How is a law actually made? What’s the whole process like? That depends, of course, on what type of law we're talking about. For this example, we'll look at how a bill first introduced in the House of Representatives becomes a public law.
1. When a Representative has an idea for a new law, he or she becomes the sponsor of that bill and introduces it by giving it to the Clerk of the House or by placing it in the hopper. The Clerk assigns a legislative number to the bill, H.R. for bills introduced in the House of Representatives. The Government Publishing Office (GPO) then prints the bill and makes it available digitally through GPO's govinfo.gov.
2. Next, the bill is assigned to a committee by the Speaker of the House so that it can be studied. The House has 22 standing committees, each with jurisdiction over bills in certain areas.
The standing committee, or one of its subcommittees, studies the bill and hears testimony from experts and people interested in the bill. The committee may then take three actions. It might:
- release the bill with a recommendation to pass it;
- revise the bill and release it; or
- lay it aside so that the House cannot vote on it.
Releasing the bill is called reporting it out. Laying it aside is called tabling.
3. If the bill is released, it then goes on the House Calendar. Here the House Rules Committee may call for the bill to be voted on quickly, limit the debate, or limit or prohibit amendments. Undisputed bills may be passed by unanimous consent, or by a two-thirds vote if Members of the House agree to suspend the rules.
4. The bill then goes to the floor of the House for consideration and begins with a complete reading of the bill (sometimes this is the only complete reading). A third reading (title only) occurs after any amendments have been added. If 218 of the 435 Representatives vote for it to pass, the bill passes by simple majority and moves to the Senate.
5. In order to be introduced in the Senate, a Senator must be recognized by the presiding officer and announce the introduction of the bill.
6. Just as in the House, the introduced bill is assigned to a committee. It is assigned to one of the Senate's 20 standing committees by the presiding officer. The Senate committee studies and either releases or tables the bill just like the House standing committee.
7. Once released, the bill goes to the Senate floor for consideration. Bills are voted on in the Senate based on the order in which they come from the committee; however, an urgent bill may be pushed ahead by leaders of the majority party. When the Senate considers the bill, they can vote on it indefinitely. When there is no more debate, the bill is voted on. If 51 of 100 Senators vote for it, the bill passes by a simple majority.
8. The bill then moves to a conference committee, which is made up of Members from each house. The committee may work out any differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill. The revised bill is sent back to both houses for their final approval. Once approved, the bill is produced in print and digitally by the Government Publishing Office in a process called enrolling. The Clerk from the House certifies the final version. If a bill originates in the Senate, the Secretary of the Senate certifies the final version.
9. The enrolled bill is now signed by the Speaker of the House and then the Vice President. Finally, it is sent for the President's consideration. The President has ten days to sign or veto the enrolled bill. If the President signs the bill, it becomes law. If the President vetoes it, the bill can still become a law if two-thirds of the Senate and two-thirds of the House then vote in favor of the bill.
And that is how laws are made! You can learn even more about this process by checking out Senate Document 105-14, How Our Laws Are Made, in text format or as a PDF.
Want to know what happens next? Check out How Laws Are Implemented.
Any member of Congress – either from the Senate or the House or Representatives – who has an idea for a law can draft a bill. These ideas come from the Congress members themselves or from everyday citizens and advocacy groups. The primary Congress member supporting the bill is called the "sponsor". The other members who support the bill are called "co-sponsors".
Step 2: The bill is introduced
Once the bill is drafted, it must be introduced. If a Representative is the sponsor, the bill is introduced in the House. If a Senator is the sponsor, the bill is introduced in the Senate. Once a bill is introduced, it can be found on Congress.gov, which is the official government website that tracks federal legislation.
Step 3: The bill goes to committee
As soon as a bill is introduced, it is referred to a committee. Both the House and Senate have various committees composed of groups of Congress members who are particularly interested in different topics such as health or international affairs. When a bill is in the hands of the committee, it is carefully examined and its chances of passage by the entire Congress are determined. The committee may even choose to hold hearings to better understand the implications of the bill. Hearings allow the views of the executive branch, experts, other public officials and supporters, and opponents of the legislation to be put on the record. If the committee does not act on a bill, the bill is considered to be "dead".
Step 4: Subcommittee review of the bill
Subcommittees are organized under committees and have further specialization on a certain topic. Often, committees refer bills to a subcommittee for study and their own hearings. The subcommittee may make changes to the bill and must vote to refer a bill back to the full committee.
