Bill To Law: Understanding The Legislative Process

Laws in the United States begin as ideas that can come from a citizen, a Representative, or a sitting member of the U.S. Senate. These ideas are then drafted into bills, which are proposals for new laws or changes to existing ones. Before a bill can become a law, it must go through several stages of review, research, revision, and voting in the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, and, finally, the President. This process involves multiple stakeholders and is designed to carefully consider the potential impact of a bill before it becomes a law.

Bill proposal and sponsorship

The first step in the legislative process is the proposal of a bill, which is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law. The idea for a bill can come from a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, be proposed during their election campaign, or be petitioned by citizens or citizen groups. Once an idea for a bill has been formulated, it needs a sponsor. The sponsor is the primary Congress member supporting the bill, and the other members who support the bill are called co-sponsors. The Representative or sponsor will then talk to other Representatives to gain their support for the bill.

Once a bill has a sponsor and the support of some of the Representatives, it is ready to be introduced. A bill is introduced when it is placed in the hopper, a special box on the side of the clerk's desk in the House of Representatives. In the Senate, the bill is submitted to the clerks on the Senate floor. Once introduced, the bill is assigned a number that begins with H.R. if it originated in the House, or S. if it originated in the Senate. A reading clerk will then read the bill to all the Representatives, and the Speaker of the House sends the bill to one of the House standing committees.

Committees are groups of Representatives who are experts on specific topics, such as agriculture, education, or international relations. They review, research, and revise the bill before voting on whether or not to send it back to the House floor. If the committee requires more information, the bill is sent to a subcommittee, which will closely examine the bill and gather expert opinions before sending it back to the committee for approval. Once the committee has approved a bill, it is sent or reported to the House floor, where it is ready to be debated.

During the debate, Representatives discuss the bill and explain their agreement or disagreement with it. A reading clerk reads the bill section by section, and 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 House: viva voce, division, and recorded. If a majority of Representatives support the bill, it passes in the House and is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the Senate.

Introduction to the House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the bicameral United States Congress, established in 1789 by the Constitution of the United States. The House of Representatives makes and passes federal laws, sharing equal responsibility for lawmaking with the U.S. Senate.

The number of voting representatives in the House is fixed by law at no more than 435, proportionally representing the population of the 50 states. Each state is guaranteed at least one member of the House of Representatives, with the allocation of seats based on the population within the states. The House represents citizens based on district populations, with each member representing a set number of constituents.

The House is led by the speaker, who is chosen by the majority party and is second in the line of presidential succession. The speaker presides over debates, appoints members of select and conference committees, and performs other administrative and institutional duties.

Each representative is elected to a two-year term, serving the people of a specific congressional district. To be elected, a representative must be at least 25 years old, a United States citizen for at least seven years, and an inhabitant of the state they represent. Representatives introduce bills and resolutions, offer amendments, and serve on committees. Any member of the House may introduce a bill at any time while the House is in session by placing it in the "hopper" at the side of the Clerk's desk in the House Chamber. The bill is then assigned to a committee, whose members will research, discuss, and make changes to it.

The House has the exclusive power to initiate impeachment proceedings and originate revenue bills. It also has standing committees, such as the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Ways and Means, which handles matters related to finance. These committees play a crucial role in the legislative process and the oversight of government agencies.

Committee review and revision

Once a bill has been introduced, it is referred to a committee. Both the House and Senate have various committees composed of groups of Congress members who are particularly interested in different topics such as health or international affairs. When a bill is in the hands of the committee, it is carefully examined and its chances of passage by the entire Congress are determined. The committee may even choose to hold hearings to better understand the implications of the bill. Hearings allow the views of the executive branch, experts, other public officials, and supporters and opponents of the legislation to be put on the record. If the committee does not act on a bill, the bill is considered to be "dead".

Subcommittees are organized under committees and have further specialization on a certain topic. Often, committees refer bills to a subcommittee for study and their own hearings. The subcommittee may make changes to the bill and must vote to refer a bill back to the full committee. The subcommittee can also choose to kill the bill by not taking any action on it.

Once the hearings and subcommittee review are completed, the committee will meet to "mark up" the bill. They make changes and amendments prior to recommending the bill to the "floor". If a committee votes not to report 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".

The full committee reviews the deliberations and recommendations of the subcommittee. It may conduct further review, hold more public hearings, or simply vote on the report from the subcommittee. If the bill is to go forward, the full committee prepares and votes on its final recommendations to the House or Senate. Once a bill has successfully passed this stage, it is said to have been ordered reported or simply reported.

Once a bill has been reported, its report is written and published. This report includes the purpose of the bill, its impact on existing laws, budgetary considerations, and any new taxes or tax increases the bill will require. This report also typically contains transcripts from public hearings on the bill as well as the opinions of the committee for and against the proposed bill.

Voting and approval

Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee whose members will research, discuss, and make changes to the bill. The committee may also choose to 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".

After the committee stage, the bill is put before the chamber to be voted on. There are three methods for voting on a bill in the U.S. House of Representatives:

• Viva Voce (voice vote): The Speaker of the House asks the Representatives who support the bill to say “aye” and those that oppose it say “no.”.
• Division: The Speaker of the House 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.
• Recorded: Representatives record their vote using the electronic voting system. Representatives can vote yes, no, or present (if they don’t want to vote on the bill).

If the bill passes in the House of Representatives, it is then referred to the Senate, where it goes through a similar process of committee review, hearings, and voting.

If the bill passes in both the House and the Senate, the two chambers must work together to reconcile any differences between their versions of the bill. This is usually done by forming a conference committee comprising members from both chambers. Once both chambers have agreed on an identical version of the bill, it is sent to the President for approval.

The President has several options when presented with a bill:

• Sign and pass the bill—the bill becomes a law.
• Refuse to sign, or veto, the bill—the bill is sent back to Congress, along with the President’s reasons for the veto.
• Do nothing (pocket veto)—if Congress is in session, the bill automatically becomes law after 10 days. If Congress is not in session, the bill does not become a law.

If the President vetoes a bill, Congress may attempt to override the veto. If two-thirds of both the House and the Senate support the bill, the President's veto is overruled, and the bill becomes a law.

Presidential approval

The president has the final say on whether a bill becomes a law. Once a bill has been approved by both the House and the Senate, it is sent to the President for review. At this stage, the President has several options.

If the President agrees with the bill, they may sign it into law. The bill is then printed in the Statutes at Large and enforced by the government.

However, if the President disagrees with the bill, they may choose to veto it. A veto means that the President refuses to approve the bill, and it is sent back to Congress along with the President's reasons for the veto. Congress can then attempt to override the veto by holding another vote on the bill. If two-thirds of both the House and the Senate support the bill, the President's veto is overridden, and the bill becomes a law.

The President also has the option to do nothing, which can result in a pocket veto. If Congress is in session and the President takes no action within 10 days, the bill automatically becomes law. However, if Congress adjourns before the 10 days are up and the President has not signed the bill, the bill is considered vetoed by default. This type of veto cannot be overridden by Congress, and if they still want to pass the legislation, they must start the entire process again.

Frequently asked questions