How does a Bill become law in Illinois?

Your legislative district (determined by your address) has a House Representative and a Senator.  A bill must achieve a majority vote in both the House and the Senate, and then be signed by the governor to become a law. It is important to meet with both your Senator and your State Representative.  You can find out who they are here.

Here is the detailed process:

  1. Bill is Drafted.

  2. Bill is Introduced - A bill can be introduced in either the Senate or the House.  Only members can introduce bills.

  3. Sent to Committee: The Speaker of the House sends the bill to a committee.

  4. Committee Action: Most bills die here. The committee may pigeonhole, table, amend, or vote on the bill. If bill passes, it goes to Rules Committee.

  5. Rules Committee: It decides the rules for debate, and when the bill will come up for debate.

  6. Floor Action: House debates the bill and may add amendments. If a majority votes in favor of the bill, it goes to the Senate.

  7. If Introduced in Senate: A Senator introduces the bill, which is sent to a committee.

  8. Committee Action: Same procedure as in the House. If the committee majority votes for the bill, it goes to the whole Senate.

  9. Bill Called Up: Majority floor leader decides when the whole Senate will consider the bill.

  10. Floor Action: The Bill is debated, and amendments may be added. If a majority votes in favor of the bill, it is returned to the House.

  11. Conference Committee: If the House rejects any of the changes, the bill goes to a conference committee of members from both houses. It works out a compromise.

  12. Vote on Compromise: Both houses must approve changes made by the conference committee. If approved, the bill goes to the governor.

  13.  Gubernatorial Action: The governor may sign (approve) the bill or veto (reject) it. If approved, it becomes law.

  14.  Vote to Override: If the governor vetoes the bill, it can still become law if two thirds of both houses vote to override the veto.

You can also see a diagram of the process here.

The regular Legislative Session starts in January 2020.   For details about the Illinois Legislative Session, see this great article.