The Legislative Process and Healthcare Lobbying

The Legislative Process and Healthcare Lobbying

Valerie Holthaus

Ohio University

The Legislative Process and Healthcare Lobbying

The Constitution grants Congress the sole authority to enact legislation, which simply put, means laws. The United States Congress considers thousands of bills each year but only a small percentage make it to the President for approval or veto. Bills go through a plethora of committees and subcommittees, debates, and amendments in both chambers of Congress. This is known as the Legislative Process. The purpose of this paper is to discuss and define the Legislative Process, analyze a current political issue as related to health care, and to state my stance on the issue.

Part One

Legislative Process

The Legislative Process takes place in the Legislative Branch of the federal government of the United States. The Legislative Branch consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate, which together form the United States Congress. The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. The Senate is composed of 100 Senators, 2 for each state. According to Congress (2011), the Legislative Process starts with a thought that eventually becomes a law. Members of Congress (2011) sponsor the bills. The bills are given to committees in the House or Senate to be studied (Congress, 2011). The bill is then put on the calendar to be voted on, debated, or amended (Congress, 2011). As per Congress (2011), the bill then goes through hearings where officials, supporters, and opponents can put their views on the record. After that the committee changes the bill if necessary (Congress, 2011). Next, the bill is moved to the Senate or House, also referred to as the chambers of Congress (2011). The committee chairman then, as reported by Congress (2011), has the staff formulate a written report on the bill. The report illustrates the purpose and breadth of the bill, the views of disagreeing persons of the committee, where the executive branch stands on the bill, and its effect on current laws (Congress, 2011). The bill then goes back to the Senate or House and is placed on the calendar (Congress, 2011). The bill is then debated. From there, the bill is voted on to be passed or declined by the representatives (Congress, 2011). The bill then goes through the same process through the other chamber. Any changes from there must be approved by both the House and the Senate before moving to the final step, which is sending the bill to the President (Congress, 2011). The President can then sign the bill and it becomes the law or they can veto it (Congress, 2011). If vetoed, Congress can override the veto which requires a two thirds roll call vote