People and the Process: A Legislative Study Guide
INTRODUCTION
" If you like laws and sausages, you should never watch either one being
made."
-- widely attributed to Otto Von Bismarck, 1st chancellor of the German
Empire, 1871-1890.
BACKGROUND
The famous quotation attributed to Otto Von Bismarck is often
recited at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul. While the quote
is probably a bit harsh, there's an element of truth to it.
The way laws are pieced together toward the end of a legislative
session may seem chaotic by anyone's standards. In fact, it brings
to mind all-night study marathons in college. Just as some of the
subjects studied in school are fascinating, so, too, are many of the
issues dealt with by the Legislature.
Why, then, is there such a lack of information about the state
legislative process, particularly on the high school level? No one
seems to have a good answer. That's why the Minnesota House of
Representatives Public Information Office decided to write this
legislative study guide.
We designed "People and the Process: A Legislative Study Guide"
for Minnesota's social studies teachers to use in grades 7 through
12. It's a flexible plan -- simple enough for those who want to
touch lightly on the subject, yet complex enough for those who want to
dive head-first into the sometimes turbulent waters of the process.
Whichever route you choose, remember that the topic is probably
more pertinent today than ever before. Why? Because the federal
government is shifting more responsibilities -- and costs -- to state
government. Whether the issue is abortion or toll bridges, the
problem will probably be resolved on the state level.
Another reason lies in the fact that although Minnesota perennially
leads the nation in the number of voters who show up at the polls,
apathy has made heady inroads here just as it has in other states.
With those thoughts in mind, we strove to present the material in
the study guide in an easy to understand fashion, using real life
examples as illustrations for points along the way. We hope our
approach will help trigger teacher and student interest in the
process that, indeed, affects everyone.
How a bill becomes a law
In the study guide, we divided the process of how a bill becomes law
in Minnesota into seven steps:
- Part 1 describes the structure of the
Legislature;
- Part 2 discusses how ideas can grow into
bills;
- Part 3 describes the general process through which a
bill must pass before it can become law;
- Part 4 explains the role of the committee in the law
process;
- Part 5 focuses on what happens to a bill when it
reaches the House floor;
- Part 6 examines the executive branch of state
government and how it relates to the law process; and
- Part 7 looks at the judicial branch of state government
and how it relates to the law process.
Each section includes: background material with
references to
additional sources; definitions of new terms (which are boldfaced
in the text); suggestions for class activities, and annotations about
appendix references (which are cited throughout the text).
Activities on three levels
The class activities we suggest in each of the sections
may be used
on any of three levels depending on teacher and student interest
and the amount of time allowed for the study of state government.
We refer to those levels of intensity as "beginning," "intermediate,"
and "advanced."
On the beginning level, you might simply lecture
about the process,
taking what you need from this packet to give students a basic
working view of the Legislature. For the lower grades, the guide
includes general information about the state of Minnesota such as
background on the official state symbols and the origins of county
names. On the intermediate level, you might again lecture, but
then add any number of role-playing activities, such as setting up a
mock floor session or committee hearings, to give students a feel
for what really goes on. On the advanced level, you might outline
the legislative basics, then have students track actual bills through
the legislative process. This can be done either during a legislative
session or after the session has adjourned.
The last option is the most instructive, but it can take
a great deal
of time and energy to retrace the sometimes serpentine journey of a
bill through the Legislature. Longtime legislators concede that it
can take years to really understand the process.
Keep in mind that even though this study guide
contains enough
information to give you a good grasp of the process, the House
Public Information Office will be on hand to help you with
unanswered questions.
Unlike some ingredients that make up sausages, we
hope you'll
find this description of the lawmaking process well worth
digesting.
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