Anaya Nolan
The process of how a bill becomes a law in the United States is a complex one. The legislative branch of the US government, Congress, is responsible for creating and modifying laws. The journey of a bill to becoming a law begins with a proposal, which can come from a sitting member of the US Senate or House of Representatives, or be proposed by citizens who can contact their representatives to discuss their ideas. Once a bill has been introduced, it is assigned a number and a sponsor, and copies are made. It is then sent to a committee, which will research, discuss, and make changes to the bill. The bill is then put before the chamber to be voted on. If the bill passes one body of Congress, it goes through a similar process in the other body. Once both bodies have voted to accept a bill, they must work out any differences between the two versions, and both chambers vote on the same version. If it passes, it is presented to the president, who can approve or veto the bill. If the president chooses to veto, Congress can vote to override the veto, and the bill becomes a law.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Who can propose a bill? | A sitting member of the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives, or proposed during their election campaign. Bills can also be petitioned by people or citizen groups who recommend a new or amended law to a member of Congress that represents them. |
| What happens once a bill is introduced? | It is assigned to a committee whose members will research, discuss, and make changes to the bill. |
| What happens once a bill passes one body of Congress? | It goes to the other body to go through a similar process of research, discussion, changes, and voting. |
| What happens 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. If it passes, they present it to the president. |
| What can the president do? | The president can approve the bill and sign it into law, or refuse to approve a bill (veto). |
| What can Congress do if the president vetoes a bill? | In most cases, Congress can vote to override that veto and the bill becomes a law. |
| What happens 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", and cannot be overridden by Congress. |
| What is the difference between the Senate and the House in terms of lawmaking procedures? | While both are equal in how they function, only the House can initiate tax and revenue-related legislation. And only the Senate can draft legislation related to presidential nominations and treaties. While the House processes legislation through a majority vote, the Senate does so through deliberation and debate prior to voting. |
What You'll Learn
How a bill is introduced
The introduction of a bill is the very first step in the legislative process. Any member of the House of Representatives or the Senate can introduce a bill. In the House, legislation is handed to the clerk of the House or placed in the hopper, a special box on the side of the clerk's desk. Only Representatives can introduce bills in the House of Representatives. 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 is postponed until the following day.
Once introduced, a bill is assigned a number (e.g. HR 1 or S 1) and labelled with the sponsor's name. It is then sent to the Government Printing Office (GPO) for copying. Senate bills can be jointly sponsored, and members can cosponsor legislation.
The next step is for the bill to be assigned to a committee. The Speaker of the House or the presiding officer in the Senate refers the bill to the appropriate committee. The referral decision is often made by the House or Senate parliamentarian. Bills may be referred to multiple committees and split so that parts are sent to different committees. The Speaker of the House may set time limits on committees. Bills are placed on the committee's calendar, and failure to act on a bill is equivalent to killing it. Bills can only be released from the committee without a proper committee vote by a discharge petition signed by the majority of the House membership (218 members).
The committee members review, research, discuss, and make changes to the bill. They may request expert opinions and gather additional information before voting on whether to send the bill back to the House floor. If the committee approves a bill, it is sent or "reported" to the House floor for debate.
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The role of committees
Once a bill has been introduced, it is assigned to a committee. Committees are panels of members from both parties that take the lead in developing and assessing legislation. They are made up of groups of Representatives who are experts on topics such as agriculture, education, or international relations. Members typically serve on a small number of committees and often remain on them for many years, allowing them to become highly knowledgeable in certain policy areas. All committees are chaired by a member of the majority party, and they often work closely with the committee's ranking member, the most senior member of the minority party on the committee. The ratio of majority to minority party members on a committee roughly reflects the overall partisan ratio in the congressional chamber.
The committee members review, research, and revise the bill before voting on whether or not to send it back to the House floor. If the committee members would like more information before deciding, the bill is sent to a subcommittee. While in subcommittee, the bill is closely examined and expert opinions are gathered before it is sent back to the committee for approval. Subcommittees report their findings to the full committee.
After the committee has approved a bill, it is sent to the House floor, at which point it is ready to be debated. Once a bill has been debated, a reading clerk reads the bill section by section, and Representatives recommend changes. When all changes have been made, the bill is ready to be voted on.
