Free tool · The Legislature
How a Bill Becomes a Law: Filibuster, Veto and Override Arithmetic
In the US Congress a bill must pass both chambers in identical form. It needs a majority in the House and, in the Senate, a majority of those voting, after any filibuster is ended by cloture, which needs three-fifths of senators sworn (60 of 100). Budget reconciliation bills are protected from the filibuster. The President can sign the bill, veto it, or do nothing: after ten days (Sundays excepted) it becomes law without signature if Congress is in session, but fails by pocket veto if Congress has adjourned. A vetoed bill returns to Congress, which can override by a two-thirds vote of those present and voting in each chamber. The arithmetic is the whole game: 66 of 100 is just short of two-thirds.
Tool · Bill Path Tracker
The veto is sustained: the bill does not become law.
House vote: 230 to 200: a majority of those voting, assuming a quorum is present. The bill passes the House.
Cloture in the Senate: Cloture needs three-fifths of senators sworn (60 of 100), and the supporters have 62. Debate can be ended.
Senate vote: 62 to 38: the bill passes the Senate.
Same text: Both chambers have passed identical text (or adopted a conference report), so the bill is presented to the President.
President: The President vetoes the bill and returns it to the chamber where it began with objections. Congress may override.
Override: House: 280 to 150: an override needs two-thirds of those present and voting (a quorum being present). The House falls short (it needs at least 287 of 430).
Override: Senate: 64 to 36: the Senate falls short (it needs at least 67 of 100).
- The numbers are those of the United States Congress (435 representatives, 100 senators), with the cloture threshold of three-fifths of senators sworn. Other legislatures have different rules. Rules of procedure can be changed by each chamber.
- A bill dies at the end of a Congress if it has not become law. The President can sign, veto or let it become law without signature (if Congress is in session) or suffer a pocket veto (if Congress has adjourned and cannot receive the return).
Follows an invented bill through the House, the Senate (with the filibuster and cloture, or budget reconciliation), agreement on text, the President’s options and a veto override, with the vote arithmetic. It uses the rules of the United States Congress in simplified form; chamber rules change and other legislatures differ. A teaching aid, not legal advice. Runs in your browser; nothing is stored or sent.
How to use it
- Enter the House and Senate votes and whether there is a filibuster.
- Say whether both chambers passed the same text.
- Choose what the President does, and enter the override votes if there is a veto.
- Read where the bill stops or whether it becomes law.
Common questions
What does cloture do?
It ends debate on a filibustered measure. It needs three-fifths of the senators sworn, which is 60 of 100, not just of those voting.
What is a pocket veto?
When the President does not sign a bill and Congress has adjourned so that it cannot receive a returned bill, the bill dies without a chance of override.
Do other countries use the same rules?
No. The numbers and procedures are those of the United States Congress. Other legislatures differ widely.
Learn the law behind the tool
This tool is part of our The Legislature course, with lectures, concept maps, flashcards, interactive exercises and a capstone case. The Legislature: How a Bill Becomes a Law.
More free law tools
General information, simplified, mainly on American law, not legal advice. States and countries differ, and real cases turn on facts that a tool cannot capture.