There are various factors that affect how members of congress make legislative decisions and what do they take into consideration. The views of constituents are a very important factor to be taken into account, as the member of congress should be in touch with them. They would depict what people want to be made and what kind of decisions are expected from a person who is representing them. Apparently, a member should not fully base decisions on constituents’ views, yet ignoring them would not be a wise decision, as not fulfilling the demands of those voting for that member would not result in being reelected. Other important factors are the position of a party that one belongs to, and personal beliefs of the member, and what is considered the best decision in their opinion.
There are nine stages that a proposal should go through to become a law. These are drafting, introduction, the bill going to committee, subcommittee review, mark up by the committee, full chamber voting, referral of the bill to the other chamber, the bill going to the president, and in case the bill is vetoed, the veto may be overridden if two thirds in the Senate and the House vote for the bill. When a bill goes to a committee, there are different departments that are responsible for various areas. For example, if the proposal is related to healthcare, it will be reviewed by a department that specializes in that area (Casas, Denny & Wilkerson, 2019). This stage strongly affects the chances of a bill passing congress, as the proposal is carefully examined with all the possibilities to implement it and the following consequences. If the committee does not take any action on the bill, there is a small chance that the proposal will be converted into law.
Reference
Casas, A., Denny, M. & Wilkerson, J. (2019). More Effective Than We Thought: Accounting for Legislative Hitchhikers Reveals a More Inclusive and Productive Lawmaking Process. American Journal of Political Science, 64(1), 5-18.