How a Bill Becomes a Law
Brush up on your knowledge of how a bill becomes a law. After you get an overview, learn how you can participate in the process.
A bill may be introduced through either the House or the Senate, or both Chambers at the same time. Here's the path it then takes:
- A member of Congress will introduce the bill on the chamber floor. Once the bill has been introduced, it will be assigned a number. House bills have the initials H.R. (for House Resolution) followed by a number, while Senate bills start with the initial, 'S.' You can look up bills by their number or by key words at THOMAS, the Library of Congress' site for federal legislative information.
- The bill is considered by a Sub-Committee and a Committee. These committees do research on the bill to ensure that it everything in it is allowed by the Constitution, that it is feasible and to determine what the costs will be if it is enacted. The Committees may hold hearings with interested parties, in which people can testify why a bill should or should not pass.
- Once the research is done, the Sub-Committee makes revisions (called "mark-up") and refers the bill to the full committee, which then does its own research and hearings. The Committee then votes to approve the bill and send it to the full chamber for a vote, or take no action and let the bill "die" in committee.
- If the committee passes the bill, it is sent to the Budget Committee to be reconciled with the current budget.
- The bill then moves to the Appropriations Committee where resolutions are made with respect to the specific monetary allotments of each program in the budget. Once spending is authorized, the bill moves to the full chamber (the House or the Senate).
- The full Chamber then debates and votes on the bill. If it passes, it is turned over to either the Conference Committee or the other Chamber for approval.
- If there is no complementary bill, the approved bill passes to the other chamber and the process is started over again, from sub-committee through to a full Chamber debate and vote.
- When both the House and Senate have passed related bills, a conference committee is formed to reconcile any differences between the two bills.
- The compromise version of the bill (called a "conference report") is sent to both chambers for approval. If the bill is approved, it is passed on to the President.
- The President can decide to sign a bill into law, or to veto a bill. If the President vetoes a bill, it goes back to Congress where it can only become a law only if both chambers pass it with a two-thirds majority.
Want to see it set to music? Watch Schoolhouse Rock's "I'm Just a Bill!"
