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Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. [1] Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill , and may be broadly referred to as "legislation" while it remains under consideration to distinguish it from other business.
For example, P. L. 111–5 (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) was the fifth enacted public law of the 111th United States Congress. Public laws are also often abbreviated as Pub. L. No. X–Y. When the legislation of those two kinds are proposed, it is called public bill and private bill respectively.
A bill does not become law until it has been passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Bills are introduced in the legislature and are there discussed, debated on, and voted upon. Once a bill has been enacted into law by the legislature, it is called an act of the legislature, or a statute.
The House and Senate are equal partners in the legislative process—legislation cannot be enacted without the consent of both chambers. Once a bill is approved by one house, it is sent to the other which may pass, reject, or amend it. For the bill to become law, both houses must agree to identical versions of the bill.
This is a chronological, but still incomplete, list of United States federal legislation. Congress has enacted approximately 200–600 statutes during each of its 118 biennial terms so more than 30,000 statutes have been enacted since 1789.
An act of parliament, as a form of primary legislation, is a text of law passed by the legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). [1] In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of parliament begin as a bill, which the legislature votes on.
The 117th United States Congress, which began on January 3, 2021, and ended on January 3, 2023, enacted 362 public laws and 3 private laws. [1] [2] Donald Trump, who was the incumbent president for the Congress's first seventeen days, did not enact any laws before his presidential term expired.
The 118th United States Congress, which began on January 3, 2023, and ended on January 3, 2025, has enacted 224 public laws and zero private laws. [1] [2] [3]In contrast with previous Congresses, which generally enacted their first laws no later than January or February, the 118th Congress's first law was enacted on March 20. [4]