Unit 12 Law-making Process in the USA

 

Before you read

Answer these questions.

 

1 What are laws necessary for?

2 Why are new laws adopted?

 

Text A

The Concept of Bicameral Legislature

The US Congress, the lawmaking arm of the federal government, consists of two houses: the House of Representatives and the Senate. Any congressman in either house, or the President, may initiate new legislation (but only the House of Representatives proposes finance bills).

The proposed legislation, or bill, is first introduced in the House of Representatives, then referred to one of the standing committees. The committee responsible for a particular bill holds hearings on it. Experts appear before the committee and offer suggestions and opinions about the bill. After the hearings, the committee reports its recommendations to the House. These recommendations may include suggested changes in the bill, or the committee may propose an entirely new one. Committee recommendations are of great importance because, when the legislators vote on a bill, they usually follow the committee report. If a committee chooses not to consider the bill, the bill dies. It is nearly impossible for a bill to reach the House or Senate floor without first winning committee approval. If the committee passes the bill, it is considered by the House of Representatives as a whole. If passed here, it goes to the Senate for a similar sequence of committee hearings and general debate.

In cases of disagreement, the House of Representatives and the Senate confer together. Once passed by the Senate as a whole, the bill has to be examined by two more standing committees – the Committee on House Administration and the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration – and is then signed by the speaker of the House and by the president of the Senate.

Finally, it must be signed by the President.

The bill becomes law following one or several steps by the President. He may approve the bill and sign it; he may sign the bill with a statement expressing his disapproval; or he may simply not sign the bill, in which case it automatically becomes law after ten days. But if the President wants to prevent the bill from becoming law, he vetoes it. But the proposal may still become law if two-thirds of each house of Congress then vote for it, thus overriding, or defeating the President’s veto. This does not happen often. The President may also use the “pocket veto” by withholding his signature within ten days of congressional adjournment.

 

How Congress Makes Laws

Analyse the chart and commentary to it. Then comment on it.

Commentary

(1) A bill concerning taxes or the budget must begin in the House of
Representatives

(2) There are some standing committees in the houses of Congress

(3) If a committee tables a bill, Senators or Representatives can force it out of a committee with a majority vote.

(4) This step often "kills" the bill.

(5) If the second house of Congress amends the bill, the first house must agree to the changes.

(6) If the President does nothing and Congress adjourns within ten days, the bill does not become law.

 

Vocabulary

 

adjourn v 1 отсрочивать; 2 откладывать

adjournment n отсрочка

amend the bill вносить поправки (изменения, дополнения) в законопроект

arm n власть

Committee on House Administration комитет палаты по управлению делами

confer v совещаться, вести переговоры

defeat v отвергать, отклонять, проваливать (законопроект)

die v прекращать существование

force out v вытеснять

hearing n слушание, устное разбирательство

initiate legislation осуществлять законодательную инициативу

override a veto отвергнуть вето

pass a bill принимать / утверждать законопроект

pocket veto «карманное вето» (неподписание президентом США законопроекта до роспуска конгресса)

refer v 1 направлять; 2 отсылать; 3 передавать (дело) в другую инстанцию

Senate Committee on Rules and Administration сенатский комитет по регламенту и управлению делами

sequence n 1 последовательность; 2 порядок следования

signature n подпись

table v 1 откладывать или оттягивать обсуждение; 2 класть под сукно, откладывать в долгий ящик

veto v налагать запрет /вето (на законопроект)

veto n вето, запрет, запрещение

withhold v 1 приостанавливать; 2 отказывать (в чем-либо)

 

Reading tasks

A Answer these questions.

 

1 Who can initiate new legislation in the USA?

2 Where is the proposed bill first introduced?

3 Where are hearings on a particular bill held?

4 What can committee recommendations include?

5 When is the bill considered by the House of Representatives as a whole?

6 Is the bill viewed in the Senate?

7 What can the result of the debate be?

8 Under what circumstances does the bill become law? Is there only one way to it?

9 Who has the right of veto?

 

B Decide which of statements a), b) or c) in the exercise below corresponds exactly to the meaning of the text and best completes each statement.

 

1 Tax or budget bill may be proposed by

a) the President

b) the representatives

c) the senators.

 

2 After being introduced in the House, the bill undergoes hearings

a) in the Senate

b) in the White House

c) in one of the standing committees.

 

3 The bill dies if

a) the committee chooses not to consider the bill

b) the committee suggests changes in the bill

c) the committee proposes an entirely new bill.

