If a Senator is the sponsor, the bill is introduced in the Senate. Once a bill is introduced, it can be found on Congress. 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 ". 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. 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 ". 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.
When all changes have been made, the bill is ready to be voted on. If a majority of the Representatives say or select yes, the bill passes in the U. The bill is then certified by the Clerk of the House and delivered to the U. When a bill reaches the U. Senate, it goes through many of the same steps it went through in the U.
The bill is discussed in a Senate committee and then reported to the Senate floor to be voted on. Senators vote by voice. Senate and is ready to go to the President. If a bill has passed in both the U. House of Representatives and the U. Senate and has been approved by the President, or if a presidential veto has been overridden, the bill becomes a law and is enforced by the government.
Place your mouse over a word highlighted in blue to see its definition, or look at the full list. Looking to bring the U. House of Representatives into your Grade School classroom? Visit our For Teachers section for resources, activities, and lesson plans that complement the material on this site. At the Report Stage, the committee reports the bill back to the Chamber. All parliamentarians can then debate it.
During this stage, those who were not part of the committee that studied the bill can suggest changes to the bill. The bill is then called for a Third Reading. The parliamentarians debate it again. Sometimes they can change their minds about a bill. They might vote for it at Second Reading but not at Third Reading if they do not like the changes made to the bill. If it passes Third Reading, the bill then goes to the other Chamber, where it goes through the same stages.
Once both the Senate and the House of Commons have passed the bill in exactly the same wording, it is given to the Governor General or his or her appointed representative for Royal Assent final approval , and it can become law. Skip to Main Content Area.
Canada: The Road to Democracy.
0コメント