If the bill survives, hearings may be held and reports are issued. At this point, a report number is assigned. The Act goes to the Senate where it undergoes the same legislative process. If each house passes differing versions of an Act, then both versions are sent to a conference committee comprising of member from both houses to hammer out agreed upon language. The Act is sent to the President who may veto it or sign it into law.
Reports are the most important documents in terms of determining legislative intent.
Floor debates can occur any time during the legislative process, but they usually occur after the bill has been reported out of committee. Because individual members of Congress can manipulate the floor discussion, the importance of the debate transcripts in determining legislative intent is reduced. Go to unofficial and official legislative history sources. C ontains no pending legislation or abstracts Monthly Catalog indexes Committee Reports and hearings. Congress contact the bills clerk for information on pending legislation.