Mission-based Advocacy Toolkit from Alliance for Children & Families

How a Bill Becomes a Law
© January 2006 The Alliance for Children and Families 5
Part I: The Basics of Government
The process by which a bill becomes a law is also essentially the same everywhere.
Details will differ from state to state and among localities, but everywhere the basics are
the same.
At every level of government, the legislative process is set up to answer 3 questions
about every idea offered in the form of a proposed bill:
1. Is it a good idea from a policy perspective? (that is answered in a relevant policy
committee – e.g., the health committee, the education committee, the children &
families committee)
2. Is it a good use for the taxpayers' money? (that is answered in a relevant fiscal
committee – often called Appropriations, or, Ways & Means)
3. Can a majority of the citizens support it? (that is answered on the floor of the
House & Senate with all the members present, a time when all of us are
represented; or, at the local level, it occurs in the full City or County Council).
We can influence a bill at every stage in this legislative process.
• Ideas for bills often come to legislators from constituents, e.g., during
conversations, from testimony offered at a legislative hearing, or in the course of
a “Site Visit” to an agency or program. Ordinary citizens can – and often do -
work with lawmakers to initiate or develop an idea as a bill.
• Legislators’ positions on bills – including whether to become one of the bill’s cosponsors
and whether to vote AYE or NAY - are frequently influenced by the
calls, letters, and visits of constituents concerned about an issue.
• Modifications to bills (e.g., amendments to another legislator’s bill, where to set
funding levels) often result from testimony, or the comments of constituents
knowledgeable about an issue.
• Even a Mayor, Governor, or President’s decision to sign or veto a bill can be
influenced by the voters.
With so much potential power at our command, it would be a shame not to use it. Here
too, the issue isn’t whether you can become an expert in the process or the laws.
Alliance for Children and Families policy staff, national organizations (like the Child
Welfare League of America, the Children’s Defense Fund), and experienced lobbyists all
play that role. You just need to follow the issues most important to you, and take action
when you’re told your voice is needed. The rest of this TOOLKIT will make it easier for
you to do that effectively – and in ways that can fit into busy lives.
Best of all, not only is it important to be involved – it’s allowed.