Introduction: Anyone may draft a bill; however, only members
of Congress can introduce legislation, and by doing so become sponsor(s).
There are four basic types of legislation: bills, joint resolutions,
concurrent resolutions, and simple resolutions. The official legislative
process beings when a bill or resolution is numbered – H.R.
signifies a House bill and S. signifies a Senate bill - referred
to a committee and printed by the Government Printing Office.
Step 1. Referral to Committee: Bills are usually referred
to standing committees in the House or Senate according to carefully
delineated rules of procedure.
Step 2. Committee Action: When a bill reaches a committee
it is placed on the committee’s calendar. A bill can be referred
to a subcommittee or considered by the committee as a whole. It
is at this point that a bill is examined carefully and its chances
for passage are determined. If the committee does not act on a bill,
it is the equivalent of killing it.
Step 3. Subcommittee Review: Often, bills are referred to
a subcommittee for study and hearings. Hearings provide the opportunity
to put on the record the views of the executive branch, experts,
other public officials, supporters and opponents. Testimony can
be in person or submitted in writing.
Step 4. Mark Up: When the hearings are completed, the subcommittee
may meet to “mark up” the bill, that is, make changes
and amendments prior to recommending the bill to the full committee.
If a subcommittee votes not to report legislation to the full committee,
the bill dies.
Step 5. Committee Action to Report a Bill: After receiving
a subcommittee’s report on a bill, the full committee can
conduct further study and hearings, or it can vote on the subcommittee’s
recommendations and any proposed amendments. The full committee
then votes on its recommendation to the House or Senate. This procedure
is called “ordering a bill reported.”
Step 6. Publication of a Written Report: After a committee
votes to have a bill reported, the chairman instructs staff to prepare
a report on the bill. This report describes the intent and scope
of the legislation, impact on existing laws and programs, position
of the executive branch, and views of dissenting members.
Step 7. Scheduling Floor Action: After a bill is reported
back to the chamber where it originated, it is placed in chronological
order on the calendar. In the House there are several different
legislative calendars, the Speaker and Majority Leader largely determine
if, when and in what order bills come up. In the Senate there is
only one legislative calendar.
Step 8. Debate: When a bill reaches the floor of the House
or Senate, there are rules or procedures governing the debate. These
rules determine the conditions and amount of time allocated for
debate.
Step 9. Voting: After the debate and the approval of any
amendments, the bill is passed or defeated by the members voting.
Step 10. Referral to Other Chamber: When a bill is passed
by the House or the Senate it is referred to the other chamber where
it usually follows the same route through committee and floor action.
This chamber may approve the bill as received, reject it, ignore
it, or change it.
Step 11. Conference Committee Action: If only minor changes
are made to a bill by the other chamber, it is common for the legislation
to go back to the first chamber for concurrence. However, when the
actions of the other chamber significantly alter the bill, a conference
committee is formed to reconcile the differences. If the conferees
are unable to reach agreement, the legislation dies. If agreement
is reached, a conference report is prepared describing the committee
members’ recommendations for changes. Both the House and the
Senate must approve of the conference report.
Step 12. Final Actions: After a bill has been approved by
the House and Senate in identical form, it is sent to the President.
If the President approves of the legislation he signs it and it
becomes law. Or, the President can take no action for ten days,
while Congress is in session, and it automatically becomes law.
If the President opposes the bill he can veto it; or, if he takes
no action after the Congress has adjourned its second session, it
is a “pocket veto” and the legislation dies.
Step 13. Overriding a Veto: If the President vetoes a bill,
Congress may attempt to “override the veto.” This requires
a two-thirds roll call vote of the members who are present in sufficient
numbers for a quorum.
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