How a Bill Becomes a Law

1. How a Bill Becomes a Law

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFroMQlKiag

3. 1-How many bills are introduced during each term of Congress? Thousands How many of those bills become laws? A few hundred.

4. 2-What are private bills? Provide an example. • They deal with individual people or places. • They often involve claims against the government or a person’s immigration problem.

5. 3-What are public bills? Provide an example. • Bills that deal with general matters and apply to the entire nation. • Tax cuts, national health insurance, gun control, civil rights, abortion….

6. 4-Explain the legislative term “rider.” • A provision on a subject other than the one covered in the bill. • Lawmakers attach riders on bills that are likely to pass • Healthcare bill with riders dealing with parks, roads as and other things that have nothing to do with healthcare.

7. 5-List 3 reasons why so few bills become law. Fewer than 10% of all bills become law.  1. It is a long and complicated process, with as many as 100 steps. Many points where a bill can be delayed, killed or amended. 2. Because there are so many steps, a bill’s sponsors must be willing to bargain and compromise with others.  Compromise is the only way to get enough support to move a bill from one step to the next.  Bills opposed by powerful interest groups are not likely to pass.

8. 5-List 3 reasons why so few bills become law.  3. Many introduce bills, knowing they have no chance of becoming law. They are introduced as a symbolic gesture…to show support for a policy, to attract media attention on an issue or to satisfy an important group of voters…when reelection comes, they can say they tried and can blame a committee or Congress for the bill’s failure to pass.

9. 6--From where do ideas for bills come? • Citizens, interest groups or the executive branch, congresspersons • But only a member of Congress can actually introduce the bill

10. 7-How are bills introduced in the: • House of Representatives- Member drops bill in the hopper [a box near the clerk’s desk]

11. 7-How are bills introduced in the: • Senate- The presiding officer must first recognize the senator, who formally presents the bill.

12. 8-What happens after a bill is introduced? • It is given a title and number and then printed and distributed to lawmakers. • Senate S. 1 House: H.R. 1

13.  9-Explain committee action on a bill • Bill is sent to appropriate committee. •  Committee chair send the bill to a subcommittee • The committee can ignore the bill and let the bill die [pigeonholing] • Committee can kill it by a majority vote  • A Committee can completely rewrite the bill, amend it or recommend that it be adopted as is before sending it back to the House or Senate for action

14. 10-Explain the committee hearing process of a bill. • Listens to testimony from experts on the subject of the bill. • Hearings allow the committee to gather information.

15. 11-What is the purpose of the “markup session?” • The Committee decides what changes, if any, to make on the bill. • A majority vote of the committee is required for all changes made to a bill

16. 12-Describe the process of reporting a bill. • The committee sends the bill to the House/Senate for action.

17. 13-Provide information from the section “Debating and Amending Bills” • A clerk reads the bill section by section. • After each section is read, amendments can be added to the bill

18. 14-Explain the importance of the conference committee on a bill. • Members from both houses work out the differences by finding compromises. • A final draft is written called a “conference report.” • The bill is sent to both houses for final action [voting for/against]

19. 15-What are four actions a president can take on a bill? 1-Sign it and it becomes law 2-Keep the bill for 10 days without signing it. If Congress is in session, the bill becomes law without the president’s signature 3-Veto 4-Pocket Veto [President refuses to act on a bill passed during the last 10 days of the session. By failing to send it back before the session ends, the president “kills” the bill for that session.

20. 16-What does it take for Congress to override a presidential veto? 2/3 of the members in both houses must vote to override the veto.