War Powers Act
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
War Powers Act - Declares it to be the purpose of this Act to fulfill the intent of the framers of the Constitution of the United States, and insure that the collective judgment of both the Congress and the President will apply to the initiation of hostilities involving the Armed Forces of the United States, and the continuation of such hostilities. Provides that the use of the Armed Forces of the United States in hostilities in the absence of a declaration of war or specific authorization by Congress shall be reported promptly, and in no event later than twenty-four hours after the commencement of hostilities, in writing by the President to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate, together with a full account of the circumstances under which such hostilities were initiated and the estimated scope of such hostilities. Provides that the authority of the President to deploy Armed Forces of the United States and to direct or authorize such Armed Forces to engage in hostile action, in the absence of a declaration of war or specific authorization of the Congress, shall terminate upon the adoption by either House of the Congress of a resolution disapproving continuance of the action taken.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on January 3, 1973. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on January 3, 1973: Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 93rd Congress (1973-74), 651 of the 23,396 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.8 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
JONATHAN BINGHAM (D-NY) introduced it on January 3, 1973. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on January 3, 1973, 19655 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 19655 days ago, on January 3, 1973.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 93rd Congress has not finished by January 3, 1975 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers