Once a bill has been introduced on the floor of the House or Senate, it is referred to the appropriate committee or committees for evaluation.

Most of the work of the legislative process takes place in committees and sub-committees. They commission studies, hold public hearings, and issue reports. They may offer amendments to bills, or rewrite them completely.

After consideration, the committee votes on whether to recommend the bill to the full House or Senate or to "table" it, taking no further action.

See U.S. Senate: Committees Home and U.S. House: Office of the Clerk for more information on committees.