Step 5: Committee mark up of the bill
When the hearings and subcommittee review are completed, the committee will meet to "mark up" the bill. They make changes and amendments prior to recommending the bill to the "floor". If a committee votes not to report legislation to the full chamber of Congress, the bill dies. If the committee votes in favor of the bill, it is reported to the floor. This procedure is called "ordering a bill reported".
Step 6: Voting by the full chamber on the bill
Once the bill reaches the floor, there is additional debate and members of the full chamber vote to approve any amendments. The bill is then passed or defeated by the members voting.
Step 7: Referral of the bill to the other chamber
When the House or Senate passes a bill, it is referred to the other chamber, where it usually follows the same route through committees and finally to the floor. This chamber may approve the bill as received, reject it, ignore it or change it. Congress may form a conference committee to resolve or reconcile the differences between the House and Senate versions of a bill. If the conference committee is unable to reach an agreement, the bill dies. If an agreement is reached, the committee members prepare a conference report with recommendations for the final bill. Both the House and Senate must vote to approve the conference report.
Step 8: The bill goes to the president
After both the House and Senate have approved a bill in identical form, the bill is sent to the President. If the President approves of the legislation, it is signed and becomes law. If the President takes no action for ten days while Congress is in session, the bill automatically becomes law. If the President opposes the bill, they may veto the bill. In addition, if no action is taken for 10 days and Congress has already adjourned, there is a "pocket veto" .
Step 9: Overriding a veto
If the President vetoes a bill, Congress may attempt to override the veto. If both the Senate and the House pass the bill by a two-thirds majority, the President's veto is overruled, and the bill becomes a law.
Many terms above are adapted from Congress.gov. See the full list of legislative terms.
Article I of the U.S. Constitution grants all legislative powers to a bicameral Congress: a House of Representatives and a Senate that are the result of a “Great Compromise” seeking to balance the effects of popular majorities with the interests of the states. Our system currently provides for a two-year term of office for House members from the 435 population-based districts. In the Senate, voters of each state elect two Senators, who serve 6-year terms that overlap (such that only one-third of the chamber is up for election in any given election cycle).
The two chambers are fundamentally equal in their legislative roles and functions. Only the House can originate revenue legislation, and only the Senate confirms presidential nominations and approves treaties, but the enactment of law always requires both chambers to separately agree to the same bill in the same form before presenting it to the President.
Because each chamber has the constitutional authority to make its own rules, the House and Senate have developed some very different ways of processing legislation, perhaps partially flowing from their constitutional differences. In general, House rules and practices allow a numerical majority to process legislation relatively quickly. Senate rules and procedures, on the other hand, favor deliberation over quick action, as they provide significant procedural leverage to individual Senators.
Congressional action is typically planned and coordinated by party leaders in each chamber, who have been chosen by members of their own caucus or conference – that is, the group of members in a chamber who share a party affiliation. Majority party leaders in the House have important powers and prerogatives to effectively set the policy agenda and decide which proposals will receive floor consideration. In the Senate, the leader of the majority party is generally expected to propose items for consideration, but formal tools that allow a numerical majority to take action are few. Instead, majority party leadership typically must negotiate with minority party leaders (and often all Senators) to effectively conduct Senate floor action.
In both chambers, much of the policy expertise resides in the standing committees – panels of members from both parties that typically take the lead in developing and assessing legislation. Members typically serve on a small number of committees, often for many years, allowing them to become highly knowledgeable in certain policy areas. All committees are chaired by a member of the majority party, though chairs often work closely with the committee’s ranking member, the most senior member of the minority party on the committee. In almost all cases, the ratio of majority party to minority party members on a committee roughly reflects the overall partisan ratio in the congressional chamber.
Committee members and staff focus much of their time on drafting and considering legislative proposals, but committees engage in other activities, as well. Once law is enacted, Congress has the prerogative and responsibility to provide oversight of policy implementation, and its committees take the lead in this effort. Both chambers provide their committees with significant powers and latitude for oversight and investigations into questions of public policy and its effects.
While the engine of legislative ideas and action is Congress itself, the President has influence in the legislative process, as well. The President recommends an annual budget for federal agencies and often suggests legislation. Perhaps more significantly, the power to veto legislation can affect the content of bills passed by Congress. Since it is quite unusual for law to be enacted over a presidential veto, Congress typically must accommodate the president’s position on proposed policies.
The process by which a bill becomes law is rarely predictable and can vary significantly from bill to bill. In fact, for many bills, the process will not follow the sequence of congressional stages that are often understood to make up the legislative process. The presentations on specific topics that follow present a more detailed look at each of the common stages through which a bill may move, but keep in mind that complications and variations abound in practice.