The Bill's Journey: Becoming Law

The legislative process is the method by which bills are considered and laws are enacted. In the United States, the legislative process begins with a bill, which is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law. A bill can be proposed by a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, or it can be petitioned by citizens or groups who recommend a new or amended law to their representative. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee that will research, discuss, and make changes to it. The bill is then put before the chamber to be voted on. If it passes one body of Congress, it goes through a similar process in the other body. Once both bodies vote to accept a bill, they must work out any differences between the two versions. Then, both chambers vote on the same version of the bill, and if it passes, it is presented to the President. The President can approve the bill and sign it into law, or they can refuse to approve it, which is called a veto. If the President chooses to veto a bill, Congress can vote to override that veto, and the bill becomes a law. However, if the President does not sign off on a bill and it remains unsigned when Congress is no longer in session, the bill will be vetoed by default, known as a pocket veto.

How a bill becomes a law

All legislation starts off as an idea. These ideas can come from anyone, and the process begins when an individual or group persuades a member of the legislature to author a bill. The member then sends the idea and the language for the bill to the Legislative Counsel's Office, where it is drafted into the actual bill. The drafted bill is returned to the legislator for review. Once the bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee whose members will research, discuss, and make changes to the bill.

The First Reading/Introduction

The bill is then introduced or read for the first time when the bill number, the name of the author, and the descriptive title of the bill is read on the floor of the house. The bill is then sent to the Office of State Printing. No bill may be acted upon until 30 days have passed from the date of its introduction.

Committee Hearing

The bill then goes to the Rules Committee of the house of origin, where it is assigned to the appropriate policy committee for its first hearing. Bills are assigned to policy committees according to subject area. During the committee hearing, the author presents the bill to the committee, and testimony can be heard in support of or opposition to the bill. The committee then votes by passing the bill, passing the bill as amended, or defeating the bill. Bills can be amended several times. It takes a majority vote of the full committee membership for a bill to be passed by the committee.

Second and Third Reading

Bills passed by committees are read a second time on the floor in the house of origin and then assigned to third reading. When a bill is read the third time, it is explained by the author, discussed by the members, and voted on by a roll-call vote. If a bill is defeated, the member may seek reconsideration and another vote.

Repeat Process in the Other House

Once the bill has been approved by the house of origin, it proceeds to the other house, where the procedure is repeated.

Resolution of Differences

If a bill is amended in the second house, it must go back to the house of origin for concurrence, which is an agreement on the amendments. If an agreement cannot be reached, the bill is referred to a two-house conference committee to resolve differences. If a compromise is reached, the bill is returned to both houses for a vote.

Approval by the Governor

If both houses approve a bill, it then goes to the Governor, who can choose to sign the bill into law, allow it to become law without their signature, or veto it. A governor's veto can usually be overridden by a two-thirds vote in both houses. Most bills go into effect on the first day of January of the next year, while urgency measures take effect immediately after being signed or allowed to become law without a signature.

The role of the House of Representatives

The House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress, the other being the Senate. The House is made up of elected representatives from all 50 states, with each state's number of representatives proportional to its population.

The House has several key roles in the process of a bill becoming a law. Firstly, a bill is typically sponsored by a representative, who introduces the bill to the House. This is often done by simply placing the bill in the "hopper" at the side of the Clerk's desk in the House Chamber. The bill is then assigned a number by the Clerk and referred to the relevant committee.

The House has over 20 permanent committees, which are divided according to subject matter. The committees provide intensive consideration of the bill and are a forum for public input. The committee will often send the bill to a specialised subcommittee for study, hearings, revisions, and approval. The committee or subcommittee members will hear witnesses representing various viewpoints on the bill and may offer amendments. The committee will then vote on whether to pass the bill, pass it with amendments, or defeat it.

If the bill is passed by the committee, it is then put before the full House for a vote. Before the vote, there is typically a period for debate, during which proponents and opponents of the bill are each given time to speak. After the debate, the House votes on the bill, and if it passes, it moves to the Senate for a similar process of research, discussion, changes, and voting.

