How a Bill Becomes a Law!

A bill starts with an idea. Where can ideas for bills come from? 1. 2. 3. A bill can only be sponsored and introduced by a member of the House of Representatives or the Senate.

Lets pretend we have a House bill The bill is INTRODUCED and given a NUMBER _______on the House Floor. It is sent to the appropriate standing committee.

The Standing Committee can do the following: Pigeonhole it Public hearing with experts Debate and discuss the bill Vote: no it dies or yes it goes back to the House floor

House Floor Bill is discussed and debated. Vote: ______or____ it goes to________

The bill is INTRODUCED and given a new NUMBER S:_________ on the Senate floor. It is sent to the appropriate standing committee. _____________________ The standing Committee can do the following: Pigeonhole it Public hearing with experts Debate and discuss the bill Vote: no it dies or yes it goes back to the Senate floor

Senate Floor Bill is discussed and debated Could have a Filibuster Vote: ______or _____it goes to the President

The president can do 3 things He can SIGN it and it becomes a_______ He can VETO the bill. It then goes back to BOTH houses of Congress to a vote. They can override a Presidential veto with a 2/3 vote of BOTH HOUSES. If they override the veto it becomes a law. He can POCKET VETO the bill. He sets it aside for 10 days. If congress is still in session after the 10 days the bill becomes a law. If congress is not in session after the 10 days the bill dies

*CONFERENCE COMMITTEE If the bill is to be changed after it has passed one house of Congress then the bill goes to a *CONFERENCE COMMITTEE Conference committee made up of members of both houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives. They make changes and sent the bill back to both houses for a vote.

Why does the bill have to go back to the house it was already passed in? Because changes were made to the bill. Both houses vote: no in either house it dies or yes in both it goes to the President Remember the Process is the Same no matter which house you start in.