Order Code RS21750
February 27, 2004
CRS Report for Congress
Received through the CRS Web
The Presidential Veto and
Congressional Procedure
Mitchel A. Sollenberger
Analyst in American National Government
Government and Finance Division
Summary
Presidential vetoes are a rejection of legislation approved by majorities in both
houses of Congress. Vetoes and congressional efforts to override them are often the
reason for, or a reflection of, conflict between Congress and the President. The threat
of a presidential veto can prompt the modification of bills moving through the legislative
process.
This report provides a brief overview of procedures involved in vetoing a bill and
the ways Congress can respond to a presidential veto. Tabular data are provided on the
number of presidential vetoes exercised by each President from George Washington to
William Clinton. President George W. Bush has not yet exercised the veto.
Veto Process
When presented with legislation passed by both houses of Congress, the President
may sign it into law within the 10-day period prescribed in the Constitution,1 let it become
law without his signature, or issue a regular or “pocket” veto. All bills and joint
resolutions, except those proposing amendments to the Constitution, require presentment
to the President before they become law. Amendments to the Constitution, which require
a two-thirds vote of approval in each chamber, are sent directly to the states for
ratification.2
When Congress is in session, the President must exercise his veto within the
prescribed 10-day period and return the rejected bill to Congress with the reasons for his
veto. If the President neither signs nor vetoes legislation sent to him, it will become law
without his signature at the end of the period. If, however, Congress has adjourned,
preventing the return of a bill, the President may withhold his signature and the bill does
not become law. This latter practice is known as a “pocket veto.” Unlike the return of
1 U.S. Constitution, Art. I, sec. 7.
2 Ibid., Art. V.
Congressional Research Service ˜
The Library of Congress
CRS-2
a vetoed bill, Congress does not have the opportunity or constitutional authority to
override a pocket veto.3
Congressional Procedure
Congressional procedure for reconsidering vetoed legislation is similar in both the
House and Senate.4 Congressional action on a vetoed measure begins when the President
returns the bill to the chamber of origin along with his objections in the form of a veto
message. Once the vetoed legislation has been received by the originating chamber, that
house is constitutionally required to “reconsider” the vetoed bill. The Constitution is
silent, however, on the meaning of “reconsideration.” Procedure and tradition govern the
treatment of vetoed bills returned by the President. On receipt of the vetoed bill, the
President’s message is read into the journal of the receiving house. After entering the
message into the journal, the House of Representatives or the Senate complies with the
constitutional requirement to “reconsider” by laying the measure on the table (essentially
stopping further action on it), referring the bill to committee, postponing consideration
to a certain day, or immediately voting on reconsideration (vote on override).
Action by both the House and the Senate is required to override.5 A two-thirds
majority vote by Members present (provided there is a quorum) is required to override a
presidential veto. When one house fails to override, the other house will not attempt to
override, even if the votes are present to succeed. Action by the Senate or the House of
Representatives on a veto may be taken at any time during a Congress in which the veto
is received.
Table 1 shows that, since the beginning of the federal government in 1789, 35 of 43
Presidents have exercised their veto authority on a total of 2,550 occasions. Of that
number, 1,484, or 58%, have been returned vetoes — that is, the rejected legislation was
returned to the congressional house of origin, while it was in session, with a presidential
message of explanation — and 1,066, or 42%, were pocket vetoed, or rejected while
Congress was adjourned. Some 7.1%, or 106, of the 1,484 regular vetoes have been
overridden by Congress.
3 Beginning in 1929, there have been several judicial decisions that have attempted to clarify
when an adjournment by Congress “prevents” the President from returning a veto. For
information on these cases, see CRS Report RL30909,
The Pocket Veto: Its Current Status, by
Louis Fisher.
