The Journey Of A Bill To Federal Law

The process of a bill becoming a law at the federal level in the United States is complex and involves multiple stages. It begins with an idea, which can come from a citizen, advocacy group, or a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives. The bill is then drafted and introduced, after which it is assigned to a committee for research, discussion, and potential changes. Following this, the bill is put before the chamber to be voted on, debated, or amended. If the bill passes one body of Congress, it goes through a similar process in the other body. Once both bodies accept the bill, they must reconcile any differences before presenting it to the President. The President can approve the bill, veto it, or do nothing, in which case, if Congress is not in session, the bill does not become a law.

A bill is proposed by a representative

Only representatives can introduce bills in the U.S. House of Representatives. When a bill is introduced, it is placed in the hopper, a special box on the side of the clerk's desk. The bill is then assigned a number by the House clerk. Bills introduced in the House of Representatives are given a number that begins with H.R.

Once introduced, the bill is then assigned to a committee. The committee will study the bill and may refer it to a subcommittee for further study and hearings. The subcommittee may request reports from government agencies and hold hearings to allow experts and interested parties to offer testimony. The committee will then "mark up" the bill, which means they will debate, amend, and rewrite it. If the committee does not act on a bill, it is considered "dead".

After the committee stage, the bill is returned to the full House or Senate for further debate and approval. At this point, members may propose amendments to the bill, add additional text, or otherwise alter it.

The bill is introduced

The bill-making process begins with an idea, which can come from a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, or be proposed during their election campaign. Bills can also be petitioned by citizens or citizen groups who recommend a new or amended law to a member of Congress that represents them. Citizens can contact their representatives to discuss their ideas, and if the representatives agree, they research the ideas and write them into bills.

Once a bill is written, it needs a sponsor. The representative talks with other representatives about the bill in the hopes of getting their support. Once a bill has a sponsor and the support of some of the representatives, it is ready to be introduced. Only representatives can introduce bills 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. When a bill is introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, a bill clerk assigns it a number that begins with H.R. A reading clerk then reads the bill to all the representatives, and the Speaker of the House sends the bill to one of the House standing committees.

The bill is then printed and distributed to members of Congress and the public via the Government Printing Office. The bill is also published online via Congress.gov, the official government website that tracks federal legislation.

The bill goes to committee

Once a bill is introduced, it is referred to a committee. Both the House and Senate have various committees composed of groups of Congress members who are experts on different topics, such as agriculture, education, or international relations. The committee reviews, researches, and revises the bill before voting on whether or not to send it back to the House floor. The committee chair determines whether there will be a hearing on the bill, which is an opportunity for witnesses to provide testimony, and then whether there will be a markup, which refers to the process by which the proposed bill is debated, amended, and rewritten.

The subcommittee may request reports from government agencies, hold hearings so experts and interested parties have an opportunity to offer testimony, "mark up" or revise the bill, or report the legislation to the full committee for its consideration. The full committee may make a recommendation to pass the bill, to revise and release the bill (also known as reporting the bill out of the committee), or to lay the bill aside (also known as tabling the bill). If the committee does not act on a bill, it is considered "dead".

After amendments are adopted or rejected, the committee chair can move to vote the bill out of committee. If the committee approves the bill, it is sent or reported to the House floor, where it is ready to be debated. If the committee does not approve the bill, it essentially "dies".

The bill is reported

Once a bill has been approved by a committee, it is sent, or reported, to the House floor. At this stage, the bill is ready to be debated by the U.S. House of Representatives. Representatives will discuss the bill, explaining why they agree or disagree with it. A reading clerk will then read the bill section by section, and Representatives can recommend changes. Once all changes have been made, the bill is ready to be voted on.

There are three methods for voting on a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives. The first is viva voce, where the Speaker of the House asks the Representatives who support the bill to say "aye" and those that oppose it to say "no". The second is division, where the Speaker asks those who support the bill to stand up and be counted, and then does the same for those who oppose it. The third method is recorded voting, where Representatives record their vote using the electronic voting system. They can vote yes, no, or present if they don't want to vote on the bill. If a majority of Representatives say or select yes, the bill passes in the U.S. House of Representatives and is certified by the Clerk of the House before being delivered to the U.S. Senate.

If the bill is not approved by the committee, it is not reported to the House floor, and the bill essentially "dies". The committee chair's staff will write a report of the bill, describing the intent of the legislation, its legislative history, its impact on existing laws and programs, and the position of the majority of committee members. The minority members, including the Ranking Member (the most senior committee member from the minority party), may file dissenting views as a group or individually. A copy of the bill as marked up is usually printed in the Committee Report.

The bill is voted on

Once a bill has been introduced, debated, and amended, it is ready to be voted on by the U.S. House of Representatives. There are three methods for voting on a bill: viva voce, division, and recorded. In a viva voce vote, the Speaker of the House asks Representatives to say "aye" if they support the bill and "no" if they oppose it. In a division vote, the Speaker asks those in support of the bill to stand up and be counted, and then does the same for those who oppose it. In a recorded vote, Representatives record their vote using an electronic voting system, and can vote yes, no, or present if they don't want to vote on the bill. If a majority of Representatives vote yes, the bill passes in the House and is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the U.S. Senate.

In the Senate, the bill is again debated and voted on. Senators vote by voice, saying "yea" if they support the bill and "nay" if they oppose it. If a simple majority of Senators support the bill, it passes in the Senate and is ready to go to the President.

At this point, both the House and Senate have voted to accept the bill, and they must now work out any differences between the two versions. A conference committee made of House and Senate members reconciles the differences and produces a single bill. Both chambers then vote on this final version of the bill. If it passes, it is presented to the President.

Frequently asked questions