To read the full official description of the process, visit How Our Laws Are Made.

1. A representative has an idea for a new law.  He or she sponsors the idea, presenting it to the clerk of the House.  The clerk assigns it a legislative number, with "H.R." at the beginning for bills introduced in the House of Representatives and "S." if they are introduced in the Senate.  The bill is distributed to all the other representatives.  (This follows the development of an H.R. bill.  A Senate bill would switch the order of the House and Senate processes.)
2. The Speaker of the House assigns to bill to a committee based on its subject.  The committee studies the bill and gets information from experts and people interested in it.  Then they either release it with a suggestion that the bill be passed, edit/revise it and suggest that the edited version pass, or table it - put it aside so that it can not be passed.
3. If the bill is released, it goes on the calendar to await action.  The House Representatives Committee can either suggest the bill be voted on quickly, limit debate on it, and limit or prohibit further changes.  It can either pass by a unanimous vote or by a two-thirds majority if the members agree.
4. The bill then goes to the House floor and is read out loud in full.  The House votes and a majority vote in favor sends the bill to the Senate.
5. A Senator announces the introduction of the bill.
6. As in the House, the bill then goes to a Senate committee for discussion.  They study it, then release, revise, or table the bill.
7. Once the bill is released, it goes to the Senate floor.  Bills usually go to a vote in the Senate based on the order in which they come from committee, but the majority party may push forward an urgent bill.  The Senate debates, then votes on the bill, which needs a majority vote to pass.
8. Then, the bill is sent to a conference committee, made up of members of both houses of Congress.  They work out any differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill, then send it back to both houses for final approval.  The final version is printed by the U.S. Government Printing Office, enrolling it, and certified by the clerk of the house that introduced it.
9. The Speaker of the House and the Vice President sign the enrolled bill, then send it to the President for consideration.  The President has ten days to either sign or veto the bill.  If it is vetoed, the House of Representatives and the Senate can still make it a law with a two-thirds vote in favor from both houses.

- A bill from concept to law, adapted from Government Printing Office. "How Laws Are Made." Ben's Guide to the U.S. Government.  Government Printing Office. 30 January 2007. Web. 14 December 2010.