What do you think of the lawmaking process? should congress change any of the steps?

This advocacy tool describes the process of how a bill becomes a law at the federal level (much like the School House Rocks song, “I am a Bill”).

Inhaltsverzeichnis Show

STEP 1: The Creation of a Bill
STEP 2: Committee Action
STEP 3: Floor Action
STEP 4: Vote
STEP 5: Conference Committees
STEP 6: Presidential Action
STEP 7: The Creation of a Law
Influencing the Legislative Process: How a Bill Becomes A Law
What is the lawmaking process in the United States?
What generally happens when the Senate and the House of Representatives passed different versions of the same bill?
What are the 4 main steps in the process of a bill becoming a law in GA?
What is considered the most important power Congress holds?

You can be an effective advocate for young children and families when you familiarize yourself with how the public policy process works and the times in which your advocacy can have the greatest impact.

STEP 1: The Creation of a Bill

Members of the House or Senate draft, sponsor and introduce bills for consideration by Congress. The House clerk assigns a legislative number for bills introduced in the House of Representatives (e.g., H.R. 1001) and the Senate clerk assigns a legislative number for bills introduced in the Senate (e.g., S. 1002).

STEP 2: Committee Action

Usually, a committee is assigned to study the bill according to its subject matter. Often a committee will refer the bill to one of its subcommittees. The subcommittee may request reports from government agencies, hold hearings so experts and interested parties have an opportunity to offer testimony regarding the issue, “mark up” or revise the bill, or report the legislation to the full committee for its consideration. The full committee may make a recommendation to pass the bill, to revise (i.e., mark up) and release the bill (also known as reporting the bill out of committee), or to lay the bill aside (also known as tabling the bill).

STEP 3: Floor Action

The bill is returned to the full House or Senate for further debate and approval. At this point members may propose amendments to the bill, add additional text, or otherwise alter the bill.

STEP 4: Vote

House and Senate members vote on their respective versions of the proposed bill.

STEP 5: Conference Committees

A bill must be approved by both Chambers of Congress. When the Senate amends and agrees to a bill or a version of a bill that the House has already passed or when the House amends and passes a Senate bill or a version of a Senate bill, the two Chambers may begin to resolve any legislative differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill by way of a conference committee. When the chambers go to conference, the House and Senate send conferees or representatives to bargain and negotiate. The final compromise is embodied in a Conference Report that must be agreed to by both chambers before it is cleared for presidential consideration. The Conference Report will recommend a common version of the measure for approval and will also include statements of legislative intent regarding provisions of the legislation in a Joint Statement of Managers of the Conference.

STEP 6: Presidential Action

After the bill is passed by both Chambers it is sent to the President for his approval or his signature, which if granted creates a Public Law. When a President comments on and refuses to sign a bill it is known as a veto. A vetoed bill may return to Congress for reconsideration. If the President does not act within 10 days the bill automatically becomes law. If Congress adjourns during the 10 days after the bill is sent to the President and he does not sign it, the bill is automatically vetoed. This process is also known as a pocket veto.

STEP 7: The Creation of a Law

The Office of Federal Register assigns the Public Law a number (i.e. P.L. 109-1) and the Government Printing Office prints a copy of it. Laws are issued first in slip form or a single publication containing one law. Later it is organized in the order in which it was passed. Finally, it is codified into subject order so that all laws on the same topic fall together.

Regulation & Accreditation: legislative/regulatory update

Influencing the Legislative Process: How a Bill Becomes A Law

Jeanie Stoker, MPA, RN, BC, is Director of Home Care Services, AnMed Home Care, Anderson, SC and a Home Healthcare Nurse Department Editor.

This is an updated version of the article originally published in Home Healthcare Nurse (17[8]:491–493).

Address for correspondence: c/o AnMed Home Care, P.O. Box 195, 1926 McConnell Springs Road, Anderson, SC 29622-0915.

In the United States, the federal legislative powers—the ability to consider bills and enact laws—reside with Congress, which is made up of the US Senate and the House of Representatives. This resource is designed to help you understand how this complex process works!

