How the Legislative Process Works
My primary job as a Member of Congress is to work with my fellow Representatives to create and revise our laws. There are a number of steps involved in writing a bill and moving it through the legislative process before it becomes a law. This page offers a brief description of how that works. If you have questions about how state legislation works, or have concerns about issues specific to the State of Michigan, please visit the Web site of the Michigan Legislature.
Forms of Congressional Action
A bill is the most common form of legislation. It may be used for temporary or permanent, general or special, or public or private legislation. A bill originating in the House of Representatives, where I serve, is designated with the letters “H.R.”, meaning “House of Representatives”, followed by a number. Bills which originate in the Senate are designated with an “S.”, and are also followed by a number. Bills that are approved in identical form by both the House and Senate are presented to the President for action.
Joint resolutions may originate in either the House of Representatives or in the Senate. Joint resolutions introduced in the House are identified by the letters “H.J.Res” before the legislative number. Aside from that, there is little difference between a bill and a joint resolution; both are subject to the same procedure. However, a joint resolution is not presented to the President for approval. Instead, it must be approved by two-thirds of both the House and Senate. This is the process by which Constitutional amendments are initiated.
Concurrent resolutions usually deal with matters affecting the operations of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. They are frequently used to express the collective opinion of both houses of Congress. Concurrent resolutions introduced in the House bear the designation “H.Con.Res.” followed by a number. Like joint resolutions, concurrent resolutions are not presented to the President for action. Instead, they are signed by the Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate upon approval by both houses of Congress.
Simple resolutions are very similar to concurrent resolutions, but instead of expressing the collective opinion of both houses of Congress, they are introduced to express the collective opinion of either the House of Representatives or the Senate. Simple resolutions are also commonly used to set rules for the consideration of various bills on the House Floor. Simple resolutions introduced in the House are designated “H.Res.” before the resolution number. This form of legislation must only be passed by either the House or the Senate, depending on where it was introduced, and does not require the approval of the President.
Introducing a Bill or Resolution
Any Member of the House of Representatives may introduce a bill at any time while the House is in session by signing it and placing it into the “hopper” next to the Clerk’s desk in the House Chamber. The Clerk retrieves bills dropped into the hopper and assigns each one a unique legislative number. Then it is referred to the appropriate committee by the Speaker of the House for consideration. Some bills may receive multiple referrals to different committees. The bill is also printed in its introduced form. You can search for bills online using the Library of Congress’s Thomas database, found at http://thomas.loc.gov.
Consideration by Committee
Bills are referred to committees based on their subject. For example, a bill dealing with federal highway infrastructure would most likely be referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, since federal highway issues fall under its jurisdiction. Committee action is a very important stage in the legislative process because bills are usually given the most intense consideration during this stage of the legislative process. I currently serve on three committees: the Committee on Education and Labor, the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Committee on Science and Technology. Committees are typically broken down into several subcommittees, which cover specific areas under the committee’s jurisdiction.
Usually the first step in this process is a public hearing, where witnesses representing various viewpoints on a measure testify before members of the committee. Then, the bill is considered in a session commonly known as a “mark-up” session. Members of the committee offer amendments upon which the committee will vote to accept or reject. Once this deliberation concludes, a vote by members of the committee or subcommittee is taken to determine what action to take on the measure. It can be reported to the House with or without amendment, or tabled, which means no further action will occur. Sometimes if many amendments have been approved, a committee may decide to report a new bill incorporating all of the amendments. This is known as a “clean bill,” which will have a new number.
If the committee votes to report a bill, a Committee Report may be written to describe the purpose and scope of the measure and the reasons for recommended approval.
Consideration on the House Floor
There are two ways for a bill to be considered by the House of Representatives. In one, a “rule” may be passed which governs its consideration. Rules are simple resolutions that set out the particulars of debate for a specific bill, including how much time will be allowed for debate, whether amendments can be offered, and other matters.
Debate time on a bill is usually divided between supporters and opponents of the measure, with each side yielding time to Members who wish to speak about the bill. After debate has concluded and amendments have been decided upon, the House is ready to vote on final passage. In some cases, a vote to “recommit” the bill back to the committee is requested. This is usually an effort by opponents to change or table the measure. If that fails, a vote on final passage is ordered. Members vote through an electronic voting system, which counts Yea and Nay votes as well as “Present” votes for members who are present but do not wish to take a stance on the measure. The House may also vote by voice vote.
In the other, a bill can be brought up under “suspension of the rules,” which limits debate time and does not permit amendments to be offered on the House Floor. This is done mainly for non-controversial bills.
Resolving Differences
Once a measure passes the House, it goes to the Senate for consideration, or vice versa. A bill must pass both bodies in the same form before it can be presented to the President for signature into law. If the Senate changes the language of the bill, it must return to the House for approval or additional changes. Often a conference committee will be appointed with both House and Senate members to negotiate the bill and resolve each body’s differences. Once the conference committee reaches an agreement, it will report an identical measure to both bodies for a vote.
After the measure is passed by both the House and the Senate in identical form, it is considered “enrolled” and is sent to the President who may sign the measure into law or veto it and return it to Congress. If the President does not sign or veto a bill within ten days, the bill becomes a law.
Congress can override the veto by a two-thirds vote in both chambers, making the bill a law.
If you would like more information on how a bill becomes a law, a much more detailed description of the process is available in How Our Laws Are Made.
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