 

4 The bill goes to the Senate for committee hearings and general debate if

a) it is passed in the House committees

b) it is given recommendations for changes

c) it is passed in the House of Representatives as a whole.

5 Once passed by the Senate as a whole and viewed by two more standing committees the bill is then

a) signed by the congressmen

b) signed by the heads of both chambers of the Congress

c) signed by the President.

6 The bill becomes law if the President

a) approves the bill and signs it

b) uses the “pocket veto” by withholding his signature within ten days of congressional adjournment

c) vetoes the bill.

C Using the following scheme speak on the process of law-making in the USA.

 

 

Before H.R. 2362 became a law, it had to make a number of stops on its journey through Congress.

_______

* H.R. – House of Representatives

Language focus

Complete the following text putting the words in brackets into the appropriate present simple active or passive form and the appropriate active or passive form of the infinitive.

 

Congressmen 1) _____ (do) work long and hard. But most of their work 2) _____ (do) in committee meetings. Here bills 3) __ ___ (study), experts 4) ___ __ (consult), and recommendations 5) __ ___ (make) to the whole House or Senate. During a two-year term of Congress, as many as 20,000 bills may 6) __ ___ (introduce). Some may be important, some not, but no Congressman could possibly 7) _ ____ (know) enough about 20,000 bills to vote intelligently on them. Here’s where the committees 8) __ ___ (come) in. There 9) _____ (be) 16 “standing”, or permanent, committees in the Senate and 22 in the House. Each committee 10) _____ (sit) and 11) _____ (sort) the bills it 12) _____ (be) responsible for. Because the Congressmen on a committee 13) _____ (be) experts in that field, they 14) _ ____ (accept) and 15) _ ____ (improve) some bills, but 16) _____ (reject) most of them.

Generally Congress 17) _____ (go) along with the decisions of its committees. For a bill to become a law it must 18) _____ (pass) by both the House and the Senate and signed by the President. If the President 19) _____ (disapprove), he 20) _____ (veto) the bill by refusing to sign it and 21) _____ (send) it back to Congress. The President’s objections 22) _____ (read) and 23) _____ (debate), then the bill 24) _____ (put) to vote. To overcome the President’s veto the bill must 25) _____ (get) a two-thirds majority in each chamber.

 

Vocabulary tasks

A Explain the meaning of the words and word-combinations in italics from the context.

1 The committee … holds hearings on it.

2 Then the vote is taken.

3 … if two-thirds of each house of Congress then vote for it … thus overriding … the President’s veto.

4 The President may also use the “pocket veto” by withholding his signature within ten days of congressional adjournment.

 

B Match the words in the first and second columns as they occur in the text.

 

	committee	a	bill
	general	b	veto
	finance	c	debate
	suggested	d	adjournment
	congressional	e	hearings
	pocket	f	changes

 

C Use an appropriate word or phrase from the box to complete the sentences.

 

to introduce bills in favour of vote law houses is passed standing committees the President to veto lawmaking chairmen

 

The legislative work of Congress is done mostly in 1) _____. Each standing committee specializes in certain spheres of 2) _____: foreign affairs, defense, finance, agriculture, etc. The committees are headed by influential 3) _ ____.

Each house has the power 4) __ ___ on any subject. Important bills may be suggested by 5) _____ or other executive officials. After introduction all bills are sent to certain committees. When a committee is 6) _____ a bill, it is sent to the Congress for open debate. When the debate is over, members 7) _____ to approve the bill or to defeat it. After the bill 8) _ ____ by both 9) _____, it is sent to the President for his approval. However, the President has the right 10) _____ the bill. The bill vetoed by the President must be re-approved by a two-thirds vote in both houses to become 11) _____.

 

Over to you

Discuss the following economic and moral issue.

 

Should a senator oppose a bill that might hurt some of his constituents even if it would help many people throughout the country? Here is the issue:

 

Senator Smith comes from a farm state where many people raise cattle that are sold for meat. Meat prices are high, and the farmers in the senator's state are making a lot of money. Prices are so high, however, that many people throughout the country cannot afford to buy meat.

Senator Barnes comes from an industrial state and has proposed a bill to encourage the purchase of less expensive meat from Argentina and Australia. The purchase of a large amount of this meat would probably bring down meat prices in the United States generally. As a result, Senator Smith's constituents would make less money. On the other hand, more people could buy meat at lower prices.

How should Senator Smith vote on Senator Barnes's bill? (He is also hoping for a re-election to still another term.)

 

Act out this situation. Give all the pros and the cons.

(From "Speaking in the USA")

Text B