After the bill has been voted on, if it passes with a simple majority, it moves to the Senate. In the Senate, the bill is assigned to another committee and, if released, is debated and voted on. Again, a simple majority passes the bill.
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The bill is reported
Once a bill has been introduced, it is assigned to a committee, where it is studied, discussed, and changes are made. The 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.
After the bill is reported, the committee staff prepares a written report explaining why they favor the bill and why they wish to see their amendments, if any, adopted. Committee members who oppose a bill sometimes write a dissenting opinion in the report. The report is sent back to the whole chamber and is placed on the calendar.
In the House, most bills go to the Rules Committee before reaching the floor. The committee adopts rules that will govern the procedures under which the bill will be considered by the House. A "closed rule" sets strict time limits on debate and forbids the introduction of amendments. These rules can have a major impact on whether the bill passes. The rules committee can be bypassed in three ways: members can move rules to be suspended (requiring a two-thirds vote), a discharge petition can be filed, or the House can use a Calendar Wednesday procedure.
The bill is then placed on one of four House Calendars, usually in the order they are reported, although they don't usually come to the floor in this order. Some bills never reach the floor at all. The Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader decide what will reach the floor and when.
In the House, debate is limited by the rules formulated in the Rules Committee. The Committee of the Whole debates and amends the bill but cannot technically pass it. The debate is guided by the Sponsoring Committee, and time is divided equally between proponents and opponents. The Committee decides how much time to allot to each person. Amendments must be germane to the subject of a bill – no riders are allowed. The bill is reported back to the House (to itself) and is voted on. A quorum call is a vote to make sure that there are enough members present (218) to have a final vote. If there is not a quorum, the House will adjourn or will send the Sergeant at Arms out to round up missing members.
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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, division, and recorded. In a viva voce vote, the Speaker of the House asks Representatives to say "aye" if they support the bill and "no" if they oppose it. In a division vote, the Speaker of the House asks those who support the bill to stand up and be counted, and then does the same for those who oppose the bill. In a recorded vote, Representatives record their votes using an electronic voting system, and can vote yes, no, or present if they don't want to vote on the bill. A majority vote (218 out of 435) is required for the bill to pass in the House.
After the bill is voted on in the House, it is certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the U.S. Senate. In the Senate, the bill is discussed in a Senate committee and then reported to the Senate floor to be voted on. Senators vote by voice, saying "yea" if they support the bill and "nay" if they oppose it. A simple majority (51 out of 100) is required for the bill to pass in the Senate.
If the bill passes in both the House and the Senate, it is sent to the President. The President has three options: they can sign and pass the bill, which becomes a law; they can refuse to sign or veto the bill, sending it back to the House and Senate along with their reasons for the veto; or they can do nothing, which is called a pocket veto. If Congress is in session, the bill will automatically become law after 10 days of inaction. If Congress is not in session, the bill will not become law.
If the President vetoes the bill, the House and Senate can hold another vote on the bill. If two-thirds of the Representatives and Senators support the bill, the President's veto is overridden and the bill becomes a law.
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The bill is sent to the President
Once a bill has been approved by both the House and the Senate, it is sent to the President for review. The President has the power to approve or veto the bill. If the President approves, the bill becomes law. If the President vetoes the bill, 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 law.
If the President does nothing (known as a "pocket veto"), the outcome depends on whether Congress is in session. If Congress is in session, the bill automatically becomes law after 10 days. However, if Congress is not in session, the bill does not become law. This type of veto cannot be overridden by Congress.
The President has significant influence in the legislative process. In addition to the power to veto legislation, the President can recommend an annual budget for federal agencies and suggest legislation. As a result, Congress often needs to accommodate the President's position on proposed policies.
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Frequently asked questions
A bill is a proposal for a new law or a change to an existing law.
A bill is introduced by a single member of Congress (the sponsor) or a group of members (sponsor and co-sponsors) in either the House of Representatives or the Senate or concurrently in both chambers. It is then assigned to a committee for study and, if released, put on a calendar to be voted on, debated, or amended. If the bill passes by a simple majority, it moves to the Senate, where the process repeats. A conference committee made of House and Senate members then works out any differences between the two versions of the bill, and the final bill is sent to the President for approval.
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, which is called a pocket veto, and cannot be overridden by Congress.
