How a Bill Becomes Law

A bill can start in either chamber, except revenue bills, which must originate in the House. It is introduced, referred to committee, maybe amended, and voted on. If it passes one chamber, it goes to the other. Differences are reconciled — often in a conference committee — so both houses pass the same text.

The President then has options: sign it, veto it, or do nothing. A veto returns the bill with objections; Congress may override. If Congress is in session and the President sits on a bill for ten days (Sundays excepted), it becomes law without a signature. A pocket veto can kill a bill at the end of a session.

Most bills die in committee. That is the untelevised truth of legislating. The Schoolhouse Rock version is accurate as a skeleton and incomplete as a portrait — parties, rules, and the Senate filibuster (a chamber rule, not a constitutional command) shape what ever reaches a floor vote.