The Law-Making Process: A Guide For Young Learners

Did you know that anyone can have an idea for a law? That's right—laws begin as ideas, and these ideas can come from anyone, including you! If you have an idea for a new law or a change to an existing one, you can contact your representative to discuss it. If they like your idea, they'll write it into a bill and propose it. This is just the first step in a bill's journey to becoming a law. Let's take a look at the exciting path a bill takes to becoming a law!

Characteristics	Values
Where do ideas for bills come from?	Members of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, citizens, citizen groups, or campaign promises.
Who drafts the bill?	A member of Congress, either from the Senate or the House of Representatives.
Who sponsors the bill?	A member of Congress who strongly believes in the bill and wants to see it turned into a law.
Who are co-sponsors?	Other members of Congress who support the bill.
How is the bill introduced?	It is placed in the "hopper", a wooden box on the side of the Clerk's desk in the U.S. House of Representatives.
What happens after introduction?	The bill is assigned a number, read to all Representatives, and sent to a committee.
What does the committee do?	Reviews, researches, discusses, and makes changes to the bill before deciding whether to send it back to the House floor for a vote.
What is a subcommittee?	A specialized group under the committee that studies the bill, holds hearings, and makes changes.
What is "mark-up"?	When the committee meets to make changes and amendments to the bill before recommending it to the "floor".
How is the bill voted on?	There are three methods: Viva Voce (voice vote), Division, and Recorded (electronic voting).
What happens if the bill passes the House?	It is sent to the U.S. Senate, where it goes through a similar process of committee review, debate, and voting.
What happens if the bill passes both the House and the Senate?	Both chambers must agree on identical legislation, reconciling any differences. The final bill is then presented to the President.
What can the President do?	The President can sign and pass the bill, veto (refuse to sign) it, or do nothing (pocket veto).
What happens 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.

How a bill is proposed and introduced

A bill is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing one. The idea for a bill can come from anyone—a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, a citizen, or a citizen group. If a citizen has an idea for a bill, they can contact their Representative to discuss it. If the Representative agrees with the idea, they will research it and write it up as a bill.

Once a Representative has written a bill, it needs a sponsor. The Representative will talk to other Representatives about the bill to get their support. The sponsor is someone who believes in the bill and wants to see it become a law. The sponsor can be a Senator or a member of the House of Representatives. The bill can also have multiple co-sponsors, who are the other members that support the bill.

When a bill has a sponsor and the support of other 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 wooden box on the side of the clerk's desk. Only Representatives can introduce bills in the House of Representatives. Once a bill is introduced, it is given a number that starts with H.R. and is read out to all the Representatives. The Speaker of the House then sends the bill to a committee.

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The role of committees and subcommittees

So, you know that a bill is a proposed idea for a new law or a change to an existing law. But what happens after a bill is introduced? Well, it's sent to a committee! Committees are made up of small groups of people from the House of Representatives who are experts on the topic of the bill. For example, if a bill is about classroom sizes in public schools, it would go to the Committee on Education.

The committee members will carefully review, research, and discuss the bill. They might bring in experts from outside the committee to give their opinions and talk about the good and bad parts of the bill. The committee might decide to make changes to the bill before they vote on whether to send it back to the House floor for a vote. If the committee members want more information before they make a decision, they might send the bill to a subcommittee.

A subcommittee is a smaller group of people with an even more specific focus on the topic of the bill. They will study the bill in great detail, hold hearings, and make changes to the bill. Then, they will vote on whether to send the bill back to the full committee. The committee will then decide whether to send the bill to the House floor.

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How a bill is reported and voted on

Once a bill has been introduced, it is sent to a committee. Committees are small groups of Congress members who are experts in certain areas. For example, if the bill is about classroom sizes in public schools, it would be sent to the Committee on Education. The committee discusses the details of the bill, bringing in experts from outside Congress to give their opinions and debating the pros and cons of the bill. The committee may decide to make changes to the bill. If the committee agrees to pass the bill, it will move on to the main chamber of the House or Senate for a vote.

When a bill reaches the committee, the committee members—groups of Representatives who are experts on specific topics—review, research, and revise the bill before voting on whether or not to send it back to the House floor. If the committee members want more information before deciding, the bill is sent to a subcommittee. In a subcommittee, the bill is closely examined and expert opinions are gathered before it is sent back to the committee for approval.

When the committee has approved a bill, it is sent—or reported—to the House floor. Once reported, a bill is ready to be debated by the U.S. House of Representatives. Representatives discuss the bill and explain why they agree or disagree with it. Then, a reading clerk reads the bill section by section, and the Representatives recommend changes. When all the 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 (voice vote), 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 that oppose it to say “no.”. In a division, 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 and is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the U.S. Senate.

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The bill's journey to the President

Once a bill has been approved by the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, it is sent to the President. The President has three choices:

Sign and pass the bill: The bill becomes a law.
Refuse to sign, or veto, the bill: The bill is sent back to the U.S. House of Representatives, along with the President's reasons for the veto. If the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate still believe the bill should become a law, they can hold another vote on the bill. If two-thirds of the Representatives and Senators support the bill, the President's veto is overridden and the bill becomes a law.
Do nothing (pocket veto): If the President does nothing and Congress is not in session, the bill does not become a law. If Congress is in session, the bill automatically becomes law after 10 days.

If a bill has been approved by both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate, and the President has signed it, or if a presidential veto has been overridden, the bill becomes a law. This is enforced by the government.

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The President's options

When a bill reaches the President, he has three choices, also known as options. If the President chooses to support the bill, he can sign it and it will become a law.

However, if the President does not agree with the bill, he can choose to veto it. This means the bill will be sent back to the U.S. House of Representatives, along with the President's reasons for the veto. If the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate still believe the bill should become a law, they can hold another vote on it. If two-thirds of the Representatives and Senators support the bill, the President's veto is overridden and the bill becomes a law anyway.

The President's third option is to do nothing. This is called a 'pocket veto'. If the President doesn't sign the bill or return it to Congress with objections within 10 days, and Congress is not in session, the bill will not become a law. However, if Congress is in session, the bill will automatically become law.