Gale Encyclopedia of American Law Volume 6 P31 fully illuminates today's leading cases, major statutes, legal terms and concepts, notable persons involved with the law, important documents and more. Legal issues are fully discussed in easy-to-understand language, including such high-profile topics as the Americans with Disabilities Act, capital punishment, domestic violence, gay and lesbian rights, physician-assisted suicide and thousands more. | 288 LEGISLATION committee chair is in charge of the committee and requests for a slot on the agenda of the committee must be directed to the chair and the chair s staff. An autocratic chair can decide which bills to consider without consulting committee members but much of the work of a committee is done by consensus. Competition for committee time is generally intense. Usually bills that are heard are essential popular or generally beneficial. Occasionally they are noncontroversial or not especially appealing to the chair. A bill can even be scheduled merely to impede another unfavorable proposal. If a spot cannot be attained on the agenda a sponsor can seek consideration by a subcommittee so that a rough proposal can be polished into a draft that will be more appealing to the full committee. Legislative procedure is designed so that a bill is heard when a need for it is demonstrated. Unnecessary or poorly drafted bills are bottled up in committees where no one takes time to consider them. As a bill approaches passage it becomes more difficult to amend it or kill it. Efforts made early in the history of the bill are generally more effective. For example fewer members have to be persuaded when a bill is still being considered by a committee and fewer compromises have to be made. If a committee decides not to act on a bill and tables it that bill is effectively stopped for that session of the legislature. If the committee recommends that the bill be indefinitely postponed the bill is formally killed and that recommendation is reported to the floor as a committee report to be confirmed by house vote. ADOPTION of the committee report officially kills the bill. If the committee recommends that the bill be passed the bill is submitted to the floor with a favorable report which is essential to its passage. If the bill must go through more than one committee the first committee must then refer it to the second and the first favorable decision gives it some momentum toward
