California's Path To Enacting State Laws

The process through which a bill becomes a law in California can be complicated, but there are four basic stages that all bills must pass. First, a legislator instructs the Office of Legislative Counsel to draft the bill and assign it a number. Second, the bill goes to a committee hearing. Third, the bill is read a second and third time in the house of origin and assigned to a third reading. Fourth, the bill is sent to the governor for approval. Once the bill passes both houses, the governor has 12 days to sign, approve without signing, or veto it. If the governor does nothing, the bill is considered approved. If vetoed, the bill must be returned to its house of origin by September 30th of that year or it becomes law by default. If the governor approves and signs the bill, it is sent to the Secretary of State, who assigns it a chapter number and it becomes a law on the following January 1st.

Legislative Process

The legislative process in California is the process by which bills are considered and laws enacted. The California State Legislature consists of two houses: the Senate and the Assembly. The process by 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.

Anybody can come up with an idea for a bill. The process begins when someone persuades a Senator or Assembly Member to author a bill. The legislator then sends the idea and language for the bill to the Legislative Counsel, where it is drafted into a bill. The drafted bill is returned to the legislator for introduction. The bill is then given a number, a descriptive title, and assigned to the appropriate committee(s) for further consideration. Bills are limited to 50 per two-year session per legislator.

Committee Hearing

Once 30 days have passed since the bill's introduction, 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. During the committee stage, the bill is presented, and testimony is heard in support or opposition. After an open hearing, the committee votes on the bill by roll call. The committee chair then reports the committee's recommendations to pass, not pass, or amend the bill. Bills may be amended several times while in the committee stage, and a majority vote of the full committee is needed for the bill to pass and be sent either to the next committee or to the floor.

Second and Third Readings

Bills that are passed by committees 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, there will be another roll call vote. If the bill passes, it is sent to the other house for further consideration, repeating the procedure outlined above. If the bill passes through the second house without amendments or with concurred amendments, it is forwarded 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 a process whereby the final version of a bill is printed and proofread to ensure that the language in the document reflects the final action by the Legislature. The bill is then delivered to the Governor's office. The Governor has 12 days to consider legislation; if the bill is not vetoed or returned within this time, it becomes a statute without the Governor's signature. The Governor may also allow a bill 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, but urgency measures take effect immediately.

Bill proposal

The process of turning an idea into a bill begins when a citizen, legislator, organised group, state agency, or the Governor proposes an idea for legislation and persuades a member of the California State Legislature to author a bill. The California State Legislature consists of two houses: the Senate and the Assembly. A legislator, acting as the author, sends the idea and language for the bill to the Legislative Counsel, where it is drafted into the actual bill. The California State Constitution provides that every act shall embrace but one subject, and that subject must be expressed in the title of the measure. The drafted bill is then returned to the legislator for introduction.

When the author wishes to introduce the bill, they deliver it to the Chief Clerk or Secretary, who gives the bill a number. The bill's first reading is when the clerk reads the bill number, the name of the author, and the descriptive title of the bill. The bill is then sent electronically to the Office of State Printing. A bill must be in print for 30 calendar days, giving time for public review, before it can be acted on. There are exceptions to this rule: Budget Bills, bills introduced in an Extraordinary Session, and resolutions are exempt. A three-fourths vote of the members of the house considering a measure will dispense with the thirty-day requirement.

The bill cover shows the bill's number, the date of its introduction and first reading, the committee to which it is referred, and the dates it is sent to and received from the printer. Assembly bill covers are white, while those used by the Senate are goldenrod. Covers for concurrent and joint resolutions and constitutional amendments are each of a different and distinctive colour, providing the clerks with an easy method of identifying the various types of proposed legislation.

First reading

The first reading of a bill in the California State Legislature is the first step in the legislative process. This process begins with an idea for a bill, which can come from anyone—a citizen, legislator, organised group, state agency, or the Governor. The idea must then be adopted by a legislator from either the Senate or the Assembly, who will send the idea and language for the bill to the Legislative Counsel. The Legislative Counsel's Office will then draft the bill, which is returned to the legislator for introduction.

The first reading of a bill involves the clerk reading the bill number, the name of the author, and the descriptive title of the bill on the floor of the house of origin. Despite the term, the entire text of the bill is not read on the floor. The bill is then sent electronically to the Office of State Printing, where it must remain in print for 30 calendar days to allow for public review before any action or votes can be taken. There are exceptions to this rule, including Budget Bills, bills introduced in an Extraordinary Session, and resolutions. This 30-day requirement can be waived by a three-fourths vote of the members of the house.

The bill cover includes the bill's number, the date of its introduction and first reading, the committee to which it is referred, and the dates it is sent to and received from the printer. The colour of the bill cover varies depending on whether it is an Assembly bill (white) or a Senate bill (goldenrod). After the first reading, 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 according to their subject area.

Committee hearing

Once a bill has been introduced and undergone its first reading, it must then wait 30 days before it can be heard in a committee hearing. This waiting period can be waived by a three-fourths or three-quarters vote in the house. During the committee stage, the bill is presented and testimony is heard in support of or opposition to the bill. 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.

The Rules Committee refers the bill to one or more policy committees. 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. Each house maintains a schedule of legislative committee hearings. Prior to a bill's hearing, a bill analysis is prepared that explains 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.

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. It takes a majority vote of the full committee membership for a bill to be passed by the committee. Bills can be amended several times. 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 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

Once a bill has been approved by the relevant committees, it is 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 same procedure begins again. If the bill passes through the second house without amendments or with concurred amendments, it is sent to the governor for approval.

If the 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 moves to a two-house conference committee to resolve differences. Three members of the committee are from the Senate, and three are from the Assembly. If a compromise is reached, the conference report is voted on in both houses.

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