Question

Which of the following statements about the committee deliberation of a bill is accurate?

1) Full committees may use the recommendations resulting from subcommittee hearing or hold their own hearing
2) The Constitution assures that both parties have adequate time to study a bill before markup
3) Committees are required to hold a hearing over each bill referred to them.
4) Roughly half of all bills sent to committee never reached the floor of their respective chambers.

Answer 1

The accurate statement regarding the committee deliberation of a bill is that full committees may utilize subcommittee recommendations or hold their own hearings. Most bills die in committee and only a small percentage reach the floor for a full vote, after going through necessary discussions, amendments, and reporting.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement "Full committees may use the recommendations resulting from subcommittee hearings or hold their own hearing" is accurate when describing committee deliberation of a bill. During the legislative process, full committees have the discretion to build upon the work of subcommittees or to independently conduct additional hearings to gather more information. If a committee wishes to proceed with a bill, it will discuss amendments and legislative language, and following a markup session, potentially send the bill to the respective chambers with a report outlining the majority and minority opinions.

Considering the large volume of bills referred to committees, it is worth emphasizing that most bills die in committee and never reach the floor for a full vote. When a bill is tabled in committee, it is typically the end, although there remains a procedural possibility to revisit it. Ultimately, only a fraction of proposed legislation moves on to be debated and potentially enacted by the full legislative body.