How Congress Works
Ideas for Congressional legislation usually come from four basic sources:
- A member may conceive and introduce his own idea. Often a member will introduce legislation that embodies a campaign promise, or that demonstrates his stance on a particular issue.
- Some legislative ideas come from constituents.
A representative may become aware of the need for legislation through contacts with his constituents and draft a bill to fill that need. Sometimes he will introduce legislation transmitted by a constituent request, even if he does not support the measure. - Special interest groups concerned with a single issue or several issues or representing the interests of a particular group of people may lobby a proposal and often will supply draft language or provide assistance in drafting legislative proposals.
- In recent times, the President has been the source of an increasing number of legislative proposals. A Proposal is developed within the Administration and transmitted to Congress as draft legislation in a letter from the appropriate Administration official to the Speaker of the House and/or President of the Senate. These proposals are usually introduced at the Administration's request by the highest ranking member of the President's party on the committee and/or subcommittee with jurisdiction.
Presenting the Idea
Once a Senator or Representative decides to introduce his idea to Congress, he drafts a written proposal to do one or more of the following:
- create a new law;
- amend an existing law;
- amend a pending legislative proposal; and/or
- create or change ongoing policy without the force of law, through an expression of "the sense" of the legislative body that adopts the measure.
The idea may be introduced by the Senator or Representative in one of five different forms: as a Bill, a Resolution, a Joint Resolution, a Concurrent Resolution, or as an Amendment to another measure. Each form of legislation is best suited to specific purposes, and may involve a variation on the basic path to final passage and enactment. The Senator or Representative chooses the legislative vehicle best suited to the purposes of the proposal, and which he feels will best assure its passage.
The following chart depicts the process of how a bill becomes a law. A step by step analysis can also be found here.