4 U.S. Constitution, Art. I, Sec. 7.
5 Ibid.
CRS-3
Table 1. Presidential Vetoes, 1789-Present
Congresses
coincident
Regular
Pocket
Total
Vetoes
President
with terms
vetoes
vetoes
vetoes
overridden
Washington
1, 2, 3, 4
2
2
—
Adams
5, 6
—
—
—
—
Jefferson
7, 8, 9, 10
—
—
—
—
Madison
11, 12, 13, 14
5
2
7
—
Monroe
15, 16, 17, 18
1
—
1
—
J. Q. Adams
19, 20
—
—
—
—
Jackson
21, 22, 23, 24
5
7
12
—
Van Buren
25, 26
—
1
1
—
W.H. Harrison
27
—
—
—
—
Tyler
27, 28
6
4
10
1
Polk
29, 30
2
1
3
—
Taylor
31
— — —
—
Fillmore
31, 32
—
—
—
—
Pierce
33, 34
9
—
9
5
Buchanan
35, 36
4
3
7
—
Lincoln
37, 38, 39
2
5
7
—
A. Johnson
39, 40
21
8
29
15
Grant
41, 42, 43, 44
45
48
93
4
Hayes
45, 46
12
1
13
1
Garfield
47
— — —
—
Arthur
47, 48
4
8
12
1
Cleveland
49, 50
304
110
414
2
B. Harrison
51, 52
19
25
44
1
Cleveland
53, 54
42
128
170
5
McKinley
55, 56, 57
6
36
42
—
T. Roosevelt
57, 58, 59, 60
42
40
82
1
Taft
61, 62
30
9
39
1
Wilson
63, 64, 65, 66
33
11
44
6
CRS-4
Congresses
coincident
Regular
Pocket
Total
Vetoes
President
with terms
vetoes
vetoes
vetoes
overridden
Harding
67
5
1
6
—
Coolidge
68, 69, 70
20
30
50
4
Hoover
71, 72
21
16
37
3
F. D. Roosevelt
73, 74, 75, 76,
372
263
635
9
77, 78, 79
Truman
79, 80, 81, 82
180
70
250
12
Eisenhower
83, 84, 85, 86
73
108
181
2
Kennedy
87, 88
12
9
21
—
L.B. Johnson
88, 89, 90
16
14
30
—
Nixon
91, 92, 93
26
17
43
7
Ford
93, 94
48
18
66
12
Carter
95, 96
13
18
31
2
Reagan
97, 98, 99,
39
39
78
9
100
G. H. W. Bush6
101, 102
29
15
44
1
Clinton
103, 104, 105,
36
—
36
2
106
G. W. Bush
107, 108
—
—
—
—
TOTAL
1,484
1,066
2,550
106
Source: U.S. Congress, Secretary of the Senate,
Presidential Vetoes, 1989-1996, S.Pub. 105-22
(Washington: GPO, 1992), p. 12; U.S. Congress, Secretary of the Senate,
Presidential Vetoes, 1789-
1988, S. Pub. 102-12 (Washington: GPO, 1992), p. 595.
6 President Bush attempted to pocket veto two bills during intrasession recess periods. Congress
considered the two bills enacted into law because of the President’s failure to return the
legislation. The bills are not counted in this table. For more information on these vetoes, see
CRS Report RL30909,
The Pocket Veto: Its Current Status, by Louis Fisher.
CRS-5
Additional Resources
CRS Products.
CRS Report RL30909.
The Pocket Veto: Its Current Status, by Louis Fisher.
Other Resources.
Cameron, Charles M.
Presidents and the Politics of Negative Power (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 2000).
Copeland, Gary. “When Congress and President Collide: Why Presidents Veto
Legislation.”
Journal of Politics, vol. 45 (August 1983), pp. 696-710.
Ingberman, Daniel, and Dennis Yao. “Presidential Commitment and the Veto.”
American
Journal of Political Science, vol. 35 (May 1991), pp. 357-389.
Jackson, Carlton.
Presidential Vetoes, 1792-1945 (Athens: University of Georgia Press,
1967).
Matthews, Steven. “Veto Threats: Rhetoric in a Bargaining Game.”
Quarterly Journal
of Economics, vol. 103 (1989), pp. 347-369.
McCarty, Nolan. “Presidential Reputation and the Veto.”
Economics and Politics, vol.
9 (March 1997), pp. 1-26.
Rohde, David and Dennis Simon. “Presidential Vetoes and Congressional Response: A
Study of Institutional Conflict.”
American Journal of Political Science, vol. 29
(August 1985), pp. 397-427.
Spitzer, Robert J.
The Presidential Veto: Touchstone of the American Presidency
(Albany: State University of New York Press, 1988).
U.S. Congress, Secretary of the Senate.
Presidential Vetoes, 1989-1996 (Washington:
GPO, 1992).