Introducing a Bill and Referreal to a Committee
Committee Action: Hearings and Markup
Committee Report
Floor Debate and Votes
Referral to the Other Chamber
Conference on a Bill
Action by the President
Overriding a Veto
Overview of the Legislative Process Video

Introducing a Bill and Referral to a Committee

Any member of Congress can introduce legislation. The person or persons who introduce a bill are the sponsors; any member of the same body (House or Senate) can add his or her name as a cosponsor after the day of introduction. When a bill is introduced, it is given a number: H.R. signifies a House bill and S. a Senate bill. The bill is then referred to a committee with jurisdiction over the primary issue of the legislation. Sometimes a bill will be referred to multiple committees. And sometimes the bill is referred to a subcommittee first.

Committee Action: Hearings and Markup
The chair of the relevant committee determines whether there will be a hearing on the bill (which is an opportunity for witnesses to provide testimony) and then whether there will be markup, which refers to the process by which the proposed bill is debated, amended, and rewritten. Usually, a subcommittee holds the hearing, and then the bill can be marked up, first in subcommittee and then in full committee (although action can be taken only at the full committee level). After amendments are adopted or rejected, the chair can move to vote the bill favorably out of committee. If the committee favorably reports out the bill, it then goes to the entire body of the House or the Senate; if not, the bill essentially “dies” in committee.

Committee Report
The committee chair’s staff write a report of the bill, describing the intent of the legislation, the legislative history (such as hearings in the committee), the impact on existing laws and programs, and the position of the majority of members of the committee. The members of the minority, including the Ranking Member, (the most senior committee member from the minority party), may file dissenting views as a group or individually. A copy of the bill as marked up is usually printed in the Committee Report.

Floor Debate and Votes
The Speaker of the House and the Majority Leader of the Senate determine if and when a bill comes before the full body of the House and the Senate, respectively, for debate and amendment and then final passage. There are very different rules of procedure governing debate in the House and debate in the Senate. In the House, a representative may offer an amendment to a bill only if he or she has obtained permission from the Rules Committee. In the Senate, a senator may offer an amendment without warning, as long as the amendment is germane to the bill. In both chambers, a majority vote is required both for an amendment to be accepted and for the final bill to be passed, although amendments are sometimes accepted by a voice vote (in which individuals say "Yea" or "Nay,” and the loudest side wins; the names or numbers of individuals voting on each side are not recorded).

Referral to the Other Chamber
When the House or the Senate passes a bill, the bill is referred to the other chamber, where it usually follows the same route through committee and floor action. That chamber may approve the bill as received, reject it, ignore it, or amend it before passing it.

Conference on a Bill
If only minor changes are made to a bill by the other chamber, the legislation usually goes back to the originating chamber for a concurring vote. However, when the House and Senate versions of the bill contain significant and/or numerous differences, a conference committee is officially appointed to reconcile the differences between the two versions in a single bill. 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 the conference report. If either chamber rejects the conference report, the bill dies.

Action by the President
After the conference report has been approved by both the House and the Senate, the final bill is sent to the President. If the President approves the legislation, he signs it and it becomes law. If the President does not take action for 10 days while Congress is in session, the bill automatically becomes law. If the President opposes the bill, he can veto it; or if the President takes no action and Congress adjourns its session, it is a "pocket veto" and the legislation dies.

Overriding a Veto
If the President vetoes a bill, Congress may decide to 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

Overview of the Legislative Process Video
(This video was originally published on the Law Library of Congress' website. To access a transcript of this video and additional accompanying materials, please visit the site here.)

What is the lawmaking process in the United States?

First, a Representative sponsors a bill. The bill is then assigned to a committee for study. If released by the committee, the bill is put on a calendar to be voted on, debated or amended. If the bill passes by simple majority (218 of 435), the bill moves to the Senate.

What generally happens when the Senate and the House of Representatives passed different versions of the same bill?

If the House and Senate pass the same bill then it is sent to the President. If the House and Senate pass different bills they are sent to Conference Committee. Most major legislation goes to a Conference Committee.

What are the 4 main steps in the process of a bill becoming a law in GA?

The Life of a Law.

Step 1: Drafting the Idea. The first step can start with you. ... .

Step 2: Georgia General Assembly. ... .

Step 3: Georgia State Legislative Session. ... .

Step 4: Third Reading. ... .

Step 5: The Vote. ... .

Step 6: The Governor's Role. ... .

Step 7: The Bill Becomes a Law..

What is considered the most important power Congress holds?

The Constitution specifically grants Congress its most important power — the authority to make laws. A bill, or proposed law, only becomes a law after both the House of Representatives and the Senate have approved it in the same form. The two houses share other powers, many of which are listed in Article I, Section 8.