How a Bill Becomes a Law Chapter 7 Section 1

Section 1 Types of Bills and Resolutions Two types of bills are introduced in Congress: Private bills deal with individual people or places. Public bills deal with general matters and apply to the entire nation. A simple resolution covers matters affecting only one house of Congress and is passed by that house alone. A joint resolution is one passed in the same form by both houses.

Section 1 Types of Bills and Resolutions (cont.) Earmarks are a way that members of Congress can specify that some part of a funding bill will go towards a certain purpose. A rider is a provision on a subject other than the one covered in the bill. Lawmakers attach riders to bills that are likely to pass.

Section 1 Types of Bills and Resolutions (cont.) Fewer than 10 percent of all bills introduced in Congress become laws for several reasons: Creating law is a long complicated process involving as many as 100 steps. A bill’s sponsors must be willing to bargain and compromise with others. Members introduce many bills knowing they have no chance of becoming law.

Section 1 Introducing a Bill (cont.) When a committee decides to act on a bill, it holds hearings in which the committee listens to testimony from experts on the bill’s subject. After hearings are over, the committee meets in a markup session to decide what changes, if any, to make to the bill. How a Bill Becomes a Law

Section 1 Introducing a Bill (cont.) When all changes have been made, the committee votes to either kill the bill or report it—to send it to the House or Senate for action. How a Bill Becomes a Law

Section 1 Floor Action The bill is then debated again, followed by a vote. House and Senate members can vote in one of three ways: voice vote: together members call out “Aye” or “No”, a standing vote, or division vote: the “Ayes” stand to be counted, and the “Nos” stand to be counted, and

Section 1 Floor Action (cont.) roll-call vote: each member says “Aye” or “No” as names are called in alphabetical order. The House uses a fourth method, the recorded vote, where votes are recorded electronically and displayed on panels.

Section 1 Final Steps in Passing Bills To become a law, a bill must pass both houses of Congress in identical form. If passed bills are not the same, a conference committee must work out the differences the two chambers have. After both houses have approved an identical bill, it is sent to the president.

Section 1 Final Steps in Passing Bills (cont.) A presidential veto returns the bill to the house where it originated. The president can also kill a bill by pocket veto, meaning the president refuses to act on a bill passed during the last ten days of the session, effectively killing it. Congress can override a president’s veto with a two-thirds vote in both houses.