Rules of its Proceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behaviour, and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Memberö (Article I, Section 5). The Constitution states only that all bills that pass both houses must be presented to the President, and the President must either sign the bill (resulting in enactment) or veto it. Any vetoed bill is returned to the chamber where it originated along with the PresidentÆs objections. Only by a two-thirds vote in both houses can Congress override the PresidentÆs veto.
Thus, both houses have established a system (some might say an obstacle course) for reviewing legislative proposals. Upon introduction, the bill is referred to the appropriate committee or subcommittee for analysis. Many bills fall under the jurisdiction of more than one committee. Such was the case with H.R. 3103. The House leadership referred the bill to the Ways and Means Committee, the Committees on Economic and Educational Opportunities, Commerce, and the Judiciary, and the Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations.
The makeup of the committees and subcommittees reflects Congress as a whole. The majority party in each chamber holds the majority of seats on each committee and subcommittee, and the chairpersons are all from the majority party. Certain committees are the most powerful (such as Ways and Means in the House and Foreign Relations in the Senate) and thus the most coveted assignments. All of the committees and subcommittees have extensive staffs, many of whom also wield considerable influence. Once the bill has been referred to committee, the committee chairperson refers it to the proper subcommittee. If the chairperson does not refer the bill, then only the committee will consider the issue.
Most bills never progress past the committee stage. Indeed, most are not even considered by the committee or subcommittee, and simply languish until they die. The only way a bill can escape...