How a Bill becomes a Law C & E

EQs How are bills introduced and how do they work their way through Congress? What actions can a president take once a bill has been passed by Congress?

Key Terms Joint resolution Special-interest group Rider Filibuster Cloture Voice vote Standing vote Roll-call vote Veto Pocket veto

Key Concept Legislative Branch

Types of Bills Congress’s job is to pass laws This process starts with a bill Private bills Concern indv. people & places Claims agnst the gov’t Public bills Apply to entire nation Involve general matters like taxation, civil rights, or terrorism Receive much media coverage

Types of Bills Resolutions Joint resolutions Formal statements expressing lawmakers’ opinions or decisions Do not have force of law Joint resolutions Passed by both houses Become law if President signs them Propose constitutional amendments, designate $$ for special purpose, & correct errors in bills already passed

Describe some ways in which Congress might use joint resolutions? Propose constitutional amendments, designate $$ for special purpose, & correct errors in previously passed bills

From Bill to Law Ideas for bills come from members of Congress or private citizens Others come from the President or special-interest groups Organizations made up of people with some common interest who try to influence gov’t decisions Bills can only be intro’d into Congress by Senators or Reps Each bill is titled & numbered accord’g to when it is submitted All $$ bills must start in House Based on session S.1 H.R. 1 Then sent to standing committee to handle it

Committee Action Chairperson decides which bills get ignored & which get studied Sends bills to subcommittees Can hold public hearings People can submit statements for/agnst a bill

Committee Action A committee can: Pass the bill w/o changes Mark up a bill w/changes & suggest that it be passed Replace the orig. bill w/new alternative Ignore the bill & let it die Called pigeonholing Kill the bill outright w/ majority vote

Floor Debate Once a bill is approved by a committee then put to full House or Senate Senate takes bills in order listed (chronologically) House takes bills through the Rules Committee “traffic cop” of House Gives priority to bills Can also kill a bill Once a bill comes to the floor it is debated Weigh pros & cons

Floor Debate Senate can attach a rider Completely unrelated amendments House accepts only related amendments House Rules Committee sets rules for debate Limits time of discussion Senators can speak as long as they want on a bill Filibuster Talk a bill to death Can end a filibuster w/ a 3/5 vote of members for cloture No one may speak for more than 1 hr

How does a filibuster work? One member can hold the floor for as long as he/she likes and speak about whatever they want to in hopes that the bills sponsor will w/d the bill and the bill will die

Voting on a Bill Several ways to vote Voice vote Standing vote Members say “yea” for and “no” agnst Standing vote Stand in support, then stand in opposition Computerized vote Used mostly today to take a record of who votes for what Senate can use a roll-call vote Votes during role-call All is needed is simple majority of members present

Voting on a Bill Once passed by one house then goes to other If either house rejects bill it dies Constitution requires that bill is identical in both houses to pass If not identical then a conference committee is called Members from both houses Work out details Then bill sent to houses for approval

Presidential Action After a bill passes both houses it goes to the President The President can: Sign the bill into law Veto the bill Refuse to sign Do nothing for 10 days If Congress is in session – bill becomes law If Congress is not in session – bill dies Called a pocket veto Congress can override a veto w/ a 2/3 vote of each house

Passes both houses of Congress & goes to President A bill is written and given to a Congressman The Congressman proposes the bill to his/her house An idea for a law Committee chairperson send bill to subcommittee or kills it The bill is sent to standing committee Subcommittee studies bill & sends back to committee House/Senate vote on the bill; if passes goes to other house & repeats process Committee sends bill to floor of Senate/House for debate Debate on pros & cons of bill Passes both houses of Congress & goes to President