Referral
The step after introduction in which a bill is sent to the committee (or committees) with jurisdiction over its subject matter — in the House by the Speaker, in the Senate by the presiding officer acting on standing rules. Once referred, the bill's fate rests almost entirely with that committee.
The step after introduction in which a bill is sent to the committee (or committees) with jurisdiction over its subject matter — in the House by the Speaker, in the Senate by the presiding officer acting on standing rules. Once referred, the bill’s fate rests almost entirely with that committee.
Example: H.R. 1 (117th Congress, the For the People Act of 2021) was referred to the Committee on House Administration and, in addition, to ten other committees — Intelligence, Judiciary, Oversight and Reform, Science, Space, and Technology, Education and Labor, Ways and Means, Financial Services, Ethics, Homeland Security, and Armed Services — ‘for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker.’
Common misconception: Referral means the bill will be considered. Referral only assigns jurisdiction; in a typical Congress the large majority of referred bills never receive a hearing or a committee vote.
Sources: Congress.gov, Legislative Glossary, 'Referral', https://www.congress.gov/legislative-glossary; Congress.gov, H.R.1 (117th Congress) bill text (committee referral line), https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-bill/1