Legislative Hurdles: Why Most Bills Don't Become Laws

The process of a bill becoming a law is a long and complex one. In the US, the House of Representatives is responsible for creating and modifying laws, and any member can introduce a bill. However, for a bill to become a law, it must be approved by the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the President.

Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to a committee, which researches, discusses, and makes 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 vote to accept a bill, they must work out any differences between the two versions before presenting it to the President.

The President can then choose to approve the bill and sign it into law or refuse to approve it, which is called a veto. If the President chooses to veto a bill, Congress can vote to override the veto, and the bill becomes a law. However, if the President does not sign off on a bill and Congress is no longer in session, the bill will be vetoed by default, known as a pocket veto, which cannot be overridden.

The process of a bill becoming a law involves multiple steps and requires approval from various parties, which may explain why 95% of bills do not become laws.

Bills are proposed by a Representative or citizen, and then written and sponsored by a Representative

Bills are proposed by a Representative or citizen and then written and sponsored by a Representative. This is how the process works:

• A bill is proposed by a Representative or citizen.
• The Representative writes the bill and seeks sponsorship from other Representatives.
• Once a bill has a sponsor and the support of some of the Representatives, it is ready to be introduced.
• The bill is introduced when it is placed in the hopper—a special box on the side of the clerk's desk.
• The bill is assigned a number that begins with H.R.
• 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.
• The bill reaches committee, and the committee members—groups of Representatives who are experts on topics such as agriculture, education, or international relations—review, research, and revise the bill before voting on whether or not to send the bill back to the House floor.
• If the committee members would like more information before deciding if the bill should be sent to the House floor, 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.
• When the committee has approved a bill, it is sent—or reported—to the House floor.
• Once reported, a bill is ready to be debated by the U.S. House of Representatives.
• Representatives discuss the bill and explain why they agree or disagree with it.
• A reading clerk reads the bill section by section and the Representatives recommend changes.
• When all changes have been made, the bill 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), Division, and Recorded.
• If a majority of the Representatives say or select 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 bill is introduced to the House of Representatives and assigned a number

The process of a bill becoming a law begins with the introduction of the bill. In the U.S. House of Representatives, a bill is introduced when it is placed in the hopper, a special box on the side of the clerk's desk. Only Representatives can introduce bills in the U.S. House of Representatives. Once a bill has been introduced, a bill clerk assigns it a number that begins with H.R. 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. The bill is then referred as required by the rules of the House to the appropriate committee or committees by the Speaker, with the assistance of the Parliamentarian. The bill number and committee referral appear in the next issue of the Congressional Record. It is then sent to the Government Printing Office where it is printed and copies are made available in the document rooms of both Houses. Printed and electronic versions of the bill are also made available to the public.

The bill is sent to committee, where it is reviewed, researched, and revised

Once a bill has been introduced, it is sent to a committee for review, research, and revision. Committees are groups of representatives who are experts on a particular topic, such as agriculture, education, or international relations. The committee will review the bill, research it, and revise it before voting on whether to send it back to the House floor. Committees may also send a bill to a subcommittee for further examination and to gather expert opinions before it is sent back to the committee for approval.

In the House of Representatives, the Speaker, on the advice of the nonpartisan parliamentarian, refers the bill to all committees that have jurisdiction over the provisions in the bill. Most bills fall under the jurisdiction of one committee. If multiple committees are involved, each committee will only work on the portion of the bill that falls under its jurisdiction. One of those committees will be designated the primary committee of jurisdiction and will take the lead on any action.

In the Senate, bills are typically referred to the committee with jurisdiction over the issue that predominates in the bill. In rare cases, a bill might not be referred to a committee but is instead placed directly on the Senate Calendar of Business through a series of procedural steps on the floor.

There are currently 20 standing committees in the House and 16 in the Senate, as well as several select committees. Each committee's jurisdiction is defined by certain subject matter under the rules of each House, and all measures are referred accordingly. For example, the Committee on the Judiciary in the House has jurisdiction over measures relating to judicial proceedings, constitutional amendments, immigration policy, bankruptcy, patents, copyrights, and trademarks.

The committees provide the most intensive consideration of a proposed measure and are the forum where the public is given the opportunity to be heard. This is perhaps the most important phase of the legislative process.

The bill is reported to the House floor, where it is debated and voted on

Once a bill has been approved by a committee, it is sent to the House floor to be debated and voted on. This is known as the "floor consideration" stage.

The consideration of a bill may be governed by a "rule", which is a simple resolution that must be passed by the House. The rule sets out the particulars of debate for a specific bill, including how much time will be allowed for debate, and whether amendments can be offered.

Debate time is normally divided between the proponents and opponents of a bill. Each side yields time to those members who wish to speak on the bill. When amendments are offered, these are also debated and voted upon. After all debate is concluded and amendments decided upon, the House is ready to vote on final passage.

There are three methods for voting on a bill in the House:

• Viva Voce (voice vote): The Speaker of the House asks the Representatives who support the bill to say "aye" and those that oppose it to say "no".
• Division: The Speaker 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. They 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 House. The bill is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the Senate.

If the bill passes the House, it is sent to the Senate, where it goes through a similar process

If a bill passes the House, it is sent to the Senate, where it goes through a similar process. The bill is discussed in a Senate committee and then reported to the Senate floor to be voted on. Senators vote by voice. Those who support the bill say "yea," and those who oppose it say "nay." If a majority of the Senators say "yea," the bill passes in the U.S. Senate and is ready to go to the President.

The process in the Senate differs from the House in a few ways. The Senate relies heavily on the practice of obtaining unanimous consent for actions to be taken. For example, at the time that a bill is reported, the Majority Leader may ask for unanimous consent for its immediate consideration. If the bill is non-controversial and there is no objection, the Senate may pass the bill with little or no debate and with only a brief explanation of its purpose and effect. If there is any objection, the report must lie over one legislative day, and the bill is placed on the calendar.

In the Senate, measures are brought up for consideration by a simple unanimous consent request, by a complex unanimous consent agreement, or by a motion to proceed to the consideration of a measure on the calendar. A unanimous consent agreement, sometimes referred to as a "time agreement," makes the consideration of a measure in order and often limits the amount of debate that will take place on the measure and lists the amendments that will be considered. The offering of a unanimous consent request to consider a measure or the offering of a motion to proceed to the consideration of a measure is reserved, by tradition, for the Majority Leader. Usually, a motion to consider a measure on the calendar is made only when unanimous consent to consider the measure cannot be obtained.

There are two calendars in the Senate: the Calendar of Business and the Executive Calendar. All legislation is placed on the Calendar of Business, and treaties and nominations are placed on the Executive Calendar. Unlike the House, there is no differentiation on the Calendar of Business between the treatment of bills raising revenue, general appropriation bills, and bills of a public character appropriating money or property.

The rules of the Senate provide that at the conclusion of the morning business for each "legislative day," the Senate proceeds to the consideration of the calendar. In the Senate, the term "legislative day" means the period of time from when the Senate adjourns until the next time the Senate adjourns. Because the Senate often "recesses" rather than "adjourns" at the end of a daily session, the legislative day usually does not correspond to the 24-hour period comprising a calendar day. Thus, a legislative day may cover a long period of time—from days to weeks, or even months. Because of this and the modern practice of waiving the call of the calendar by unanimous consent at the start of a new legislative day, it is rare to have a call of the calendar. When the calendar is called, bills that are not objected to are taken up in their order, and each Senator is entitled to speak once and for five minutes only on any question. Objection may be interposed at any stage of the proceedings, but on motion, the Senate may continue consideration after the call of the calendar is completed, and the limitations on debate then do not apply.

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