The Journey Of A Bill To Law Explained

The process of a bill becoming a law varies depending on the country and the legislative system. In the United States, for example, a bill must go through nine steps before becoming a law. The process begins with the proposal of a bill, which can come from a sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, or be proposed by citizens and citizen groups. Once a bill is proposed and introduced, it is sent to a committee for review, research, and potential revisions. The bill is then reported to the House floor for debate and voting. If the bill passes in the House, it is sent to the Senate, where it goes through a similar process. If the bill passes in the Senate, it is sent to the President, who can choose to sign and pass the bill, veto it, or do nothing (pocket veto). If the President vetoes the bill, Congress can attempt to override the veto with a two-thirds majority vote in both the Senate and the House. If the bill passes in both chambers and/or the veto is overridden, it becomes a law. This process can vary in different countries and legislative systems, with some having additional steps or requiring approval from different branches of government.

The bill is drafted

Once the bill is drafted, it is 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. The bill is then assigned a number (e.g. HR 1 or S 1) and sent to the Government Printing Office (GPO) for copying.

The bill is then referred to the appropriate committee by the Speaker of the House or the presiding officer in the Senate. Committees are composed of groups of Congress members who are particularly interested in different topics such as health or international affairs. The committee examines the bill and determines its chances of passage by the entire Congress. The committee may also hold hearings to better understand the implications of the bill and gather the views of experts, other public officials, supporters, and opponents of the bill. If the committee does not act on a bill, the bill is considered "dead".

Subcommittees are organised under committees and have further specialisation on a certain topic. Committees may refer bills to a subcommittee for study and hearings. The subcommittee may make changes to the bill and must vote to refer it back to the full committee. Once the hearings and subcommittee review are completed, the committee will meet to make changes and amendments to the bill. If the committee votes against reporting the legislation to the full chamber of Congress, the bill dies. If the committee votes in favour of the bill, it is reported to the floor.

Once the bill reaches the floor, there is additional debate and members of the full chamber vote to approve any amendments. The bill is then passed or defeated by the members' voting.

The bill is introduced

The process of introducing a bill is slightly different depending on whether it is being introduced in the House or the Senate. In the House, a bill is introduced when it is placed in the hopper, a special box on the side of the clerk's desk. The bill is then assigned a number that begins with H.R. by a bill clerk. A reading clerk then reads the bill to all the Representatives, and the Speaker of the House sends the bill to one of the House standing committees.

In the Senate, members must gain recognition from the presiding officer to announce the introduction of a bill during the morning hour. If any senator objects, the introduction of the bill is postponed until the next day. The bill is then assigned a number (e.g. S 1) and sent to the Government Printing Office (GPO) for copying.

Once a bill is introduced, it can be found on Congress.gov, the official government website that tracks federal legislation.

The bill goes to committee

Once a bill is introduced, it is referred to a committee. Both the House and Senate have various committees composed of groups of Congress members with a particular interest in different topics, such as health or international affairs. The bill is referred to the appropriate committee by the Speaker of the House or the presiding officer in the Senate. The actual referral decision is usually made by the House or Senate parliamentarian.

Bills may be referred to more than one committee and may even be split so that parts are sent to different committees. One of those committees will be designated the primary committee of jurisdiction and will likely take the lead on any action that may occur. The Speaker of the House may set time limits on committees. Bills are placed on the calendar of the committee to which they have been assigned. Failure to act on a bill is equivalent to killing it. Bills in the House can only be released from committee without a proper committee vote by a discharge petition signed by a majority of the House membership (218 members).

Comments about the bill's merit are requested by government agencies. The bill can be assigned to a subcommittee by the Chairman. Subcommittees are organised under committees and have further specialisation on a certain topic. Subcommittees report their findings to the full committee. 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, supporters, and opponents of the legislation to be put on the record.

Finally, there is a vote by the full committee—the bill is "ordered to be reported". A committee will hold a "mark-up" session during which it will make revisions and additions. If substantial amendments are made, the committee can order the introduction of a "clean bill" which will include the proposed amendments. This new bill will have a new number and will be sent to the floor while the old bill is discarded. The chamber must approve, change or reject all committee amendments before conducting a final passage vote.

The bill is voted on

Once a bill has been introduced, assigned to a committee, and reported to the House floor, it 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): 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 a majority of the Representatives vote yes, the bill passes in the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the U.S. Senate.

The process is similar in the Senate. Senators vote by voice. Those who support the bill say "yea," and those who oppose it say "nay." If a majority of the Senators vote "yea," the bill passes in the U.S. Senate and is ready to go to the President.

The bill is sent to the President

Once a bill has been passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, it is presented to the President for review. The President can choose to approve the bill and sign it into law. If the President does not approve of the bill, they may veto it, sending it back to Congress with a note listing their reasons. Congress can then override the veto with a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and the Senate, and the bill will become a law.

If the President takes no action on the bill for ten days while Congress is in session, the bill will automatically become law. However, if Congress adjourns before the ten days are up and the President has not signed the bill, it will not become law. This is known as a "pocket veto".

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