Following a Bill in Congress I.
Stopping a Bill •
With rare exceptions, most bills that are voted on in Congress are controversial. Usually, most Democrats and most Republicans will disagree on economic, environmental, or social policies. Because of this, in order to get a bill passed it frequently requires compromise. Compromise between Democrats and Republicans creates balance and prevents either side from moving too far toward extreme points of view. •
However… on some matters compromise seems impossible. In those cases, opponents of a bill have several tools that they can use to try to stop it from passing. If a bill is brought for a vote in the Senate (“reported by committee”), opponents of the bill may use a delaying tactic called a “filibuster” to prevent the vote. A filibuster is when one or more senators give extremely long speeches to stop the vote from being called. The only way to stop a filibuster is with a vote of “cloture”, an agreement to bring an end to debate on a bill. Cloture requires 3/5 of the Senators (60) to agree. •
II.
Compromise Bills •
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The filibuster gives an advantage to the minority party to stop bills. They may not be able to pass their own bills, but by use of a filibuster they can very effectively limit what the majority party is able to do. Filibuster If a filibuster has blocked a bill, if a filibuster is threatened, or if the president makes clear that he will veto a bill, work begins on a compromise. The concerns of the minority party and/or of the president are addressed and a reworked bill is passed. If there are differences between the House and Senate versions of a bill, those differences must be worked out in a conference committee. This process also typically involves compromise. Sometimes, however, compromise proves difficult or impossible to achieve. In these cases, even with majority support, sometimes a bill dies. The budget bill being worked on right now seems likely to die because the two sides cannot yet agree on a compromise. Budget III.
A Bill Dies in Committee •
When a member of Congress proposes a bill (“drops it in the hopper”), it is then assigned to a standing committee to be researched. This is many times the end of the road; if a majority of the members of the committee oppose the idea, the bill is not worked on any further. In these cases, it is said to have “died” in committee. •
Clearly, a bill must overcome many hurdles before it becomes a law. This was the intent of the Framers. They wanted every bill to be studied carefully so that only good laws are enacted. http://thomas.loc.gov/home/LegislativeData.php?&n=BSS&c=112