Transcript HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW

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Most bills can be introduced in EITHER the
House or the Senate.
The only exception are revenue bills, which
MUST begin in the House of Representatives.
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Public Bills--apply to the entire nation
Private Bills--apply to specific areas or a
specific group of people
Joint Resolution- carries the force of law,
used to propose Constitutional amendments
Not all bills are intended to become law
Woodrow Wilson
Congressional Government, 1884
“The fate of bills committed is
generally not uncertain. As a
rule, a bill committed is a bill
doomed. When it goes from the
clerk’s desk to a committeeroom it crosses a parliamentary
bridge of sighs to dim dungeons
of silence whence it will never
return. The means and time of
its death are unknown, but its
friends never see it again.”
How Many Bills Become Law
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10,000 usually
introduced in
House
◦ 400 passed
 100 for naming
something
 Not all intended to
become law
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Multiple Referrals--sending a bill to multiple
committees
◦ Simultaneous referral--several committees get the
bill at the same time
◦ Sequential referral--sending the bill to one
committee, then another, then another, etc.
 Good way to kill a bill!!!!!
•This
is where bills are really studied & worked on.
•Committees hold hearings to gather information
about a bill.
•Remember Iron Triangles
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All committees are chaired by a member of
the majority party.
The majority party has more members on
each committee.
The chairperson decides when the committee
will meet & sets the agenda for the
committee--decides which bills will be
discussed.
•Pass
the bill as is.
•Amend the bill--it must go through “mark up”
if this happens.
•Kill the bill.
•Rewrite the bill--it goes to the floor as a
“committee” bill.
•Recommend the bill unfavorably.
•Pigeonhole the bill--this means that it sits in a
pile & the committee never gets to it.
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You use a “discharge petition” to get your bill
out of committee if it’s been pigeonholed.
This forces the committee to take action on
the bill & move it on to the next stage. You
must have a majority of members’ signatures
to get a discharge petition. Discharge
petitions can be used in the House ONLY!!!
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This is the next step in the House of
Representatives.
This is a VERY powerful committee because
ALL bills go through this committee and it
decides which bills go on to the floor for
debate.
The majority party has a 2 to 1 majority on
this committee.
Rules Committee is like a filibuster in House,
designed to protect the majority
•Open
Rule--this means that the bill can be
amended on the floor during debate.
•Closed Rule- no amendments will be allowed
during floor debate--it must be passed or
killed as is.
•No Rule- the bill is dead without a rule of
debate.
•IF
a bill is given a Rule of Debate by
the Rules Committee, it is placed on a
Calendar.
–The Calendar is the order that bills
will come up on the floor for
debate.
-Bills are placed on the Calendar, it’s not
first-come, first-served.
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This gives all of the members of the House
a chance to debate the bill.
There must be at least 218 members
present. This is a quorum.
A bill gets its 2nd reading, then the floor is
open for debate.
When debate is concluded, the bill is read for a
3rd time.
Each member may speak for up to 1 hour.
Speaker and Minority Leader allowed to
“filibuster” in House.
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If it isn’t a controversial bill, they will use a
“voice vote”, A parliamentary vote that is
determined by the relative volume of noise of
those shouting "aye" and "no."
If it could be a close vote, the House will use a
“roll- call vote”. This is computerized and is a
vote held on the record. The name of the
Representative and his/her voting position are
noted together.
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If the bill passes, it goes to the Senate.
If the bill does not receive a majority of
votes--at least 218--it’s dead!! The bill
must be reintroduced & start the process all
over :(
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The bill is referred
to committee so
that members of
the Senate can
now study the bill.
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The committee in
the Senate has the
same options as
the committee in
the House. They
can kill it, pass it,
rewrite it, amend
it or recommend it
unfavorably.
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If the bill passes the committee with a
majority vote, it goes directly to the floor of
the Senate.
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The Senate does not have the Rules
Committee like the House.
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Floor debate in the Senate is similar to floor
debate in the House.
The bill gets its 2nd reading, is debated, gets
its 3rd reading and is voted on.
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Amendments do not have to be related to
the bill.
In the Senate, there is no time limit, so
Senators can filibuster.
This means that you can “talk a bill to
death”. Once you have been given
permission to speak, you can talk about
anything.
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As long as someone is talking, no
business can take place.
The filibuster is used by the minority
party to get the majority party to
compromise.
The Democrats are currently filibustering
Pres. Bush’s nominees to federal courts.
A filibuster can be ended by invoking
cloture.
◦ It takes 60 votes to invoke cloture, so it is
VERY difficult to end a filibuster.
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Senators also vote with a voice vote or a roll
call vote.
The difference between the Senate & the
House is the Senate’s roll call vote is not
computerized. The Secretary of the Senate
calls each Senator’s name--twice.
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If the bill is passed, in the exact same form as
passed by the House, the bill goes to the
President.
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If the Senate makes a small change in the bill,
it goes back to the floor of the House. If the
House approves the change, THEN it goes to
the President.
If the House doesn’t approve the bill, it is
dead
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If the Senate makes significant changes in the
bill, it is sent to a Conference Committee.
This committee has members of the House &
Senate on it. They meet & come up with a
compromise bill.
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The compromise bill is then sent to the floor
of the House & the floor of the Senate.
If BOTH chambers approve, the bill goes to
the President.
If one or both vote the bill down, it’s dead!!
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Once the President receives the bill, he has
10 days to take action on the bill.
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He can sign the bill into law.
◦ Attach signing statement: When a United States
President signs legislation enacted by Congress, he
may issue a written statement commenting on his
actions.
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He can veto the bill & it goes back to Congress.
They can override his veto with a 2/3 vote.
He can allow it to become a law without his
signature
OR, He can do nothing, if Congress is NOT in
session, and the bill is dead. (pocket veto)
How A Bill Becomes A Law
AI’s Campaign to Stop
Violence Against
Women
House
House Representatives
Consider Introducing
Bill
Bill is Introduced in
the House and is
Sent to Committee
AIUSA Joins with FVPF, WTW
& Other NGOs to Work with
Congressional Champions
on Bill*
Senate
Senators Biden and
Lugar Introduced
I-VAWA
10/31/07
10/31/07
Bill Referred to
Senate Foreign
Relations Committee
Gather
Cosponsors
Gather Cosponsors
Committee
Hearings
Committee
Hearings
Committee Votes
to Send Bill to
the Full House
Committee Votes
to Send Bill to Full
Senate
House Floor
Debate and Vote
Starts Over: Needs
2/3 Majority to
Override
Bill Supporters
Re-strategize
Conference
Committee
The House Votes to
Accept the Conference
Committee Version of the
Bill
Veto
Senate Floor
Debate and Vote
The Senate Votes to
Accept the Conference
Committee Version of the
Bill
Bill sent to
President
Signs into
Law
*Non-governmental organizations Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF), Women Thrive Worldwide (WTW) and other NGOs.