February 19, 1999 12:05 PM 

Introduction to Congress

Our representative system of government places a special responsibility on each of us to make ourselves heard in Washington. in fact, no source of information is more important for members of Congress than the people who live and work in their State or district. As a constituent, you represent more than an abstract theme or a statistic You offer personal experience that makes you uniquely qualified to talk about the issues that matter most to you-issues such as health care reform, long-term care, and Parkinson's research.

In our system, the more competently you communicate with your elected officials, the more effective the representative system of government becomes. But to be effective requires more than a willingness to get involved. It requires a good understanding of how the policy-making process works and who the key players are.

This document is intended to serve as a common-sense guide to the legislative decision making process. While it offers some general tips on getting your point across to members of Congress, its primary purpose is to give you---the Parkinson's advocate---basic information about the legislative process, how it works, and when you can have the greatest impact on the decisions that affect your life.

The Federal Legislative Process

Our government is based on a federalist system which divides all decision making between an executive branch, a legislative branch, and a judicial branch. This balance of power, which allows for checks and balances between branches of government, operates at both the federal and state levels.

At the federal level, the legislative branch or U.S. Congress consists of two houses, the U.S. Rouse of Representatives (435 members) and the U.S. Senate (100 members). Members of the House serve for a two-year term; Senators for a six-year term. Every two years, prior to the beginning of a new Congressional cycle, elections are held for all House seats and one-third of the Senate seats. A Congress is divided into two sessions, each lasting one year. For example, 1996 represents the 104th Congress, 2nd session.

To the average person, the process of getting a bill through Congress appears highly complex and technical. Actually, the process itself is fairly simple. What can be confusing to the layperson is (1) the volume of legislation pending before Congress and (2) the system Congress has for distributing its work. It is true that a great deal of legislation is handled by Congress each year. But only a handful of bills are of particular interest to the Parkinson's community. So once you familiarize yourself with the key committees responsible for handling Parkinson's related issues, following the progress of legislation will become much easier

Type of Bills

The key to deciphering the legislative process is understanding that legislation is grouped into three main categories. Authorizing legislation creates a new federal program or extends the life of an existing program. Authorizing bills, such as the Older Americans Act, usually set a ceiling on the maximum amount of funds that can be spent by a program for a period of 3 to 5 years. An authorizing bill establishes a framework for a federal program, but it does not provide funds to operate the program.

An appropriations bill allocates funding for specific federal programs. Unlike authorizing legislation, which remains in effect for 3 or more years, an appropriations bill must be passed every year. A good example of appropriations legislation is the 1996 NIH appropriations bill that provides funding for biomedical research.

The third type of bill is entitlement legislation. This is a measure that guarantees a certain level of benefits to persons who meet eligibility requirements set by law. The Medicare and Medicaid programs are examples of existing entitlement programs.

Once Parkinson's advocates understand the legislative process, they can help determine what action may be taken at different steps along the way. The following is an example of the typical path of legislation in the Congress.

Legislative Steps

1. Bill introduced in House or Senate. A bill may originate in either house of Congress. Each session of Congress considers and passes judgment on thousands of bills. On average, about 15,000 bills and resolutions are introduced in a Congress, but only about 600 become law during the two-year period.

2. Bill Referred to Committee. After being introduced and assigned an appropriate number by the presiding officer, the bill is referred to a specific committee(s) with jurisdiction over the proposed legislation. Bills are numbered sequentially during the two-year period of Congress. Senate bills are designated S. (e.g., S. 684--the Udall bill), and Rouse bills, H.R. (e.g., H.R. 1462--also the Udall bill), always with a different number

There are 22 standing committees in the House and 16 in the Senate, as well as several "Select" and "Special" committees. Membership is determined at the beginning of a two-year Congressional cycle. The member representing the majority party and having the most years as a member (seniority) is usually designated "chairperson." The most senior member of the minority party is usually designated "ranking minority member" Members are assigned to committees by caucus of their political party and these assignments are confirmed by a floor vote.

3. Bill Referred to Subcommittee. Once a committee receives a bill, it will usually assign it to an even more specialized subcommittee. While the bill is in the subcommittee, the chairperson has the power to report out (approve) the bill, or allow it to "die" in the subcommittee.

4. Congressional Hearing. When a committee or subcommittee considers a bill, it may first hold a hearing to allow experts and representatives of interest groups to provide testimony. Prior to the hearing, the subcommittee may also ask the General Accounting Office (GAO) and affected federal agencies to comment on the proposed legislation. After a hearing. all testimony is compiled and published in the Committee Hearing Report.

5. Subcommittee Mark-Up Session. Next, the subcommittee will hold a mark-up session, during which time amendments are offered which can change the meaning of the bill. After the subcommittee has completed its "mark-up," the bill is voted on, If it is approved, it is reported out to the full committee for further action

6. Committee Mark-Up and Vote. After consideration by a subcommittee, the full committee holds a mark-up session where further changes or amendments to the bill are considered and voted on. The committee then votes on whether to order the bill reported to the House or Senate. If the vote is in the affirmative, then an official version of the bill is prepared that contains all the changes approved by the committee.

7. Committee Formulates a Report. After the committee approves a bill, it formulates a Committee Report. This Report describes the bill and the committee's reasons for specific provisions in the legislation. It is written by committee staff and approved by the members. The Report is significant because it is used widely by other legislators and lobbyists to determine the meaning of a bill, and later by federal agencies who use the report to interpret the intent of the bill should it be-come public law.

8. Bill Sent to Floor of House or Senate for a Vote. Once approved by the committee, the bill goes to the floor of either the House or Senate for a vote. In the Rouse, the Rules Committee sets the order for bills to be debated, the time limit for debate, and what, if any, amendments will be allowed. Both houses have certain procedures and rules to assist in managing the consideration of a bill on the floor.

Generally, bills are voted on and either approved or rejected at the conclusion of floor debate. Once a bill has been approved an official copy of the bill is prepared ("engrossed") and signed by the presiding officer, and forwarded to the other legislative house. At this point the bill is now an "act" and is usually referred to the committee of jurisdiction for consideration.

9. Conference Committee Action. After similar bills have been approved by both houses, they are assigned to a Conference Committee made up of Senators and Representatives from the committees of jurisdiction, whose responsibility is to reconcile the differences in the House and Senate versions of the bill. After consensus is reached, a Conference Report is prepared to explain the agreements that were reached.

10. Consideration of Conference Report by Congress. After the Conference Report is filed it is sent back to the House and Senate for approval. Amendments to a Conference Report are not permitted; members can only reject or approve it. In most cases, decisions of the Conference Committee are accepted by both houses and the Conference Report is approved, usually by a voice vote. The bill is now sent to the President.

11. From the Legislative House to the White House. After Congress has approved a bill, it may take several days or weeks before it reaches the White House. The President has three choices of action on a new bill. If he signs the bill, it becomes public law. If he does not sign the bill within ten working days after he receives it, it automatically becomes law as long as Congress is in session. The President can "pocket veto" the bill when Congress adjourns before the ten days are up. The pocket veto only occurs when Congress is adjourning at the end of its second biennial session, not during the interim recess.

The President's third option is to veto (reject) the bill. It takes a two-thirds vote of both houses of Congress to override a Presidential veto. if Congress is successful in overriding the veto. the bill becomes law.

When a bill becomes law, it is given a new "Public Law" number and the Government Printing Office publishes the official text. All public laws are numbered to reflect the Congress which created the law (e.g., PL. 104-98 means the 98th law enacted during the 104th Congress).

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Last modified: February 19, 1999