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New Hampshire State Senate. North Carolina State Senate. North Dakota State Senate. Pennsylvania State Senate. Rhode Island State Senate. South Carolina State Senate. How is the President of the Senate elected? When the position of President of the Senate becomes vacant, the election of a President is given priority over other Senate business. It begins with a senator proposing to the Clerk, who acts as chairman, that a senator who is present be President of the Senate.
If no other senator is proposed, that Senator is called to the chair and becomes President. When two or more senators are proposed as President, a secret ballot is conducted. Each senator is provided with a ballot paper on which to write the name of a candidate, and if one candidate receives a majority of the votes of the senators present he or she is declared elected. If, in the case of two candidates, the vote is tied, the vote is taken again; and if they are still tied, the Clerk determines by lot which candidate should be withdrawn.
Where there are more than two candidates and no-one receives a majority of votes on the first count, the candidate having the smallest number of votes withdraws and a fresh vote is taken. The office of President of the Senate is conventionally taken by a member of the party which holds a majority in the House of Representatives the government , while the Deputy President is a member of the largest opposition party. Australian Parliament House is currently closed to the public.
Once a bill has been introduced, reported out by a committee and is on the calendar for consideration by the full Senate, it can still be amended. The sponsor of the bill, for example, can submit the changes to the Bill Drafting Commission; the bill, now in its amended form, retains its original number, but amended versions are denoted by a letter suffix A, B, C, D and so on for each time the bill is altered. However, beyond this, any Senator may amend a given bill by offering amendments to it on the Senate floor, even if he or she is not one of the bill's sponsors.
This method allows all members access to a bill's language, opening it to the suggestions and opinions of members who may like the essential ideas of the bill, but disagree with the sponsor on one or more of the legislation's details. Moreover, since the amendments are offered in open session, all members can ask questions and discuss the merits of the proposed amendments.
After explanation, discussion or debate, a vote is taken. If a majority of the Senators approves, the bill is sent to the Assembly.
In the Assembly, you again have a chance to influence the bill as it moves through a process basically the same as that in the Senate. It is referred to a committee for discussion, and if approved there, it goes to the full membership for a vote. If the bill is approved in the Assembly without amendment, it goes on to the Governor. However, if it is changed, it is returned to the Senate for concurrence in the amendments. The reverse procedure is followed if the Assembly first passes a bill identical to a Senate measure or if the Senate amends an Assembly bill.
Sometimes the Senate and Assembly pass similar bills, but cannot easily reconcile the differences between them in a reasonable time frame. In such cases, a procedural device called a conference committee can be used to iron out the differences. The Senate Majority Leader and Assembly Speaker each appoint five members from their respective houses to serve on this committee. After agreement is reached, a bill is printed and processed like any other bill.
While the Legislature is in session, the Governor has 10 days not counting Sundays to sign or veto bills passed by both houses. Signed bills become law; vetoed bills do not.
However, the Governor's failure to sign or veto a bill within the day period means that it becomes law automatically. Vetoed bills are returned to the house that first passed them, together with a statement of the reason for their disapproval. A vetoed bill can become law if two-thirds of the members of each house vote to override the Governor's veto.
If a bill is sent to the Governor when the Legislature is out of session, the rules are a bit different. At such times, the Governor has 30 days in which to make a decision, and failure to act "pocket veto" has the same effect as a veto. Citizen comment is an important part of the legislative process. Public opinion often affects the shape of a bill as well as its eventual success or failure. Remember, your input can play a crucial role in determining how a bill becomes a law.
This document is your manual to the legislative process as it functions in the New York State Senate.
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