengthy and intricate, requiring a deep understanding of the bill's intricacies and the concerns of both chambers.

Once the Conference Committee reaches an agreement and finalises the bill's language, the committee reports the bill back to the full House and Senate. At this stage, the bill is presented as a single, unified piece of legislation, ready for a final vote in both chambers.

The process of creating a law

Step 1: A bill is drafted and introduced

A bill begins as an idea, which can come from a Representative or a citizen. Citizens with ideas for new laws can contact their Representatives to discuss their ideas. If a Representative agrees with a proposed idea, they will research it and write it into a bill. When a Representative has written a bill, it needs a sponsor. The Representative will discuss the bill with other Representatives to get their support. Once a bill has a sponsor and some support, it is ready to be introduced. In the U.S. House of Representatives, a bill is introduced when it is placed in the hopper, a special box on the side of the clerk's desk.

Step 2: The bill is assigned to a committee

Once a bill is introduced, it is given a number and read by a clerk to all the Representatives. The Speaker of the House then sends the bill to one of the House standing committees for review, research, and revision. The committee members are groups of Representatives who are experts on specific topics. If the committee requires more information before deciding, the bill is sent to a subcommittee for closer examination and to gather expert opinions.

Step 3: The bill goes to the House or Senate for a vote

When the committee has approved a bill, it is sent back to the House floor for debate. Representatives discuss the bill and explain their agreement or disagreement. A clerk then reads the bill section by section, and the Representatives recommend changes. After all the changes have been made, the bill is ready to be voted on. There are several methods for voting on a bill, including voice vote, division, and recorded electronic vote. If a majority of Representatives support the bill, it passes in the House and is certified by the Clerk before being delivered to the Senate.

Step 4: The bill goes through the same process in the Senate

When a bill reaches the Senate, it goes through the same process as in the House. It is discussed in a Senate committee and then reported to the Senate floor for a vote. Senators vote by voice, and if a majority say "yea", the bill passes in the Senate and is sent to the President.

Step 5: The President decides the fate of the bill

When a bill reaches the President, they have three choices. They can sign and pass the bill, in which case it becomes a law. They can refuse to sign or veto the bill, sending it back to the House with their reasons for the veto. Or, the President can do nothing, which is called a pocket veto, and if Congress is not in session, the bill does not become a law. If a bill has passed in both the House and the Senate and has been approved by the President, or if a presidential veto has been overridden by a two-thirds majority in both chambers, the bill becomes a law.

The President's role

The President plays a crucial role in the legislative process, as they have the power to pass a bill into law or veto it. Once a bill has been proposed, introduced, and passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, it is sent to the President for approval.

The President has three choices when a bill reaches their desk: they can sign and pass the bill, which becomes a law; they can veto the bill, sending it back to Congress with their reasons for doing so; or they can do nothing, which is known as a pocket veto. If the President chooses to veto a bill, Congress can still override this decision and pass the bill into law if two-thirds of the Representatives and Senators support it.

Additionally, the President can influence the legislative process by using their bully pulpit to advocate for certain laws or by proposing their own bills, known as presidential initiatives. The President's State of the Union Address is also an opportunity to outline their legislative agenda and priorities for Congress.

Frequently asked questions