PROFILE OF LEGISLATIVE BRANCH


                        HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW

  Legislation. The process of deciding policy and enacting it into law is
carried out by the
legislature through the passage of bills, joint resolutions and "simple"
(one house) resolutions.
The purpose of a bill is to enact a law. A bill usually amends, creates,
repeals, renumbers,
renumbers and amends, or repeals and recreates a section of the Wisconsin
Statutes. The over-
whelming proportion of measures introduced in the legislature consists of
bills. A bill must go
through both houses of the legislature and be signed by the governor before
it becomes law.
Joint resolutions, which do not require the governor's signature, may be
introduced either for the
purpose of amending the constitution - the major purpose of such resolutions
- or for a vari-
ety of miscellaneous reasons, such as offering condolences or congratulations
to individuals or
expressing the opinion of the legislature on a given subject. Simple resolutions
are those adopted
by only one house and may be for such purposes as organizing the house at
the beginning of the
session or asking the attorney general for a legal opinion on a bill.
  Introducing A Bill. Following the drafting of a proposal by the Legislative
Reference Bureau,
the progress of a bill through the Wisconsin Legislature begins with its
introduction by one or
more authors (members of the house of introduction) and possibly cosponsors
(members of the
other house), or by a legislative committee. No one else may introduce a
bill (the executive
budget bill, however, is by law introduced by the Joint Committee on Finance
without change).
As elected officials, the lawmakers act as the representatives of the people.
Therefore, as every
bill introduced in the legislature states, "The people of the state
of Wisconsin, represented in
senate and assembly ....."make the laws. Although a bill may be introduced
in either house of the
legislature by members of that house with cosponsors from the other house,
sometimes identical
bills are introduced in both houses. Whichever way it is done, each measure
must go through the
regular procedures and be passed by the house of origin before it can go
to the other house,
where the process is repeated.
  Fiscal Estimates and Bill Analyses. On a routine basis the members of the
Wisconsin Legisla-
ture are supplied with certain factual information regarding every measure
introduced. In 1953,
Wisconsin pioneered "fiscal notes" to legislation, a procedure
which has been widely copied by
other states. Fiscal estimates put a price tag on legislation - every measure
which increases or
decreases state or local government revenues or expenditures must be accompanied
by a reliable
estimate of its short-range and long-range fiscal effects.  Most of the fiscal
estimates are pre-
pared by the agency which would ultimately administer the program if the
measure is enacted
into law. In the two highly technical areas of public retirement systems
and of tax exemptions,
the fiscal estimates are prepared by a joint survey committee of legislators
and others who, to-
gether with their own research assistants, evaluate not only the fiscal effect
of a proposal, but also
its legality under state and federal law and its desirability as a matter
of continuing public policy.
All bills for the appropriation of money, providing for revenue or relating
to taxation must be
referred to the Joint Committee on Finance before they can be enacted into
law.
   Since 1967, the Legislative Reference Bureau has prepared a bill analysis
of each proposal
introduced in the legislature. The analysis explains, in layman's language,
what the existing law
is and how it will change if the measure becomes the law of Wisconsin. The
analysis is printed in
the bill immediately following the title.
   First Reading. Upon introduction, each bill, joint resolution or resolution
is given a number
by the chief clerk and "read the first time". First reading consists
of the reading by the chief clerk
of that part of the proposal's title known as the "relating clause".
Immediately after the title is
read, the presiding officer refers the proposal to a standing committee for
review. In the Assem-
bly, copies of a written report showing the number and relating clause of
proposals offered for
introduction, together with the speaker's notation of committee referral,
may be distributed to
the representatives prior to the daily order of business known as "first
reading". Such distribu-
tion takes the place of first reading. Printed copies of each bill, joint
resolution or resolution are
available for distribution on the morning of the business day following the
day of introduction.
   A Hearing Is Held. At the discretion of the chairperson, the standing
committee to which a
proposal is referred may schedule and hold a hearing on the proposal. All
committee proceed-
ings are open to the general public. If a hearing is held, anyone may appear
to speak, or register,


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