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Article I, Section 7

Clause 1

All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other bills.

All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other bills. Only the House may propose bills that raise money. The Senate has the power to amend a revenue bill when it is sent to it from the House.

Clause 2

Every bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it becomes law, be presented to the president of the United States; if he approves he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with his objections to that house in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the objections at large on their journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such reconsideration two thirds of that house shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two thirds of that house, it shall become a law. But in all such cases the votes of both houses shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the persons voting for and against the bill shall be entered on the journal of each house respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the president within ten days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if head signed it, unless the Congress by their adjournment prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law.

After both houses have passes a bill, it must then be sent to the President. The President must chose one of three courses of action: (1) sign the bill, thus enacting it as a law; (2) veto or reject the bill, which then returns it to the house in which it originated; or (3) not sign the bill and thus let it become a law after ten days (excluding Sundays) from its receipt from Congress have passed. This last option allows the President to express his disapproval over a bill without stopping it from becoming a law. At the end of a congressional session there is a fourth option: if the President does not act within ten days and Congress is adjourned within this period, the bill dies. This is called a "pocket veto." A veto may be overridden by a two-thirds vote in each house.

Clause 3

Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except in question of adjournment) shall be presented to the president of the United States; and before the same shall take effect, shall be approved by him, or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the rules and limitations prescribed in the case of a bill.

A joint resolution that has been passed by the House and Senate and signed by the President carries the force of law. Joint resolutions that propose a Constitutional amendment are not submitted to the President, as a matter of custom. Concurrent and simple resolutions are not submitted to the President because they do not have the force of law.

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© Copyright 1997 Jonathan Chin & Alan Stern