How A Bill Becomes A Law

An educational

journey behind

the scenes of:

“I’m Just a Bill”

Types of Bills and ResolutionsBills – any proposed law presented in the House or the Senate.

Public Bill – Any bill that will affect the entire nation. i.e. any tax cutPrivate Bill – Any bill that applies to certain people or places.

Resolutions – any measure that concerns an individual chamber of Congress. i.e. to add a new rule to their procedures

Joint Resolution – Any measure that carries the force of law but is temporary. They are also used to propose constitutional amendments.

Concurrent Resolution – Any measure that requires the House and Senate to act jointly. Used often to state a position.

i.e. A concurrent resolution was used to allow the President to wage a war against Iraq.

Rider – A non related addition to a resolution. It cannot pass on its own merit

The Bill is Presented in the House

The author of the proposed bill presents the bill to the House clerk.

The clerk reads the title and assigns the bill a number.

The Proposed Bill in the House

Once the bill has been entered into the record, the Speaker of the House sends the bill to the correct standing committee

The Chairman of the Committee sends the bill to a subcommittee for further investigation

After the subcommittee investigates, the full committee makes the final decision if the bill should be sent for a final vote.

Decisions of the Committee1. Report the bill favorably

to the full House

2. Refuse to report the bill to the House (pigeonholed)

3. Report the bill in an amended form

4. Report the bill with an unfavorable recommendation

5. Report a committee bill – an entirely new bill

If the committee decides to report the bill favorably, the bill is sent to the House Rules Committee

The Bill reaches the House FloorMinor Bills: No debate then voted by the members of the House.

Quorum for business is 218 members

Major Bills: The House creates the Committee of the Whole

This is the entire House acting as a committee

Quorum for business is 100 Members

Takes less time

Debate on all sections of the Bill

Final vote on the bill by all members of the House51% or 218 out of 435 members required

The Bill in the Senate

Once the bill has been approved by the House of Representatives, it is sent to the Senate

The steps from the House are then repeated in the Senate

Rules for DebateDebate can continue without any limit.Called a Filibuster –

“To talk a bill to death”Those who oppose the bill can talk until the bill has been amended or dropped.

Cloture – A vote that ends a filibuster.

Requires 60 votes

The Conference CommitteeOnce both houses have passed their versions of a proposed bill, a Conference Committee must be formed to iron out the differences

The identical versions of the bill must be sent back to the houses for a final vote.

A simple majority is needed in both houses to send the proposed bill to the President

The President Decides

Choice #1

The President signs the bill. It becomes a law.

Choice #2

The President does nothing. After 10 days it becomes law.

For both of these choices, the bill will become law

Other Presidential DecisionsChoice #3

The President can VETO the bill. He must send it back to Congress with his reason for the VETO

Choice #4

POCKET VETO – Only if Congress has less than 10 days in its term. Any business that is not completed by the end of the session does not become law.

Congressional Override – Congress can override a VETO with 2/3 vote of BOTH HOUSES

The Shorthand Version1. The bill is presented in the House

2. The bill is sent to the appropriate committee

3. The committee sends the bill to a subcommittee

4. The subcommittee sends the bill back to the full committee

Shorthand Version Continued5. The full committee votes on the bill

and sends the bill to the House Rules Committee

6. The full House votes on the bill

7. The bill is sent to the Senate for consideration

8. The bill follows the same process in the Senate

More of the shorthand version

9. There is NO Rules Committee in the Senate

10. Once the bill is approved it goes to conference committee

11. The Final version is approved by both houses with 51% majority

12. Bill is sent to the President for final approval