The Legislative Process How a Bill Becomes a Law

Introducing Legislation Bills: proposed laws All “money bills” must be introduced in the House After a bill has been introduced, it is then assigned to a committee by the Speaker of the House

Committees Groups of representatives who focus on a certain area of policymaking Are found in both the House and the Senate Standing Committees permanent bodies that have expertise about certain policy areas these are the most important committees

Committees House Rules Committee: defines the conditions under which the bills are to be considered by the House Conference Committee: temporary joint committee created to form a compromise between any differences between the two houses' versions of a bill Goal: to pass identical bills in both the House and the Senate

Special Procedures in the Senate A senator can talk about anything he or she wants to Filibuster: a stalling tactic in which 1 senator spends a lot of time talking in order to prevent a bill from being voted on Cloture Can be called with support of at least 16 Senators If 60 or more Senators vote in favor of the motion, debate ends and the Senate votes on the bill being considered

Becoming Law Once the House and Senate have agreed on a final version of a bill, it is then sent to the President The President can sign the bill, officially making it a law, or veto it After the President uses a veto on a bill, Congress can override it with a 2/3s vote in both the House and the Senate to make the bill a law