How does a bill become law?   For a very detailed description of the process of making Alberta's laws, check out the very complete tutorial at the Legislative Assembly's information site, The Citizen's Guide to the Alberta Legislature Here's a link to the government's Bill Status Report, which will show you what bills are being discussed right now.   In essence, the sessions within the legislature are to discuss a few fundamental things: The Budget - what your taxes will be used for this year Discussing and fine-tuning ("proposing amendments") current policies, procedures and laws Introducing and discussing new laws based on the the public's concerns and priorities.   Your MLA has been elected to represent your interests to government. Members introduce "Bills" (formal proposals for legislative changes, laws, or procedures), which follow a consistent path of discussion, amendment, then a formal vote to pass the Bill into law. It works like this: Introduction of the Bill (First Reading) A member of the Legislative Assembly will present a brief summary of the proposal, then submits a formal document to the members, who will then take the opportunity to study the document. Debate and Discussion (Second Reading) After all members have had an opportunity to inspect and digest the content of the document, they are given an opportunity to state their concerns, or offer suggestions of refinement to the original Bill. This debate cycle is moderated by The Speaker of Legislature. A sub-committee refines the document (Committee of the Whole) After taking the discussion and debate into account, a smaller membership of the Assembly break the Bill into smaller segments, where words, phrases, and intent are carefully scrutinized. Any changes to intent are submitted as formal amendments to the Bill. For the "Committee of the Whole", as many MLAs as want to can participate, or none at all, depending on the importance of the bill; it's more casual than the formal Legislative Assembly. Members get another opportunity to discuss the Bill, before a final vote (Third Reading) Taking into account the recommendations of the sub-committee charged with scrutinizing and refining the document, members are given one last opportunity to convey their concerns, objections, or endorsements. During the time from initial introduction to this point, members will have had an opportunity to gauge the level of acceptance of their constituents, and that may or may not change the member's original stance on the Bill. A Majority Vote determines if the Bill passes or is rejected. If it passes, it is offered to the Queen's representative for Royal Assent - in effect, pronouncing the new Bill into Law. This responsibility lies in the hands of the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta.   A significant amount of your MLA's time and resources over the year is involved in the process of researching the impact of a proposed Bill, or preparing arguments to defend or provide a dissenting voice to the Bill. Sessions of the Legislature are blocked in months, usually a "spring session" and a "fall session". The rest of the year, your MLA works hard to prepare for the next session, and to help their constituents in many other ways (that's what this web site is attempting to show you! How are we doing?)