Bills and Resolutions are the most common way that legislation is introduced. They are numbered in series for each Congress. If not acted on, they die at the end of the Congress during which they were introduced. Most introduced legislation is never acted on - bills that do get into the process may undergo many markups (revisions) and number changes. Amendments, related or not, may be attached to final legislation.
Abbreviations used in bill numbering system:
| Senate Bills (S.) Resolutions (S. Res.) Joint resolutions (S.J. Res.) Concurrent resolutions (S. Con. Res.) |
House Bills (H.R.) Resolutions (H. Res.) Joint resolutions (H.J. Res.) Concurrent resolutions (H. Con. Res.) |