By Sofia
The process of how a bill becomes a law is a well-documented one. From the first process to the last, there is so much that goes on in between this procedure. However, even with so much information in this regard, there are quite a number of people who do not know how a bill becomes a law.
If you are not synonymous with legislation processes then it might not be possible for you to understand this process better. There is so much to it that goes way beyond what many people think which you need to know. In case you have any interest in how a bill becomes a law then this text will be beneficial to you in the end.
From the text, you are going to find crucial information about this whole issue. From when the bill is introduced to the very last bit of it this text looks at this entire process. It is such an informative text that will help and enable you to get better insights into the whole issue of bill legislation.
How a bill becomes a law
Before a bill becomes a law it is subjected to various processes which it has to pass through. During these stages, the bill will be interrogated fully before moving on to the next level. These stages might vary from one country to the other but they are not that different. The difference between them is not that big in various parts of the world.
Step 1: the drafting of the bill
The drafting of a bill is quite a simpler one. Any member of congress from the senate or even the house of representatives can draft a bill. Provided you have an idea of the kind of bill you wish to introduce you can move ahead and draft it. The bill’s ideas can come from the members of the congress or if not that then from citizens as well as groups of advocacies.
Any primary member of the congress sponsoring a bill is always referred to as the sponsor of the bill. If there are other members of the congress who support the bill then they are referred to as co-sponsors. Sponsoring of a bill is open to all the people meaning any member of the congress can sponsor the bill.
Step 2: The introduction of the bill
Once the bill has been drafted the next that follows is the introduction of the bill. In case a member of the representative is the one sponsoring the bill then the bill will be introduced in the house. If a senator is a person sponsoring the bill then the bill will be introduced in the senate.
Once the bill has been successfully introduced it can be found on congress.gov. This is the official website for the government which is used for tracking all the government legislation processes. If there is any legislation currently under process in the US then you can find that right on the government website.
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Step 3: The bill them moves to the committee
Once the bill is introduced then it is referred to as the committee. There are many steps that bills undergo and this is one of how a bill becomes a law step. Both houses in America have various committees which comprise congress members. These congress members have an interest in various topics which include international affairs as well as health.
Once a bill gets to this level it undergoes a very careful examination. One of the things that are carefully looked at during this stage is the chances of the bill succeeding. In some cases, the committee might even decide to hold hearings to gain an even much better understanding of the bill.
Step 4: Subcommittee review of the bill
Subcommittees fall right under committees and are composed of people who have further specialization on certain issues and topics. In many cases, committees refer bills to subcommittees for purposes of the study as well as their own hearings. In some cases, the subcommittee might decide to make changes to the bill then vote to have it referred to the committee.
Step 5: Committee markup of the bill
It is right to say that a good number of people who seek to know how a bill becomes a law are not aware of this stage. Some of them do but if you are an amateur then you might know exactly everything and this is one of the things that you will find challenging.
At this stage, all the hearings are completed and the review completed as well. What is left is for the committee to meet and markup the bill. Changes are made to the bill as well as amendments before recommending the bill to the floor of the house.
Step 6: Voting done by the full chamber on the bill
Once the bills get to the floor of the house there will be an additional debate on the bill right before the house. Once the debate is done and completed then the bill will be voted for to make approval for any amendments made to the bill.
Step 7: The bill is referred to the other chamber
Once the bill is passed by the senate it is then passed or moved on to the other chamber. At this place, it follows the same process where it goes to the committees before finding itself on the floor of the house again. Once the chamber has the bill, they can decide to reject it, ignore it, or even make amendments to it.
Step 8: The bill is taken to the president
Once the house, as well as the senate, have approved the bill in its identical form it is then sent right to the president. If the president approves the legislation, then it is signed and from there it becomes a law. Also, if the president does not take any action while the congress is still in session then the bill will also become law automatically.
If the president does oppose the bill, then the bill might be vetoed. On top of that, if there is no action taken for ten days consecutively when Congress is adjourned there will be a pocket veto.
Step 9: Overriding a veto
In the event that the president vetoes a bill, congress might attempt to override this veto. In the event that the Senate, as well as the house the bill by a record two-thirds majority then the president veto stands overruled, and the bill, comes to the law.
Conclusion
There have been quite a number of people who seek to know how a bill becomes a law. The text above looks into this entire process with the view of offering you a much better idea on this issue. Read the text to get a better idea as to how this entire process is carried out and how it eventually becomes the law.
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