How a Bill Becomes a Law
Chapter 7
Section 1
Section 1Types 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
• 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.
Types of Bills and Resolutions (cont.)
• Fewer than 10 percent of all bills introduced in Congress become laws for several reasons:
Section 1
– 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.
Types of Bills and Resolutions (cont.)
Section 1
• 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.
Introducing a Bill (cont.)
How a Bill Becomes a Law
Section 1
• 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.
Introducing a Bill (cont.)
How a Bill Becomes a Law
Section 1Floor Action
– 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
• The bill is then debated again, followed by a vote. House and Senate members can vote in one of three ways:
Section 1
– 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.
Floor Action (cont.)
Section 1Final 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
• 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.
Final Steps in Passing Bills (cont.)
Top Related