How a Bill Becomes a Law in New York
Introduction: Generally, to become law a bill must be agreed to by the Governor and a majority of the State Legislature.
What is the State Legislature? The state legislature is comprised of two groups of elected officials, the State Senate and the State Assembly.
What is a Bill? A bill is a proposal for a law.
Who has the idea for a Bill? The idea for a bill can come from anyone.
Who Sponsors a Bill? A bill must be sponsored by a member of the State Legislature in order to be considered. Once a bill has a sponsor, it goes to Committee.
What is a Committee? A Committee is made up of a select number of elected officials from one House who are charged with focusing on certain issues, such as Mental Health. All legislators sit on Committees within their House.
How Does a Bill Get into Committee? The leader of each House, either the Speaker of the Assembly, or the Majority Leader of the Senate refers the bill to the appropriate Committee.
How does a bill get voted on by all members of a legislative body? A bill must gain the approval of each Committee it is sent to. This is called reporting out of a committee. Any bill that requires an expenditure of state funds must go through the Assembly's Ways and Means Committee or the Senate Finance Committee. After this, all bills must go through the Rules Committees, which is chaired by the leaders of the Senate and Assembly
When is a Bill Voted on by The Floor? Once a bill has passed by the Committees, it is taken to the Floor for a vote. The Floor includes either the entire Assembly or Senate, depending on where the bill was introduced.
When Does a Bill go to the Governor? A bill must pass both houses before moving to the Governor for passage. The exact same legislation must pass both houses.
What happens if there are two different versions of a bill? Unless the same version is passed by both houses, the bill will not become law.
How is the Governor involved? After a bill has passed both houses, it is delivered to the Governor for his signature. The Governor may approve or veto the bill.
How Does the Bill Veto Work? If the Governor vetoes a bill, he/she stops it from becoming law. A veto can be overridden by a two-thirds majority vote in each house.
Adapted from: http://www.bcnys.org
New York State Legislative Process
Becoming a Legislative Advocate
Legislative advocacy refers to efforts to influence elected officials, e.g. by voicing your complaints or ideas to your elected official.
Why should you get involved with legislative advocacy?
By getting involved you can change laws that affect your life. Most often it is the personal connection to legislation that elected officials remember. That is why laws are often named after people whose lives inspired them, e.g. Timothy's Law.
How to Influence as a Legislative Advocate:
Here are some ways advocates can influence elected officials
Suggest ideas for laws.
Educate others about an issue.
Work with the media.
Testify as to the merits of issues you care about.
Lobby for and against passage of relevant bills and budget items.
Adapted from:
"What is Legislative Advocacy" by Nonprofit Action
"So You Want to Make a Difference" by Nonprofit Action
Join us for Lobby Day in Albany on January 25. For information call Colleen 212-780-1400 Ext 723 or Melissa 646-602-5686.