Subchapter A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec.
15.1. Passage of law by bill.
15.2. Form and use of bills.
15.3. Original enactments.
15.4. Amendments to existing law.
15.5. Reenactments of existing law.
15.6. Supplements to existing law.
15.7. Codifications generally.
15.8. Form of codifications.§ 15.1. Passage of law by bill.
The Constitution (art. III, sec. 1) provides that no law shall be passed except by bill.
§ 15.2. Form and use of bills.
(a) Form. A bill is the first step in the enactment of a statute and takes the same form as a statute that has been enacted. It consists of a title, an enacting clause and a number of sections depending on what is necessary to state the thing to be accomplished.
(b) Use. Bills are used for:
(1) Original enactments.
(2) Amendments to existing law.
(3) Reenactments of existing law.
(4) Supplements to existing law.
(5) Codifications.
(6) Joint resolutions for constitutional amendments.
§ 15.3. Original enactments.
As original enactment is the simplest form of a bill and does not contain underscoring or brackets to indicate language added or deleted or reference to any statute cited for amendment.
§ 15.4. Amendments to existing law.
A bill containing an amendment or amendments to an existing statute is used most frequently and, unlike an original enactment, it contains underscoring and brackets and a reference to the statute amended.
§ 15.5. Reenactments of existing law.
(a) Use. Reenactments of existing statutes are used to:
(1) Continue in effect a statute that is about to expire.
(2) Extend the statute to a new agency or set of circumstances.
(3) Cure a defect in an existing statute, such as a failure to give notice in the title of a provision of the statute.
(4) Harmonize the language of amendments of the same provision of a statute so as to make it less confusing.
(b) Form. The form of a reenactment is the same as that for an amendment, with the exception that the recital is ‘‘is reenacted’’ instead of ‘‘is amended.’’ If a reenactment includes a change in the provision being reenacted, the recital is, ‘‘is reenacted and amended.’’
(c) Original enactments. Another form of reenactment, not designated as such, is the setting up in the form of original legislation the provisions of an existing statute or a number of statutes. In these cases, the statute or statutes to be incorporated in the new bill are always specifically cited for repeal either absolutely or to the extent which they are covered by the new enactment.
§ 15.6. Supplements to existing law.
(a) Use. At one time supplements to statutes were very extensively used. In modern practice, however, supplements have fallen into disuse. The present practice is to add a section or sections by way of amendment to existing law. In this way they find their place in the logical sequence of existing law.
(b) Form. Supplements are, generally speaking, in the form of a simple new enactment, except that the title of the supplement cites the statute to which it is supplementary. In this respect, the same rules apply as in the case of titles to amendatory bills.
§ 15.7. Codifications generally.
(a) General. Codification is the gathering together into one comprehensive statute of all of the law on a given subject, with or without change, and the repeal of the existing statutes so incorporated. A codification is a form of reenactment and is governed by the rules of statutory construction covering reenactments.
(b) Scope. As the number of codifications increase it becomes obvious that many provisions belong equally well in one code as in another. The tendency in the past has been to incorporate in the code first prepared, all provisions that could possibly fit into it. This has resulted in considerable repetition of the same provisions in different codes, and frequently in changes in one code that are not incorporated in other codes where the same provision appears. It is therefore preferable to refrain from incorporating more than provisions relating only to the subject of the code and not to take provisions from one code and insert them in a new one just being prepared.
§ 15.8. Form of codifications.
(a) General. Codifications are in the form of original enactments.
(b) Table of contents. A codification as a general rule carries a table of contents which varies in degree of completeness. It appears immediately following the title and preceding the enacting clause.
(c) Major subdivisions. Codifications are usually divided into one or more major subdivisions which include chapters and subchapters. Formerly, the major subdivisions commonly used were articles and subdivisions.
(d) Repeals. The last major subdivision of a codification usually covers the citation of a number of statutes for repeal.
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