The Journey Of A Bill To Becoming A Law

The process of a bill becoming a law is a complex one, and it can be difficult for a bill to be enacted. In the US, the creation of laws is the most important job of the House of Representatives. All laws in the United States begin as bills, which can be drafted by any member of Congress or suggested by citizens. Once a bill is introduced, it must be approved by the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the President. This involves passing through committees, subcommittees, and votes in both houses of Congress. If a bill is approved by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, it is then presented to the President, who can approve or veto it. If the President vetoes the bill, Congress may attempt to override the veto with a two-thirds majority vote.

A bill is proposed and drafted

Ideas for laws can come from a Representative or a citizen. Citizens who have ideas for laws can contact their Representatives to discuss their ideas. If the Representatives agree, they research the ideas and write them into bills.

When a Representative has written a bill, it needs a sponsor. The Representative talks with other Representatives about the bill to get their support. Once a bill has a sponsor and the support of some of the Representatives, 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. Only Representatives can introduce bills in the House. When a bill is introduced, 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.

Committees are composed of groups of Representatives who are experts on topics such as agriculture, education, or international relations. When a bill reaches a committee, the committee members review, research, and revise the bill before voting on whether or not to send it back to the House floor. If the committee members would like more information before deciding, the bill is sent to a subcommittee. While in subcommittee, the bill is closely examined and expert opinions are gathered before it is sent back to the committee for approval.

The bill is introduced

The bill is then referred to a committee as soon as it is introduced. Both the House and the Senate have various committees composed of groups of Congress members with specific interests and expertise in different topics such as health, education, agriculture, or international relations. When a bill is with the committee, it is carefully examined, and its chances of passage by Congress are determined. Committees may hold hearings to better understand the implications of the bill and gather expert opinions. If the committee does not act on a bill, it is considered "dead".

The bill is also sent to a subcommittee, which is a group with further specialization on a certain topic. The subcommittee may make changes to the bill and must vote to refer it back to the full committee. Once the hearings and subcommittee review are completed, the committee will meet to "mark up" the bill, making changes and amendments before recommending it to the "floor". If a committee votes against reporting legislation to the full chamber of Congress, the bill dies. If the committee votes in favour of the bill, it is reported to the floor, and this procedure is called "ordering a bill reported".

The bill goes to committee

Once a bill has been introduced, it is sent to a committee for review, research, revisions, and voting. This committee is made up of groups of Representatives who are experts on topics such as agriculture, education, or international relations. The committee may also send the bill to a subcommittee for closer examination and to gather expert opinions.

The Speaker of the House or the presiding officer in the Senate refers the bill to the appropriate committee. In the House, the Speaker may set time limits on committees. The bill is placed on the calendar of the committee, and failure to act on it is equivalent to killing it. In the House, bills can only be released from the committee without a proper committee vote through a discharge petition signed by the majority of the House membership.

The bill can be assigned to a subcommittee by the Chairman, and hearings may be held. Subcommittees report their findings to the full committee. Then, there is a vote by the full committee, and the bill is "ordered to be reported". The committee will hold a "mark-up" session to make revisions and additions. If substantial amendments are made, the committee can order the introduction of a "clean bill" that includes the proposed amendments. This new bill will have a new number and will be sent to the floor while the old bill is discarded.

After the bill is reported, the committee staff prepares a written report explaining why they favor the bill and why they wish to see their amendments, if any, are adopted. Committee members who oppose a bill may write a dissenting opinion in the report. The report is sent back to the whole chamber and is placed on the calendar. In the House, most bills go to the Rules Committee before reaching the floor. The Rules Committee adopts rules that will govern the procedures under which the bill will be considered by the House.

The bill is reported and voted on

Once a bill has been approved by a committee and reported to the House floor, it is ready to be debated by the U.S. House of Representatives. During this stage, Representatives discuss the bill, explaining their reasons for agreeing or disagreeing with it. A reading clerk then reads the bill section by section, and the Representatives 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: viva voce, division, and recorded. In a viva voce vote, the Speaker of the House asks supporters of the bill to say "aye" and those against it to say "no". In a division vote, the Speaker asks supporters to stand up and be counted, and then does the same for opponents of the bill. In a recorded vote, Representatives use an electronic voting system to record their vote as yes, no, or present if they do not wish to vote.

If a majority of Representatives vote yes, the bill passes in the U.S. House of Representatives. It is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the U.S. Senate, where it will go through a similar process of committee review and voting.

The U.S. Senate votes by voice, with supporters of the bill saying "yea" and opponents saying "nay". If a majority of Senators vote in favour, the bill passes in the U.S. Senate and is ready to be presented to the President.

The bill is sent to the President

Once a bill has been approved by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, it is sent to the President for approval. The President has three options: they can sign and pass the bill, which becomes a law; they can veto the bill, sending it back to the House of Representatives with their reasons for the veto; or they can do nothing, in what is known as a "pocket veto". If the President chooses the second option, Congress can still override the veto if two-thirds of the Representatives and Senators support the bill. In the case of the third option, the bill automatically becomes law after 10 days if Congress is in session; if Congress is not in session, the bill does not become law.

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