Making laws
repeal
Cancelling an existing law. It takes the same process the law took: passage by both chambers and the President's signature, or an override.
In full
There is no shortcut. A statute stays in force until Congress repeals or amends it, a court holds it unconstitutional, or its own sunset arrives. Repeal-and-replace, defund, and delay are different tactics with different legal effects: withholding money does not remove a legal requirement, and an unfunded mandate is still a mandate.
Also written as: enact, enactment
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Browse every term in the glossary, or see the vocabulary in motion in the How government works walkthroughs.
A plain-language explanation for civic education, not legal advice. When in doubt, the official source named above controls.