Unorthodox lawmaking : new legislative processes in the U.S. Congress / Barbara Sinclair.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Sinclair, Barbara, 1940-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Legislation--United States.

Legislation.

United States--Politics and government--1993-.

United States.

Politics and government.

Physical Description:

xv, 261 pages ; 24 cm

Edition:

Second edition.

Place of Publication:

Washington, D.C. : CQ Press, [2000]

Summary:

This enlightening book takes a detailed look at the legislative process as it really is today, including the various detours and shortcuts a major bill is likely to encounter.

The contemporary legislative process is illustrated with real-life examples through a series of case studies on national service legislation, the Omnibus Drug Bill, and Clinton's economic program. Two other case studies focus on managed care regulation (new in this edition) and an updated look at the budget process from 1993 to 1999 (including the balanced budget deal between the President and Congress in 1997 and subsequent budget politics).

Contents:

Chapter 1 Clean Air: An Introduction to How the Legislative Process Has Changed 1

Chapter 2 Multiple Paths: The Legislative Process in the House of Representatives 9

Bill Introduction 10

Bill Referral 10

Postcommittee Adjustments 17

Special Rules 20

On the Floor 28

Unorthodox Lawmaking in the House 33

Chapter 3 Routes and Obstacles: The Legislative Process in the Senate 35

Bill Introduction 35

Bill Referral 36

Postcommittee Adjustments 39

Scheduling Legislation for the Floor 41

The Senate Floor 47

Unorthodox Lawmaking in the Senate 56

Chapter 4 Getting One Bill: Reconciling House-Senate Differences 57

Nonconference Reconciliation Procedures 57

Conference Committees 59

The Final Step 68

Reconciling Differences: How Much Change? 69

Chapter 5 Omnibus Legislation, the Budget Process, and Summits 70

Omnibus Legislation and the Budget Process 70

Congress, the President, and Summitry 77

What Is the Regular Process? 79

Chapter 6 Why and How the Legislative Process Changed 82

From Decentralization to Individualism in the Senate 82

Reform and Its Legacy in the House 84

Budget Reform 86

A Hostile Political Climate as a Force for Innovation: The 1980s and Early 1990s 87

How Internal Reform and a Hostile Climate Spawned Unorthodox Lawmaking 89

Unorthodox Lawmaking in the Republican Congress 103

The Evolution of Unorthodox Lawmaking: A Summary 107

Chapter 7 National Service Legislation: (Mildly) Unorthodox Lawmaking 109

Why National Service? Origins and Prospects 109

Committee Action 110

The Special Rule and House Floor Action 111

Senate Floor Action 114

The Final Steps 117

The Legislative Process on National Service Legislation: A Little Bit Unorthodox 117

Chapter 8 The "Patients' Bill of Rights": Unorthodox Lawmaking in a Highly Partisan Environment 121

Agenda Setting 121

Pre-Floor Partisan Maneuvering in the Senate 123

The Unanimous Consent Agreement 126

Senate Floor Consideration 128

Drafting Legislation in the House 130

Getting a Bill to the House Floor 131

The Special Rule 133

House Floor Consideration 134

Unorthodox Lawmaking in a Highly Partisan Environment 137

Chapter 9 The Omnibus Drug Bill: A "Designer" Legislative Process 143

Putting Together the House Bill 144

Designing the Rule 146

House Floor Action 147

Putting Together the Senate Bill 148

Getting the Bill to the Senate Floor 149

Reconciling House-Senate Differences: The Initial Phase 151

Resolving the Tough Ones: The "Supreme Court" Decides 153

Unorthodox Lawmaking in the House and Senate: Lessons from Three Cases 158

Chapter 10 The Budget Process as an Instrument for Policy Change: Clinton's Economic Program 160

Budget Policy Making and Politics: The Context in 1993 161

Committing to the Clinton Plan: Crafting and Passing the Budget Resolution 162

Delivering on Promised Policy Change: Reconciliation 164

Unified Government, Procedural Control, and Policy Success 181

Chapter 11 Republican Majorities, Divided Government, and Budget Politics 184

The Republican Revolution and the Budget Process, 1995-1996 184

Balancing the Budget, 1997 204

Budget Politics after the Balanced Budget Deal, 1998-1999 213

Chapter 12 The Consequences of Unorthodox Lawmaking 218

Lawmaking in the Contemporary Congress 218

Unorthodox Lawmaking and Legislative Outcomes 221

Other Costs and Benefits 226

Assessing Unorthodox Lawmaking 233.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 237-244) and index.

ISBN:

1568025726

1568025661

OCLC:

44391679