How a Bill Becomes a Law

Click to view the detailed description of the legislative procedure.

An idea emerges.
Laws begin equally ideas for governance that Council members (elected officials of the District'south legislative co-operative of regime) codify for the edification of the lives of residents and the productiveness of businesses and organizations in the District of Columbia.

A written document is produced.
These ideas are recorded on paper in a drafting way developed to ensure clarity of intent and consistency of presentation.

A bill is built-in.
Once these ideas are developed and memorialized in writing, a Council member introduces the document by filing information technology with the Secretary to the Council.  At this point, the certificate becomes a Bill (or proposed law) and is the property of the Quango.

Other entities may innovate a pecker.
The District'south Charter allows the Mayor to introduce bills before the Quango equally well.  As well, under its Rules of Organization, the Council allows Charter contained agencies to innovate bills.  Both the Mayor and the Charter contained agencies introduce bills before the Council via the Chairman of the Council.
THE Pecker'S PATH

The bill is assigned to a committee.
At the time a Bill is introduced before the Council it is assigned to a committee of the Quango with expertise over the subject matter that the Bill addresses.  A commission is not obligated to review or consider the Nib.  If the committee chooses not to review the Nib during the 2-year period that the Quango is convened, the Neb will die and must exist introduced again when a new Quango is convened in order to be considered by that Council.  If the committee chooses to review the Bill, then it will unremarkably behave a hearing concerning the discipline affair of the Bill where the committee volition receive testimony from residents and government officials in support of and confronting the Neb.  The committee may make whatever changes it chooses to the Bill.  If the committee decides that information technology wants the Beak to go police, it will vote the Bill out of committee and prepare information technology for consideration past all xiii members of the Council.

Then information technology goes to the Commission of the Whole.
Once a Bill is reported out of committee, the Bill is considered by a special commission of the Council that comprises all thirteen members of the Council.  That committee is called the Commission of the Whole, or "Cow" for curt.  At a meeting of the COW, the Council prepares all the bills that are to be considered for vote at the adjacent legislative meeting of the Council called to consider bills and other matters pending before the Council.  The Beak is placed on the agenda of the upcoming legislative meeting along with all other matters that will come up before the Council.

Becoming police.
A Bill "agendized" for a Council legislative coming together will be considered at that meeting.  The Bill volition exist discussed by the Council members and amended if the Council members decide that discussion and amendments are warranted.  If the Neb is approved by the Quango at this meeting by majority vote, it is placed on the agenda for the side by side Council legislative meeting that takes place at to the lowest degree 14 days after the nowadays coming together.  The Council then considers the Bill for a 2d time at the next meeting.  If the Council approves the Nib at second reading, the Beak is and so sent to the Mayor for his or her consideration.  The Mayor may take one of three actions when considering the Pecker: 1) sign the legislation; 2) allow the legislation to go effective without his or her signature; or 3) disapprove the legislation by exercising his or her veto power.  If the Mayor vetoes the legislation, the Quango must reconsider the legislation and approve information technology by 2-thirds vote of the Council in society for it to go effective.  One time the Mayor has approved the legislation or the Council has overridden the Mayor's veto, the legislation is assigned an Act number.

Non done however… the final steps to enactment.
Although at this point the Bill has finer become an Act, its journey to condign a law that must be obeyed past the populace is not withal consummate.  Unique to the District of Columbia, an approved Act of the Council must exist sent to the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate for a menstruation of 30 days before becoming effective every bit law (or 60 days for certain criminal legislation).  During this period of congressional review, the Congress may enact into constabulary a joint resolution disapproving the Council's Human action.  If, during the review period, the President of the United States approves the joint resolution, the Council's Act is prevented from becoming law.  If, however, upon the expiration of the congressional review period, no joint resolution disapproving the Council's Act has been canonical by the President, the Bill finally becomes a Law and is assigned a law number.

SPECIAL LEGISLATION (this is where things get a flake complicated).

Emergency Legislation
Because of the long and fourth dimension-consuming path a beak must take to become law under the District'south Charter, Congress has provided a machinery whereby the Council may enact legislation quickly, on a brusk term ground.  The District's Charter allows the Council to enact special "emergency" legislation without the need for a second reading and without the demand for congressional review.  Mayoral review is still required.  Also, by rule of the Council, this emergency legislation is not assigned to a committee and does not become through the Cow process.  The Charter requires that emergency legislation exist in effect for no longer than 90 days.

Temporary Legislation
Although emergency legislation allows the Council to immediately address a borough upshot, it presents a situation where the police will expire afterwards 90 days.  Experience has shown that xc days is not sufficient time for the Council to enact regular, "permanent" legislation before the emergency constabulary dies.  Therefore, by rule, the Council allows for the introduction of "temporary" legislation that may be introduced at the aforementioned time every bit emergency legislation and that bypasses the committee assignment and COW processes in the same manner every bit emergency legislation.  Unlike emergency legislation, however, but like regular legislation, temporary legislation must undergo a 2d reading, mayoral review, and the congressional review period.  Because temporary legislation bypasses the committee assignment and Moo-cow processes, information technology moves through the Quango much faster than regular legislation.  Temporary legislation remains in effect for no longer than 225 days, sufficient time for the Council to enact permanent legislation.

And so there are resolutions (legislation that does not become a law).
The Council has other legislative duties in add-on to creating laws to govern the populace.  Some of these duties are achieved by passing resolutions.  Resolutions are used to express simple determinations, decisions, or directions of the Council of a special or temporary grapheme, and to approve or disapprove proposed actions of a kind historically or traditionally transmitted by the Mayor and certain governmental entities to the Quango pursuant to an existing police force.  Resolutions are effective after only one reading of the Council and practise not crave mayoral or congressional review.