How Congress Works

How Congress Works

Section 5.2

Bill to a Law Process

● Bills are discussed in Committee

○ Bill: a proposed law placed before a legislature

for approval

● If it’s a bad bill, it gets trashed
● If it’s a good bill, it is given a Favorable or

Unfavorable report
○ Favorable: Committee says it should be passed
○ Unfavorable: Committee says it failed the vote

● Then, it goes to the House/Senate Floor for vote

"Congress in session is Congress on public exhibition, whilst Congress in its committee-rooms is Congress at work.”
- Woodrow Wilson

Multiple Choice

Who can introduce bills?

• Senate

• House of Representatives

• The President

• Both A & B

Multiple Choice

Where are bills initially discussed?

• At home

• In committees

• On the floor of Congress

• With the Hopper

The House

Rules

Committee

acts like a
traffic cop.

•STANDING COMMITTEES

•SELECT COMMITTEE

•JOINT COMMITTEE

•CONFERENCE
COMMITTEE

•

HOUSE RULES COMMITTEE

Congressional Committees Crash Course

Committees

● Standing: permanent Committees

○ EX: Appropriations, Judiciary, Armed Services,

Agriculture

● Select: Special and current issues

○ EX: Intelligence

● Joint: Made up of House and Senate Members
● Conference: Both houses work together to iron

out a bill

● House Rules: Clears the bills

Multiple Choice

What is a Conference Committee?

• Both houses work together to iron out a bill

• Permanent Committee

• Special and current issues

• Clears the bills

Multiple Choice

What is a Standing Committee?

• Special and current issues

• Permanent Committee

• Clears the bills

• Both houses work together to iron out a bill

Legislative
Committees:
Function &
Purpose

A bill with a
member’s mark-up
notes
1. Consider bills

a. AKA“Screening

process” for bills

Legislative
Committees:
Function &
Purpose

Secretary Donald Rumsfeld
testifies before a Senate
Appropriations Committee
hearing re: the Department
of Defense Budget (May,
2006)

2. Maintain oversight

of executive
agencies

Legislative
Committees:
Function &
Purpose

Former Secretary of
State Hillary Clinton
testified before the
House Select
Committee on
Benghazi (October
2015)

3. Conduct

investigations

House Rules
Committee

• Acts as a Traffic Cop for bills

from committee

• Functions of the HRC:

• Place bills on calendar for floor

debate

• Set time limits for debate
• Decides whether amendments

may be added to the bill during
floor debate

• The House has lots of rules because

it’s a big group that needs
structure!

Multiple Choice

The House Rules committee acts as the what?

• Investigation of bills

• Doctor for bills

• Traffic Cop for bills

• Teacher of bills

Senate Rules

● Filibuster: a lengthy speech designed to delay or

kill the vote on a bill that’s used only in the Senate
○ Talk a bill to death

● Longest Filibuster: Strom Thurmond for 24 hrs, 18

mins

● Cloture: End a filibuster with 60 votes
● Usually the threat of a filibuster is enough to get

changes made to the bill

​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PT3tZjlENMs

Multiple Choice

What's a filibuster?

• Ending a lengthy speech with 60 votes

• Traffic cop for bills

• A lengthy speech designed to delay or kill the vote on a bill that's used only in the Senate

• A time limit on debates

The President has 10 days to act on a bill

1. Sign: Bill becomes law!

2. Veto: refuse to sign.

3. Pocket Veto: Don’t sign before the session is over & it

expires

Congress can override President with a ⅔ vote in both
houses

If President refuses to act within the 10 days, the bill
becomes a law

Presidential Acts on Bills

Vocabulary

● Lobbying: The practice of attempting to

affect legislation by influencing legislators.

● Legislative Power: The authority to make laws

and rules.

● Enforcement Powers: The power of Congress

to enforce laws

Open Ended

What happens to a bill if the president doesn't act upon it in 10 days and Congress is still in session?