#AskTechCongress: What is the process of amending a bill?

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The process of amending a bill is a fundamental part of congressional lawmaking. While it may have the biggest effect on legislation itself, it is often the least publicized. As legislation moves through Congress, amendments serve as critical tools to reshape, refine, and sometimes completely transform bills before they become law. Amendments represent the tangible expression of negotiation and compromise that define congressional procedure. 

An amendment is a proposed change to legislation. Once a bill is introduced, it is assigned to the relevant committee, which holds hearings before entering the mark-up session.¹ This period is when amendments can be submitted. Changes can range from minor adjustments in wording to complete substitutions that replace entire sections of a bill. A first-degree amendment is a change to the text in a bill, and a second-degree amendment is a change to the text in a first-degree amendment.² In addition, an amendment that replaces a bill’s full text is an amendment in the nature of a substitute, while an amendment that replaces a first-degree amendment’s full text is a substitute amendment. These amendments upon amendments can be complicated, and drawing amendment trees can help visualize these relationships. While the terminology can be confusing, what is most important is that the members of the committee the bill was referred to will then vote to accept or reject these changes. If the changes are accepted, then the bill will then go to the floor of the chamber.³ 

Between the House and Senate, there are some key differences in the amendment process: 

• In the House of Representatives, the Rules Committee acts as the gatekeeper for amendments. For most legislation, this powerful committee issues a "rule" determining whether amendments will be permitted and in what quantity. These can range from open rules allowing any relevant amendment to closed rules prohibiting all amendments.

• The Senate operates with fewer procedural constraints. For example, amendments can have minimal connection to the underlying bill and lead to "Christmas tree bills," where unrelated amendments are attached like ornaments.

When amendments to bills are accepted and passed on the floor of one body of Congress, it must go to the other body and again go through the process of discussion, amendments, and voting.

The CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 offers a perfect case study of the amendment process. What began as a targeted investment in semiconductor manufacturing evolved substantially through amendments, and TechCongress fellows supported this process with critical expertise. One particularly significant amendment was the Senate’s incorporation of the Endless Frontier Act to transform the bill into a much broader innovation package.⁴ This expanded the legislation's scope from primarily semiconductor funding to include comprehensive research and development initiatives across multiple agencies. CHIPS also illustrates how final changes can be made even past the bill being signed into law. A month after its signing, the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology published a Guardrails Rule to prevent companies receiving CHIPS funding from expanding semiconductor manufacturing in countries of concern—addressing national security considerations that were not fully articulated in the original text.⁵ These amendments demonstrate the iterative changes of congressional procedure through technical expertise and stakeholder input.

Amendments hold leverage as bargaining chips in larger negotiations, especially during crucial time periods like the end of a session. Leadership may agree to allow certain amendments to secure votes for final passage, while members might withhold problematic amendments in exchange for other concessions. The amendment process reveals the true character of Congress—requiring both collaborative relationships and technical expertise, ultimately serving as the engine that transforms abstract ideas into the laws that govern our nation.

References

¹https://www.house.gov/the-house-explained/the-legislative-process/in-committee 

²https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/98-853 

³https://www.usa.gov/how-laws-are-made 

⁴https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/4346/summary/72 

⁵https://www.nist.gov/chips/frequently-asked-questions-preventing-improper-use-chips-act-funding

#AskTechCongress: What does it mean for Congress to be at the end of a session?

TechCongress aims to bridge the divide of knowledge and experience between politics and tech for better outcomes for both. Our new #AskTechCongress series will answer your questions about Congress, providing insight into the legislative process from an introductory perspective. Submit questions and keep updated with the series by subscribing to our Today In Tech newsletter.

On January 3, 2025, the second session of the 118th United States Congress will officially come to a close, marking the end of this legislative period. In the time leading up to January, Congress may finalize pending bills, address budget appropriations, and attempt to pass key policies before the transition of power to newly elected Congress members. Negotiations and compromises on last-minute “omnibus” bundle bills and other unresolved pieces of legislation are common. With 18,455 bills and resolutions currently before Congress, and only about 7% passing and becoming law¹, this session marks an important shift in both legislative priorities and political dynamics. 

The term “session” describes the series of meetings held by the House of Representatives and the Senate each year. With elections every two years, each Congress serves for two legislative sessions. Because of the 20th Amendment, Congressional sessions have started and ended at noon on the January 3rd of odd numbered years since 1935². Before this amendment, sessions began with inaugurations in March and ended with elections in November. This created a four month “lame duck” period where members of Congress serving out the rest of their term were limited in their ability to hold meetings and carry out major changes during their last days in office. This shift in the timing of Congressional sessions provides a framework for understanding how the legislative calendar unfolds, from the introduction of bills to the final adjournment.

The legislative timeline consists of bill introductions, committee hearings, debates, votes, and more, but it typically concludes with a sine die adjournment. “Sine die”—“without a day” in Latin—signifies an end to a session without a specified date to reconvene, meaning Congress will not meet again until the next session. The exact timing of adjournment depends on various factors including legislative deadlines and elections, so instead, a target adjournment date—December 20th for this session³—is set before the holidays.

Ending a session plays a crucial role in legislative strategy, as any bills that are not passed into law by the end of the session will “die” and must be reintroduced in a future session. This puts lawmakers under pressure to pass—or block—critical measures before the session ends. Issues such as budget, defense, and healthcare are frequently brought up in last-minute policy proposals, and multiple bills may be repackaged into a single one to be voted on. The end of session may even include Senate confirmations of federal positions and judicial appointments. 

This waiting period before the new year puts Congress under a magnified lens of public scrutiny. People evaluate the “productivity” of a Congressional session by how many significant bills it passes. This adds more pressure for parties to push initiatives in the final months, and especially during a Presidential Election year since both major parties pivot priorities to fulfill campaign promises. 

The legacy of the 118th Congress will depend on how it prioritizes different issues and navigates the political landscape. Recognizing the importance of this phase of the legislative process is the first step in understanding the nuance and impact of the Congressional session. 

References

¹https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/#bystatus 

²https://www.reaganlibrary.gov/constitutional-amendments-amendment-20-date-changes-presidency-congress-and-succession

³https://www.senate.gov/legislative/2024_schedule.htm