Rep. Raul Ruiz introduces “Right to Petition” bill
Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz announces the introduction of a bill that would force the House of Representatives to vote on a bill that may otherwise be shut down by the Speaker of the House before ever seeing the light of day.
The “Right to Petition Congress Bill” would force a vote on a bill that has gathered five million signatures by registered voters on a petition, no more than 25% of those voters would be allowed to come from a single state. The bill would need 50 cosponsors from members of the House or 11 co-sponsors in the Senate.
If the petition meets all those requirements, the Speaker and Majority Leader in the House would bring it up for a vote.
“Too often, the party leaders will play partisan gamesmanship and not allow a bill that the vast majority of Americans, Republicans and Democrats agree on, in order to protect their own power as Speaker but also the power of their party in the majority,” Ruiz said.
The way it currently works in the House, members of Congress can sign a discharge petition to force a vote on a particular bill, but the petitions very rarely reach the 218 threshold needed to force a vote.
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Noticias en español: Telemundo 15
