What Role Does Congress Play In Passing A Bill To Law

The process in which a bill becomes a law can be a lengthy one, it must go through many steps in order to become the law of the land. It is believed that this process should be a matter that every American citizen should be informed of in order to fully understand and appreciate the inner workings of congress with regard to The House of Representatives and the Senate. The steps in which a bill becomes a law is an example of the democratic way of life here in The United States. “The fact that a proposal cannot become a law without consideration and approval by both houses of congress is an outstanding virtue of our bicameral legislative system.” (Sullivan 1-2)

Various actions can occur once a bill passes through the first house and awaits approval by the second. The course materials point out that if one chamber passes the bill the other may: pass the bill as it stands, send the bill to a committee, reject the bill, or ignore the bill (Unit 3 the Congress, 11). If referred to a committee, that committee would: examine the bill, change the bill, or both. If rejected, the rejecting chamber will apprise the other chamber of its act. If ignored, the ignoring chamber would press forward with its work on that chamber’s particular version of the bill.

When the bill reaches the president, he has three choices. He can: sign and pass the bill, refuse to sign or veto the bill, or pocket veto. If the president refuses to sign or veto the bill, the bill is sent back to the U.S. House of Representatives, along with the President’s reasons for the veto. If the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate still believe the bill should become a law, they can hold another vote on the bill. If two-thirds of the Representatives and Senators support the bill, the President’s

If the bill is vetoed, the president can then make changes to the bill that he or she sees necessary and then send it back to congress for reassessment. The framers of the constitution created a legislative process that required each branch to contribute to the legislative process. As a result, a vetoed bill must go through congress and the legislative process again. The bill must also receive, at minimum, two thirds votes from the House of Representatives and the Senate before it can become an official law. Finally, if the president does not sign nor veto a bill for ten days, excluding Sundays, it will automatically become a law. However, in certain circumstances, the president can use a pocket veto. A pocket veto may only be used on a bill that is proposed within the last ten days of the presidency. When a pocket veto is used, the president does not sign or veto the bill. Rather, after ten days of no action, the bill is automatically rejected. As Chief in Legislature, the president, in a sense, has the last word in the legislative process.

In this process a bill is drafted, then it is introduced in the house. The Speaker of the House sends the bill to a committee, the committee decides to make changes to the bill or kill it. If the bill gets sent on, it gets sent to the Senate. In the senate it is sent to another committee and if majority vote for it, the bill will go to the whole Senate. The bill gets debated and amendments add, if needed, and then sent back to the House. Any changes made and House doesn’t agree it goes to a committee to find compromises. After the compromise it goes to the President. If the President vetoes the bill, ⅔ majority of the House can override the veto.

All laws start as bills. Any one can draft a bill, a congressman, the President, even Mr. Hughes if wanted something accomplished. Anyone can draft a bill, but only a congressman can put the bill into the bill box. From the bill box it is given to the speaker of the house, who decides which committee receives the bill for the lengthy editing process. The real power of the Speaker of the House is deciding which committee gets the bill, whether he wants the bill to pass or be thrown out. Inside the committees there are subcommittees that where a committee is a large idea, like the Senate armed forces Committee, the sub committees such as the seapower committee. after a long editing process the bill is either passed or trashed. if passed and in the house the next committee the bill goes to is the rules committee, where the date and how long the bill is argued for will be decided. If in the senate, the bill will go to the majority and minority leaders, and they decide when the bill will be brought for the entire senate. again it is argued in the senate or the house and it will either be trashed or passed here too. Finally the bill should be a law right, nope, the bill has to be passed in the other house of congress. finally once it has been passed in both compartments, if the wording is not the same a conference committee meets, with representatives from both the house and senate deciding the final wording of the bill, only

If he signs it, it is printed and made law, but if he vetoes the bill, it is sent back to Congress where they can adjust it to fit the Presidents wishes. Congress can also take a vote in which they would need a two thirds vote majority in order to overrule the veto.

First, the congress can send the bill to the President to be signed and passed into a law. However, if the President vetoes the bill, it is then sent back to congress. Congress can then take a vote on the bill and if two-thirds vote to pass it, the bill is made into a law. Lastly, the President can decide to neither sign the bill nor veto the bill. If this happens when the congress is in session, the bill will become a law after ten days without the President’s signature. (Congressforkids.net)

To begin it would be best to understand what a bill is. A bill is a proposal of a law (2). Bills can only emerge in Congress (2). Congress is composed of the House of Representatives and the

Firstly the members of congress, executive branch, or members of outside community draw up a bill. After that the members of the house only will have to introduce the bill on the floor of house of representative. Then the bill is sent to the committee. Only bills that are necessary and reasonably appropriate make it to the next step, which is the rules of a committee for debate. Then it goes back to the floor of the house for a debate and members of the house then will vote for the bill. If the bill is in favor by most of the members of the house, hence the bill is sent to the senate. The senator introduces the bill on the floor. If the majority of the committees agree then the bill goes to the entire senate to consider the bill. As it follows the same process of the house, there is a debate and if majority votes for the bill then the bill is returned back to the house of representative.

If both the Senate and the House pass the bill, it is then sent to the president for his signature leading to the bill becoming a law (United States Senate, n.d.).

All of the laws in the United States begin as a bill, which must be approved by the Senate, House of Representatives, and the President. The bill stars as an idea from a representative or a citizen who has an idea and tells their representative about the idea. The representative then decides if the idea is

The enrolled bill is now signed by the speaker of the house and then the vice president. Finally, it is sent in for presidential consideration. The president then has ten days to sign or veto the bill. If the president vetoes the bill, it can

All things first start with an idea. This idea, then becomes an action and this action in turn has a result. This same concept can be applied to the legislative process. The first step begins with an idea, this idea is shared and if it gains the support of the masses this idea will then become sponsored by a representative. Once this idea has sponsorship it then proceeds to the congressional level where this idea gets the new title of a bill. Upon the name change from idea to bill also comes the benefit of becoming a proposed piece of legislation. For a bill this means that it will be sent to both the House of Representatives and Senate awaiting it’s future through debate. If the debate proves favorable for the bill, that is both the House of Representatives and the Senate approve then this bill is sent off to the desk of the president. From the moment the bill arrives at the desk of the president a countdown of ten days begins, this is

The role that the legislative branch generally plays is producing laws. The first step in the legislative process is introducing a bill to Congress. A bill is an idea for a law that is not passed. Anyone can write a bill, but only Congress can introduce it to legislation. Some of the important bills are commonly introduced at the request of the President. Throughout the process, the original bill can go through dire changes. The bill has to pass through everyone in the Congress and then the President. The President has the final decision of whether passing the law or vetoing it. If a president vetoes a law, he is turning down or dismissing the law. After it has gone through the President, unless the President vetoes the bill, the bill is now an actual law.