The Complex Journey Of A Bill To Law

The process of a bill becoming a law is a complex and lengthy one. It involves multiple stages, including drafting, introduction, committee review, voting, referral to the other chamber, and finally, presentation to the president for approval or veto. The bill can be proposed by any member of Congress, either from the Senate or the House of Representatives, and can originate from ideas of Congress members themselves or everyday citizens and advocacy groups. The process is different in the House of Representatives and the Senate, with the House initiating tax and revenue-related legislation and the Senate drafting legislation related to presidential nominations and treaties. The bill must then pass through committees, subcommittees, and voting before being presented to the president, who has the power to approve or veto it.

The Bill Is Proposed

The process of a bill being proposed begins with an idea. Any member of Congress—from the Senate or the House of Representatives—can propose a bill. These ideas can come from Congress members themselves, citizens, or advocacy groups. The primary Congress member supporting the bill is called the "sponsor", and other members who support the bill are called "co-sponsors". Members of Congress work with their staff to write bills, and they can also get help from the nonpartisan Office of Legislative Counsel, which consists of experts on legal language and how to write laws.

Once the bill is drafted, it must be introduced. If a Representative is the sponsor, the bill is introduced in the House. If a Senator is the sponsor, the bill is introduced in the Senate. After introduction, the bill is given a number and assigned to a relevant committee based on its topic. For example, a bill about foreign policy would be directed to the Foreign Relations Committee, while a bill concerning farm policy would go to the Agriculture Committee.

The committees in the House and Senate are composed of groups of Congress members with a particular interest in different topics. The committees carefully examine the bill and determine its chances of passage by the entire Congress. Committees may hold hearings to better understand the bill's implications and allow the views of experts, public officials, supporters, and opponents of the legislation to be put on record. If a committee does not act on a bill, it is considered "dead".

The Bill Is Introduced

The first step in the process of a bill becoming a law is the bill being drafted. Any member of Congress, from the Senate or the House of Representatives, can draft a bill. These ideas can come from Congress members themselves, citizens, or advocacy groups. The primary Congress member supporting the bill is called the "sponsor", and other members who support the bill are called "co-sponsors".

Once the bill is drafted, it must be introduced. If a Representative is the sponsor, the bill is introduced in the House. If a Senator is the sponsor, the bill is introduced in the Senate. After a bill is introduced, it can be found on Congress.gov, the official government website that tracks federal legislation.

Before a bill is introduced, members of Congress may gather support for the bill as co-sponsors. Bills in the House can have a few co-sponsors or hundreds, and the more co-sponsors a bill has, the more likely it is to become a law. It is important to note that co-sponsors are simply adding their names to the bill and may not have even read it. Additionally, anyone can write a bill, including special interest groups, lobbyists, and people raising campaign funds. However, the bill must be proposed by a member of Congress.

Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee. The committee members will research, discuss, and make changes to the bill. The House and the Senate have various committees composed of groups of Congress members who are particularly interested in different topics, such as health or international affairs.

The Bill Goes to Committee

Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee whose members will research, discuss, and make changes to the bill. The committees are formed to have expertise in a particular area so that they can be the first line of review of a particular topic instead of the whole house having to look at every detail. This allows for deeper expertise on a given topic and a more efficient process.

The House has 20 permanent committees, the Senate has 17, and there are also four joint committees with members from both chambers. Committee members are chosen by a committee committee before each new Congress (every two years). Importantly, whichever party has a majority in the House or the Senate also has the majority in every single committee. For example, in 2019, the Agriculture Committee in the House had more Democrats than Republicans, and the Agriculture Committee in the Senate had more Republicans than Democrats. This is why the majority party has so much power—they can set the agenda, the terms of the debate, and ultimately decide what is voted on.

While in committee, bills are read, discussed, and experts are called in to speak to the effects of a bill. They get marked up and amendments are added. However, this is also where most bills die. If a committee doesn't act on a bill, it is considered dead. If a committee votes against a bill, it dies. If a committee doesn't vote on it at all, it gets put in the endless to-do pile and is never heard from again.

If a bill survives the committee process, the committee reports it out and says it is ready for a vote. Then it goes to the Speaker of the House or the Senate Majority Leader, who decides which bills that make it out of committee get voted on.

The Bill Is Voted On

Once a bill has been introduced, researched, discussed, and amended by a committee, it is put before the chamber to be voted on. This is known as "voting by the full chamber on the bill". The bill is then passed or defeated by the members' voting.

In the House of Representatives, the Speaker of the House decides which bills that make it out of committee get to the floor for a vote. In the Senate, it is the Senate majority leader who decides what gets voted on. In the House, a bill requires a majority vote to pass, whereas in the Senate, it is passed through deliberation and debate prior to voting.

In the House, members typically vote by electronic device, sticking a card into a reader and pressing green for yes and red for no. In the Senate, there is sometimes a voice vote, where each member calls out "I" or "nay".

If a bill is relatively non-controversial, there are ways to fast-track the voting process. In the House, this is known as a vote under "suspension of the rules", which requires a two-thirds majority to pass. In the Senate, a unanimous consent agreement can be reached, where every single senator is on board, and the bill is passed without the usual rules and messiness.

The Bill Is Sent to the President

Once a bill has been approved by both the House and the Senate in identical form, it is sent to the President. The President can then choose to approve the bill, in which case they will sign it and it will become law. If the President takes no action for ten days while Congress is in session, the bill will automatically become law.

However, if the President opposes the bill, they can veto it. If this happens, Congress may attempt to override the veto, and if both the Senate and the House pass the bill with a two-thirds majority, it will become a law. If the President does not sign off on a bill and Congress has already adjourned, there will be a "pocket veto", which cannot be overridden.

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