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Glenham Elementary School - Beacon, N.Y.
Mrs. Snowden's 4th Grade Students
The summer 2006 host of Congresswoman Kelly's student center is Mrs. Snowden's 4th grade class at Glenham Elementary School, located in Beacon (Dutchess County).
Congresswoman Kelly visited the students on May 31 to answer their questions about the federal government and the role of Congress. Below are some projects about how a bill becomes a law that were completed by the students in Mrs. Snowden's class: How A Bill Becomes A Law:
How a bill Becomes a law
This is how a bill becomes a law. It is really an idea in someone’s mind. Anyone can make up a bill, but most of these people are representatives or senators. (There are three basic types of bills; joint resolutions, concurrent and simple resolutions.) Then a bill is sent to the committee of that category to be spoken about at hearings. Once it is spoken about the committee can make changes to it if they wish.
The House and the Senate must agree on that bill for it to travel the next step, the Conference Committee. Their job is to settle any additional problems between the House and Senate. This is the popular part, voting. The House and Senate vote on the bill. Those votes go to the president which in this case is George W. Bush. The president can sign or veto that bill. If he likes it and it's according to majority rule, he will sign it and it will become a law. If he vetoes it, they can override him. If 2/3 of that vote is aye (yes,) the bill must be a law.
How a Bill Becomes a Law
First a bill starts out as a thought in someone’s brain. Only a Congress member can sponsor it, or make it known. Then it is put in the hopper. Next the bill clerk assigns the bill a number. The bill is given to the subcommittee and if it makes it through that stage of the process it is in great favor on the house floor. When the bill is ready they take a vote. The vote is yea for yes or nay for no. The bill goes through a similar process in the senate. Then it has to pass in both chambers to be sent to the president. The president can either pass it or veto it. If it is vetoed it is not a law unless it is overridden. If it is passed the bill becomes a law.
What we are about to write is going to tell you how a bill becomes a law. First one person from congress writes a bill. A private bill can only be seen by one person or a group of congresspersons, but the public can’t see it. Only a person from congress can be a sponsor for the bill. If the Senate writes a bill they have to pass it on. The bill can only be seen when the House is in session. If the bill passes the House it is placed on the committees’ calendar. The bill is then sent to the House floor for consideration. There the bill is talked over by the House committee. The bill is then voted on. They either vote yea or nay (yes or no). If the bill is enrolled at both Chambers it is sent to the President. If the bill is signed it becomes a law. If he vetoes the bill it means it is back to the drawing board. If 2/3 of the Senate votes yea, then the President is overridden and the bill becomes a law. I hope you have learned a lot about how a bill becomes a law.
HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW A bill first pops into someone’s head. Only a member of Congress can be a sponsor of a bill. Then the bill is introduced to the House of Representatives. Next the bill is put into the hopper to wait its turn. The hopper is like a paper basket or a small box. Then the bill is referred to the proper committee. Then if the bill passes the House, the bill goes to the Senate. If the Senate passes the bill, the bill is delivered to the President. Here comes the big decision. The President either passes the bill to become a law or he can veto (turn down) the bill. Also the bill could be overridden with new ideas in the bill. Then the bill will go through every stage again. Then maybe the President will pass the bill into a law.
HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW An idea of a new law can come from anyone in the Congress. Bills can be introduced anytime Congress is in session. In order for a bill to become a law, the House and the Senate must agree on the bill. If they don’t agree, then it doesn’t get passed to the President. The bill is given a number, and then the bill is sent to the committee. If the committee agrees, the bill is ready to put on the house calendar. Then they vote. Yea means yes, nay means no. If the Senate said yea, the bill passes. And if the President vetoes it (veto means the President turns it away) then the bill will come back to the Senate. If there is more yea than nay by a 2/3 vote in the Senate, even if the President did veto the bill, the bill still becomes a law. If the President signs the bill, it becomes a law! |
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