California's Path To Law: A Complex Journey

California's legislative process is a complex one, with several stages a bill must pass through before becoming law. The process begins when a Senator or Assembly Member decides to author a bill, which is then sent to the Legislative Counsel to be drafted. Once the draft is returned, the bill is introduced or read for the first time, along with the bill number, author, and descriptive title. After a 30-day waiting period, the bill goes through a committee hearing, where it is presented and legislators hear testimony in support of or opposition to the bill. Following this, the bill is read a second and third time, before being referred to the other house, where the procedure is repeated. If the bill is amended in the second house, it must return to the house of origin for concurrence. If approved by both houses, the bill goes to the Governor, who can sign it into law, allow it to become law without a signature, or veto it. Most bills go into effect on the first of January of the following year.

Idea for a bill

The process of a bill becoming a law in California is complex, but it all starts with an idea. Ideas for bills can come from a variety of sources, but it is a Senator or Assembly Member who decides to author and introduce a bill.

Step 1: Drafting

The legislator sends the idea for the bill to the Legislative Counsel, where it is drafted into an actual bill. The draft is then sent back to the legislator for introduction.

Step 2: First Reading/Introduction

The bill number, the name of the author, and the descriptive title of the bill are read on the floor of the house (either the Senate or the Assembly, depending on the author). The bill is then sent to the Office of State Printing and must be in print for 30 days before any action or votes can be taken.

Step 3: Committee Hearing

Once the 30-day waiting period has passed, the bill is referred to a policy committee for a hearing. Bills that will have a fiscal impact must also be heard by the fiscal committee. At this stage, the bill is presented, and legislators hear testimony in support of or opposition to the bill in an open hearing. Committees prepare written analyses of each bill, describing the effect of the proposed legislation and noting supporting and opposing viewpoints. Following the hearing, committee members vote on the bill, and may pass it with or without amendments, hold it, defeat it, or refer it to another committee.

Step 4: Second and Third Readings

Bills that are 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, another roll call vote is taken. If the bill passes, it is referred to the other house, where the whole process begins again.

Step 5: Repeat Process in the Other House

Once the bill has been approved by the first house, the procedure is repeated in the other house. If the bill is amended in the second house, it must go back to the house of origin for concurrence on the amendments. If agreement cannot be reached, the bill is referred to a two-house conference committee.

Step 6: Resolution of Differences

If a compromise is reached in the conference committee, the bill is returned to both houses for a vote. If both houses approve the bill, it then goes to the Governor, who can sign the bill into law, allow it to become law without their signature, or veto it. A governor's veto can be overridden by a two-thirds vote in both houses. Most bills go into effect on the first of January of the next year.

Drafting the bill

The process of a bill becoming a law in California is known as the Legislative Process. It begins when a Senator or Assembly Member decides to author a bill. They send the idea for the bill to the Legislative Counsel, where it is drafted into a bill. The draft is then returned to the legislator for introduction. If the author is a Senator, the bill is introduced in the Senate; if the author is an Assembly Member, the bill is introduced in the Assembly.

The bill is then given its first reading/introduction. This is when the bill number, the name of the author, and the descriptive title of the bill are 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.

After the 30-day waiting period, the bill 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 their subject area. For example, a Senate bill dealing with health care facilities would first be assigned to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee for policy review.

Each committee is made up of a specified number of Senators or Assembly Members. During the committee hearing, the author presents the bill, and testimony can be heard in support of or opposition to the bill. The committee then votes by passing the bill, passing the bill with amendments, or defeating it. 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. Committees may act on legislation in numerous ways: they may pass a bill with amendments, pass a bill unchanged, hold a bill, defeat a bill, or refer a bill to another committee.

Each house maintains a schedule of legislative committee hearings. Before a bill's hearing, a bill analysis is prepared that explains the current law, what the bill is intended to do, and some background information. Typically, the analysis also lists organizations that support or oppose the bill. Letters of support or opposition are important and should be mailed to the author and committee members before the bill is scheduled to be heard in the committee.

Committee hearing

Once a bill has been introduced and read for the first time in its house of origin, there is a 30-day waiting period before it can be voted on. After this time has passed, the bill is referred to a policy committee for a hearing. This is known as the committee stage.

Committees are small groups of legislators who hear testimony on a bill. The bill is presented, and legislators hear arguments for and against it in an open hearing. Committees then prepare written analyses of each bill, describing the effect of the proposed legislation and noting supporting and opposing viewpoints. Following the hearing, committee members vote on the bill by roll call. Committees may pass a bill with amendments, pass it unchanged, hold it, defeat it, or refer it to another committee. Once a committee has reported a bill out of committee, the bill must be placed on second reading for the adoption, or ratification, of the committee's recommendation.

Policy committee hearings are forums for public input, where citizens can communicate their concerns about proposed legislation. Bills are heard in Standing Committees, which meet regularly throughout the year, or in Joint Committees, which have members from both houses and consider issues of joint concern.

Second and third readings

Once a committee reports a bill out, it must be placed on second reading for the adoption, or ratification, of the committee's recommendation. 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 entire 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 be enrolled 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 consisting of three Assembly Members and three Senators until concurrence is reached.

Bill analyses are also prepared prior to the 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. Bills that require an appropriation or that take effect immediately generally require 27 votes in the Senate and 54 votes in the Assembly to pass. Other bills generally require 21 votes in the Senate and 41 votes in the Assembly. If a bill is defeated, the Member may seek reconsideration and another vote.

Governor's approval

Governors Approval

The Governor plays a crucial role in the legislative process in California. Once a bill has been approved by both houses of the California State Legislature, it is sent to the Governor for consideration. The Governor has three options: they can sign the bill into law, allow it to become law without their signature, or veto it.

If the Governor chooses to veto a bill, they must return it to the house of origin without their signature. A letter outlining the Governor's objections to the bill is then printed in the Journal and File of the originating house. However, a vetoed bill can still become law if two-thirds of the membership of both houses vote to enact it.

If the Governor does not take any action on a bill within 12 days, it automatically becomes a statute without their signature. The only exception to this is at the end of each year of the legislative session, when the Governor has 30 days to consider bills passed by the adjournment deadline. Bills typically become law on the following 1st of January.

The Governor's role in the legislative process provides a crucial check and balance, ensuring that laws are carefully considered and have broad support before being enacted. This process helps to maintain the integrity of the law-making process and ensures that the laws enacted are in the best interests of the people of California.

Frequently asked questions