Some important bills are traditionally introduced at the request of the President, such as the annual federal budget. During the legislative process, however, the initial bill can undergo drastic changes.
After being introduced, a bill is referred to the appropriate committee for review. There are 17 Senate committees, with 70 subcommittees, and 23 House committees, with subcommittees. The committees are not set in stone, but change in number and form with each new Congress as required for the efficient consideration of legislation.
Each committee oversees a specific policy area, and the subcommittees take on more specialized policy areas. A bill is first considered in a subcommittee, where it may be accepted, amended, or rejected entirely.
If the members of the subcommittee agree to move a bill forward, it is reported to the full committee, where the process is repeated again. Throughout this stage of the process, the committees and subcommittees call hearings to investigate the merits and flaws of the bill. They invite experts, advocates, and opponents to appear before the committee and provide testimony, and can compel people to appear using subpoena power if necessary.
If the full committee votes to approve the bill, it is reported to the floor of the House or Senate, and the majority party leadership decides when to place the bill on the calendar for consideration. If a bill is particularly pressing, it may be considered right away. Others may wait for months or never be scheduled at all. When the bill comes up for consideration, the House has a very structured debate process.
Each member who wishes to speak only has a few minutes, and the number and kind of amendments are usually limited. In the Senate, debate on most bills is unlimited — Senators may speak to issues other than the bill under consideration during their speeches, and any amendment can be introduced. Senators can use this to filibuster bills under consideration, a procedure by which a Senator delays a vote on a bill — and by extension its passage — by refusing to stand down.
A supermajority of 60 Senators can break a filibuster by invoking cloture, or the cession of debate on the bill, and forcing a vote. Once debate is over, the votes of a simple majority pass the bill. A bill must pass both houses of Congress before it goes to the President for consideration. Though the Constitution requires that the two bills have the exact same wording, this rarely happens in practice.
To bring the bills into alignment, a Conference Committee is convened, consisting of members from both chambers. The members of the committee produce a conference report, intended as the final version of the bill. Each chamber then votes again to approve the conference report.
To help answer those questions, I have put together a list of Frequently Asked Questions about the U. If your question is not answered here, please feel free to contact me. View the Constitution. What does a member of Congress do? Members of Congress represent the people of their district in the United States Congress by holding hearings, as well as developing and voting on legislation.
All bills must pass Congress before they can go to the President to be signed into law. In addition, I am also available to help you if you are experiencing difficulties dealing with a federal agency. To see how I can help you, click here. What are the qualifications to run for office in the House of Representatives and Senate? The required qualifications are found in Article 1 of the Constitution:. House of Representatives. How many members of Congress are there? There are a total of Members of Congress.
Senate and serve in the U. Members of the House of Representatives serve two-year terms and are considered for reelection every even year.
You can find out other facts about Senators past and present and get an overview of the members of Congress using these links. Constitutional Qualifications for U. Senate Reform Commission, July 29, Party Division in the Senate Present. Terms and Salaries, June 26,
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