Welcome to this month's Whitney/Strong Wednesdays, where we're taking a look at policy and advocacy. This week we are focusing on Legislation 101, giving access to the education you need to feel more knowledgeable of how a bill becomes a law at the federal level. While there are variances to this process within state legislatures, building the foundational knowledge at the highest level of government will prepare you for state level work.
Whether you are doing advocacy work in Washington D.C. or in Columbus, Ohio, your goal is passing evidence-based prevention policies. You must be knowledgeable of the law-making process to be effective. Whitney/Strong spearheads bipartisan-led policy solutions at the state and federal level. Our hope is that this series will further engage you in our advocacy work and inspire you to become a more active advocate in your state. Change will only come when participation levels reach critical mass.
Congress.gov outlines nine videos that share the story of the legislative process. Each video is less than 5 minutes and gives you an overview of the following steps:
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- Introduction and Referral of Bills: Bills can be introduced by members of the House or Senate. Once drafted, it's presented for consideration during a legislative session.
- Committee Consideration: The bill is sent to a committee for discussion, changes, and approval. Many bills die at this stage, but those that make it through move to the full House or Senate for debate.
- Calendars and Scheduling: Once a committee has reported a bill, it is added to one of the chamber's calendars, a list of bills eligible for floor consideration, though this does not guarantee that they will be debated on the floor. It is also possible, albeit less common, for a bill to bypass this process and come directly to the floor without being placed on a calendar.
- House Floor: The House considers bills through methods such as suspension of the rules, limiting debate and requiring two-thirds support, or by adopting a special rule to establish specific terms for individual bills.
- Senate Floor: To consider a bill on the floor, the Senate first must agree to bring it up – typically by agreeing to a unanimous consent request or by voting to adopt a motion to proceed to the bill. Only once the Senate has agreed to consider a bill may Senators propose amendments to it.
- Executive Business in the Senate: The U.S. Constitution gives the Senate the unique powers to confirm certain presidential nominees and approve treaties, with the latter treated like bills but requiring two-thirds of voting Senators for ratification.
- Resolving Differences: A bill must be agreed upon by both the House and Senate, often through a process of amendment exchange or by forming a conference committee to negotiate a compromise. The final agreed-upon version is then sent to the President for potential enactment.
- Presidential Actions: Once a bill is agreed upon by both chambers of Congress, the President has ten days to sign or veto it; if no action is taken, or if a veto is overridden by a two-thirds vote in both chambers, the bill becomes law and is recorded in the U.S. Statutes at Large.
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When is session?
Most legislative bodies have specific sessions, which can vary by state. In the U.S., Congress meets annually, beginning on January 3rd. States have varying schedules, and special sessions can be called as needed. To find the specific timeline for session in your state, see the National Conference of State Legislatures’ website.
Your action this week is to visit Congress.gov to review the videos on the federal legislative process. Please share within your circle and we look forward to sharing more on how to elevate your individual advocacy efforts next week.
Remember, believe that change will come. Take action to accelerate it.
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