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Role of the Legislature in the Law-Making Process in the United States

The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation. The process by which a proposed bill becomes a law can be very complex and take years.

Introduction of Bills

Bills may originate in either the House of Representatives or the Senate, unless a bill involves raising revenue, in which case it must originate in the House of Representatives. U.S. Const. art. I, sec. 7. Only Senators and Representatives (also known as Members of Congress) can introduce a bill in their respective chamber. When bills are introduced, they are given a bill number. The numbering system starts over with each session of Congress, and bill numbers run in chronological order according to when the bill is introduced. Bills in the House of Representatives are given the initial H.R., and Senate Bills are given the initial S. Thus, H.R. 1, would be the first bill introduced in a new session of Congress or the House of Representatives (a session of Congress lasts for two years).

Committee Consideration

After a bill is introduced, it is assigned to one or more committees in the chamber where it was introduced. A committee can amend, rewrite, recommend, or ignore the bill, or report to the full chamber with no recommendation. Committees typically also submit a report explaining their views of the bill when sending a bill to the full House or Senate. (For more information)

Floor Debate and Vote

Once the bill has emerged from committee consideration, it moves to the "floor" of either the House of Representatives or the Senate (again depending on where the bill was introduced). The entire chamber then debates and may amend the bill. The chamber then takes an open vote on the bill. For non-controversial votes, the chamber will take a voice vote, but if any legislator asks for a roll call, then each member's vote is made separately and publicly.

Passage in Both Chambers

If the bill passes the first chamber, it is sent to the other chamber where the process described above is repeated. If the bill is amended in the second chamber, it must be sent back to the first chamber because both chambers must agree on the amendments. If the two chambers cannot immediately agree on how to pass identical legislation, the bill will be sent to a joint committee (comprised of both House of Representatives and Senate members), which will attempt to work out a compromise among the different versions of the bill. If the joint committee is successful, the bill will be returned to both chambers for a vote.

Overriding a Presidential Veto

Once an identical bill passes both the House and the Senate, it is sent to the President, who can do the following: (1) sign it, thus creating a law; (2) do nothing and after 10 days, if Congress stays in session, it becomes law; (3) do nothing and if Congress adjourns within 10 days, it does not become law; or (4) reject the bill by vetoing it and the bill will not become law unless the veto is overridden by Congress. Congress may override the President's veto by approving the bill again with at least a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and the Senate. The bill then becomes a law despite the President's veto.

Public Access to Information

All floor debates and votes are published the following day in the Congressional Record. Legislators can review the Congressional Record before it is published to change or add a statement. The Government Printing Office publishes committee reports for major legislation separately. In recent years, many committee hearings, floor debates and votes have been broadcast live through C-SPAN (Cable Satellite Public Affairs Network), a cable television network that provides twenty-four hour coverage of public affairs.

State Legislatures

The state legislatures act in much the same way, although the process for enacting a bill within the legislatures is often more streamlined. Every state legislature, except Nebraska's, has two chambers. Most governors have veto power over state legislation, analogous to the veto power of the President.

Citizen Initiatives

Unlike the federal government, several states also allow for citizen initiatives. In some of these states, citizens can hold a direct vote on a specific proposed law. In other states, citizen initiatives may force the legislatures to vote on an issue. To get a specific initiative on the election ballot or on the legislature's docket typically requires that organizers collect a certain number of signatures of eligible voters.

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