The Long Road: Bill To Law In 35 Steps

Creating laws is the most important job of the U.S. House of Representatives. All laws in the United States begin as bills, and there are several steps a bill must go through before it becomes a law. The process begins with a bill being proposed and introduced, followed by referral to a committee for review and revisions. The bill is then reported to the House floor for debate and voted on. If passed, it is referred to the Senate, where it undergoes a similar process. Once approved by both the House and the Senate, the bill is sent to the President for review and signature. In this process, a bill undergoes approximately 35 steps to become a law.

The bill is proposed

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 of Representatives. 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.

In the Senate, members must gain recognition from the presiding officer to announce the introduction of a bill during the morning hour. If any senator objects, the introduction of the bill is postponed until the next day. The bill is then assigned a number (e.g. S 1) and labelled with the sponsor's name. The bill is sent to the Government Printing Office (GPO) and copies are made. Senate bills can be jointly sponsored, and members can cosponsor the legislation.

The bill is introduced

In the 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. Once introduced, a bill clerk will assign it a number that begins with H.R. A reading clerk will then read the bill to all the Representatives, and the Speaker of the House will send the bill to one of the House standing committees.

In the Senate, members must gain recognition from the presiding officer to announce the introduction of a bill during the morning hour. If any senator objects, the introduction of the bill is postponed until the next day. The bill is then assigned a number (e.g. S 1) and labelled with the sponsor's name. The bill is then sent to the Government Printing Office (GPO) and copies are made. Senate bills can be jointly sponsored and members can co-sponsor the legislation.

Once a bill is introduced, it can be found on Congress.gov, the official government website that tracks federal legislation.

The bill goes to committee

Once a bill has been introduced, it is assigned to a committee. The Speaker of the House or the presiding officer in the Senate will refer the bill to the appropriate committee. The referral decision is often made by the House or Senate parliamentarian. The committee will be composed of groups of Congress members with a particular interest or expertise in the topic of the bill. For example, a bill about agriculture is likely to be sent to a committee of members with expertise in this area.

Bills may be referred to more than one committee and can be split so that parts are sent to different committees. The Speaker of the House may set time limits on committees. Bills are placed on the calendar of the committee to which they have been assigned. If no action is taken on a bill, it is considered to be "dead".

The committee will carefully examine the bill, holding hearings to better understand its implications. Hearings allow the views of the executive branch, experts, other public officials, supporters, and opponents of the bill to be put on record. Subcommittees may also be formed under the committee to further study the bill and hold their own hearings. The subcommittee may make changes to the bill and must vote to refer it back to the full committee.

The full committee will then meet to "'mark up'" the bill, making changes and amendments before recommending it to the "floor". If the committee votes against reporting the legislation to the full chamber of Congress, the bill dies. If the committee votes in favor of the bill, it is reported to the floor. This procedure is called "ordering a bill reported".

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, 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.

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 discuss the bill, explaining why they agree or disagree with it. A reading clerk then reads the bill section by section, and the Representatives recommend changes. When 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 the Representatives who support the bill to say "aye" and those who oppose it to say "no." In a division vote, the Speaker asks those who support 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 the electronic voting system, selecting 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. The bill is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the U.S. Senate.

When a bill reaches the U.S. Senate, it goes through many of the same steps it went through in the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill is discussed in a Senate committee and then reported to the Senate floor to be voted on. Senators vote by voice, saying "yea" if they support the bill and "nay" if they oppose it. If a majority of Senators say "yea," the bill passes in the U.S. Senate and is ready to go to the President.

The bill is voted on

Once a bill has been introduced, assigned to a committee, and reported to the House floor, it 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, or a voice vote. 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. The Speaker asks those Representatives who support the bill to stand up and be counted, and then those who oppose the bill to stand up and be counted. The third is a recorded vote, 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. A majority of Representatives (218 out of 435) must vote yes for the bill to pass in the House.

If the bill passes in the House, it is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the U.S. Senate. Senators vote by voice, saying "yea" if they support the bill and "nay" if they oppose it. A simple majority (51 out of 100) is needed for the bill to pass in the Senate. If the bill passes in the Senate, it is then sent to the President.

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