HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW:
Filing/Calendaring for First Reading
 A bill is filed in the Office of the Secretary where it is given a
corresponding number and calendared for First Reading.
First Reading
 Its title, bill number, and author’s name are read on the floor,
after which it is referred to the proper committee.
 Only the title and author are read on the floor.
 SP is responsible for referring bills introduced to proper
committees.
Committee Hearings/Report
 Committees are referred to as “little legislatures”.
 Committee conducts hearings and consultation meetings.
 Committee can approve/reject the legislations without
amendments, rewrite the bill entirely, report favorably or
without recommendation, which allows the chamber to
consider the bill at all.
 If the reports submitted are unfavorable, they shall be
transmitted to the archives of the Senate, unless five senators
shall, in the following session, move for their inclusion in the
Calendar of Ordinary Business, in which case the President
shall so order.
 Committee report describes the purpose and scope of the bill,
explains any committee amendments, indicates proposed
changes in existing law and such other materials that are
relevant. Moreover, reports are numbered in the order in
which they are filed and printed.
Calendaring for Floor Debates
 Calendar for Ordinary Business/ Calendar for Special Orders/
Calendar for Third Reading
 A bill that has a committee report can be referred to the
Calendar for Ordinary Business only. It may again be moved to
its Special Order of Business for priority action.
Second Reading
 Bill author delivers sponsorship speech on the floor. Senators
engage in debate, interpellation, and rebuttal to highlight the
pros and cons of the bill. A period of amendments incorporates
necessary changes in the bill proposed by the committee or
introduced by the Senators themselves on the floor.
 Any committee member who fails to enter his objection or to
make of record his dissenting vote after it shall have been
included in the Order of Business and read to Senate in
accordance with the second paragraph of Section 24 hereof,
shall not be allowed to speak against the bill during the period
of general debate although he may propose and speak or vote
on amendments thereto,
 The sponsor of the bill or author of the motion shall have the
right to close the debate.
 With the debate closed, the consideration of amendments, if
any, shall be in order.
 After the period of amendments, the voting of the bill on
Second Reading.
Voting on Second Reading
 Senators vote on the second reading version of the bill. If
approved, the bill is calendared for third reading.
  Bills shall be submitted to final vote by yeas and nays after
printed copies thereof in the final form have been distributed
to the members at least three days prior to their passage,
except when the President of the Philippines certifies to the
necessity of their immediate enactment to meet a public
calamity or emergency, in which case the voting on third
reading may take place immediately after the second reading.
Voting on Third Reading
 Printed copies of the bill’s final version are distributed to the
Senators. This time, only the title of the bill is read on the
floor. Nominal voting is held. If passed, the approved Senate
bill is referred to the House of Representatives for
concurrence.
 Note: When the President of the Philippines certifies to the
necessity of their immediate enactment to meet a public
calamity or emergency, the voting on third reading may take
place immediately after the second reading.
 any amendments on disagreement, constitutes final approval
At the House of Representatives
 After the bill is approved on third reading, it will be submitted
to the Lower House.
 The Lower Chamber follows the same procedures (First
Reading, Second Reading and Third Reading). Exception:
Unless a House bill on the same subject has already been
reported out by the appropriate committee and placed on the
calendar.
Back to the Senate
 If the House-approved version is compatible with that of the
Senate’s, the final version’s enrolled form is printed.
 If there are certain differences, a Bicameral Conference
Committee is called to reconcile conflicting provisions of both
versions of the Senate and of the House of Representatives.
Conference committee submits report on the reconciled
version of the bill, duly approved by both chambers. The
Senate prints the reconciled version in its enrolled form.
Conference Report
 When the conferees have reached agreement on a bill, the
conference committee staff writes a conference report
indicating changes made in the bill and explaining each side’s
actions.
 Once a conference committee completes its works, it can now
be submitted to the floor for its approval. Debate on
conference reports is highly privileged and can interrupt most
other business.
 Approval of the conference report by both houses, along with
of the bill.
 After both houses have given final approval to a bill, a final
copy of the bill, known as the “enrolled bill,” shall be printed,
and certified as correct by the Secretary of the Senate and the
Secretary General of the House of Representatives. After
which, it will be signed by the Speaker of the House and the
Senate President.
Submission to Malacañang
 Final enrolled form is submitted to Malacañang. The President
either signs it into law, or vetoes and sends it back to the
Senate with veto message.
 A bill may become a law, even without the President’s from receipt in his office. A bill may also become a law without
signature, if the President does not sign a bill within 30 days the President’s signature if Congress overrides a presidential
veto by two-thirds vote.