Once the bill has passed both the House and the Senate, a conference committee made up of members from both chambers works to resolve any differences between the two versions of the bill. The resulting bill then returns to the House and Senate for final approval. If the bill is approved by both chambers, it is sent to the President, who can sign it into law, refuse to approve it (veto it), or take no action. If the President vetoes the bill, Congress can override the veto with a two-thirds vote in each chamber.

The role of the Senate

The Senate plays a crucial role in the legislative process, which begins with a representative sponsoring a bill. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee for study and research. If the bill is approved by the committee, it is put on a calendar to be voted on, debated, or amended. If the bill passes by a simple majority, it moves to the Senate.

In the Senate, the bill undergoes a similar process: it is assigned to a committee, studied, and, if approved, debated and voted on. The Senate committee hearing is an important stage where the bill's author presents the bill, and testimony can be heard from supporters and opponents. The committee then votes on the bill, and it requires a majority vote to pass.

If the Senate makes changes to the bill, it must return to the House for concurrence. A conference committee, comprising members from both the House and the Senate, is formed to resolve any differences between the two versions of the bill. This committee works to create a single version of the bill, which is then sent back to both the House and the Senate for final approval.

The role of the President

The President has a crucial role in the legislative process, with the power to approve or veto a bill. Once a bill has been passed by both the House and the Senate, it is sent to the President for consideration. The President can choose to approve the bill and sign it into law within 10 days. Alternatively, the President can refuse to approve a bill, which is called a veto.

If the President chooses to veto a bill, Congress can vote to override that veto, and the bill will become a law. However, if the President does not sign off on a bill and it remains unsigned when Congress is no longer in session, the bill will be vetoed by default. This is known as a pocket veto and cannot be overridden by Congress.

How a bill becomes a law in California

All laws in California are enacted by the passage of bills. Bills are proposed by citizens, legislators, organised groups, state agencies, or the Governor, and drafted by the Office of Legislative Counsel. The process through which a bill becomes a law can be complicated, but there are four basic stages that all bills must pass: introduction, committee hearing, second and third readings, and enrollment and consideration by the Governor.

A legislator instructs the Office of Legislative Counsel to draft a bill and assign it a request number. The bill is then put "across the Desk", delivered to the Assembly or Senate Chamber, and given a bill number by the Chief Clerk. The Clerk then sends the bill to be printed. Bills are introduced and read for the first time in their house of origin (the Senate or the Assembly) and typically must be in print for 30 days before any action or votes can be taken.

Committee Hearing

Once the 30-day waiting period has passed, the Rules Committee of the bill's house of origin refers the bill to a policy committee for a hearing. Bills are assigned to policy committees according to their subject matter, and bills that require funding must also be heard in the fiscal committees of each house. During the committee stage, the bill is presented and legislators hear testimony in support of or opposition to the bill in an open hearing. Committees may act on legislation in several ways: they may pass a bill with amendments, pass a bill unchanged, hold a bill, "kill" or defeat a bill, or refer a bill to another committee. Once a committee reports a bill out of the committee, the bill must be placed on the second reading for the adoption, or ratification, of the committee's recommendation.

Second and Third Readings

Bills reported out of committee are read a second time on the floor in the house of origin and then assigned to a third reading. After the third reading of the bill in the house of origin, another roll call vote is taken. If the bill passes, it is referred to the other house, and the foregoing procedure begins anew. If the bill is voted on and passes through the second house without amendments or with concurred amendments, it is ordered to enrollment and sent to the Governor for approval. If the house of origin does not concur with the amendments made by the opposite house, the bill is sent to a joint Assembly/Senate conference committee until concurrence is reached.

Enrollment and Consideration by the Governor

Enrollment is the process of printing and proofreading the final version of a bill to ensure that the language reflects the final action by the Legislature. The bill is then delivered to the Governor's office, who has 12 days to consider the legislation. Any bill not vetoed or returned by the Governor after 12 days becomes a statute without the Governor's signature. The Governor may veto a bill by returning it to the house of origin without a signature, and a two-thirds majority vote in both houses is required to overturn the veto.

Frequently asked questions