The Bill Process

How Bills are Proposed to Congress

Introduction: In the United States, a bill is a proposed piece of legislation to be considered by the legislature. Specifically, entities ranging from corporations, citizens, special interest groups, and anything in between, can propose an idea for a bill to a legislator.

Step 1: A bill begins by a legislator's sponsor and introduction of the bill to the respective house in congress.

Step 2: Since there are numerous bills proposed daily, committees composed of small groups of legislators, review the content of the proposed bill in detail.

Step 3: If deemed an appropriate course of action, committees may refer a bill to a subcommittee for further study and hearings on the piece of legislation. Hearings provide an opportunity for experts, proponents, or opposition to make their views known during the subcommittee review process.

Step 4: Following the hearing process, subcommittees may amend the bill prior to forwarding the piece of legislation to the full committee.

Step 5: Full Committees then make a recommendation on whether or not they believe the bill should pass, be rejected, or they can abstain completely from making a recommendation. The procedure is formally known as "ordering a bill reported"

Step 6: After the committee has voted on a bill the committee chairman assigns staff to create a written report on the bill highlights: views of supporters and detractors, impact and changes to current legislation and scope

Once a bill is passed on from the committee, the committee's recommendation is read aloud to the legislative floor. In accordance with state constitutional laws, a bill is subjected to three readings. The first reading is purely informational, allowing the recommendation of the committee to be heard by the legislature. The second reading is the amendment process whereby members of the committee or individual legislators propose amendments to the bill. Finally, the last reading of a bill is the vote of passage or rejection reading. Conditional upon being passed by one chamber, a bill is sent to the other chamber where the process is repeated. All bills originating in the House of Representatives begin with "H.R.", and all bills originating in the the Senate begin with an "S.". If a bill passes in both chambers, it is sent to the governor for ruling.

Joint Resolutions

• There is no legal difference between a bill and a joint resolution; both are executed in the same manner. A joint resolution, is a legislative measure that requires approval by the Senate and the House and is passed on to the President for decision. Additionally, joint resolutions have the same effect as bills, and are titled as "H. J. Res." or "S. J. Res." depending on chamber of origination. A joint resolution and bill may have the same number in the archives although they're technically different pieces of legislation.

Simple Resolutions

• A simple resolution, is a legislative form used for matters that relate to an individual chamber of Congress; often to change the rules of the chamber, or organize a debate for a related bill. The resolution must be agreed to in the chamber of original proposal. A simple resolution is widely considered as a non-binding position because it does not result in the formation of a new law. Simple resolutions are often employed to adopt or change rules of procedures within the legislative body.

References

1. http://www.legis.state.wv.us/educational/bill_becomes_law/bill_becomes_law.cfm

2. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-simple-resolution.htm#didyouknowout

3. http://hussainsite.blogspot.com/2012/05/history-of-constitution.html