Question

skill builder
name:
date:
comprehension
know the news:
could their bill become a law?
read the article on pages 11-13, then answer the questions.

1. what prompted the florida teens to propose a bill, according to the article?

a they took classes to prepare for adulthood
b a state representative encouraged them
c they wanted to apply for jobs
d they participated in a bill-drafting competition

1. the purpose of the smart living act was to ensure that florida high schoolers ______.

a graduate with important skills for adulthood
b get jobs before graduating
c become lawmakers
d eat a balanced diet

1. a sponsor is someone who ______ a bill.

a rejects
b pays
c introduces
d passes

1. which question is not answered by \step 3: amending the bill\?

a does the senate have a committee process?
b does a bill typically need a companion bill filed in another chamber to advance?
c why was the smart living act filed as an amendment to hb 1255?
d what does hb 1255 state?
article text:
\high school,\ says laraina, a
student at jefferson high school
in tampa, florida.
laraina and her classmates came
up with the proposal as part of a
bill-drafting competition. but they
knew that just having an idea for
a law wasn’t enough. so last fall
they teamed up with susan valdés,
the state representative for their
district, to make it happen. valdés
agreed to sponsor their bill in the
state house of representatives—
and to help the students navigate
the process.
to become a state law, the bill
would need approval from both
chambers of florida’s legislature: the
house and the senate. then it would
go to the governor for approval.
even with valdés on their side, and
laraina’s testimony, the odds weren’t
in their favor. only a small fraction
of bills are ultimately successful.
what would it take to bring their
law to life? read on to find out.
step 1
drafting the bill
laraina and her classmates knew
what they wanted their bill to
achieve. but its wording had to be
precise and follow a specific format.
to help, valdés submitted their idea
to the house bill drafting service,
a department in the legislature. the
bill drafters worked with the teens
to get the wording just so. “we went
back and forth . . . a bunch of times
just to make sure our bill was perfect
and that everybody on the team was
happy,” laraina says.
image caption:
representative susan
valdés (center) sponsored
the jefferson students
bill in late february.
at the same time, the teens met
with an education policy expert to
learn about potential life skills they
could include in their bill. they
ended up adding one more—learning
how to apply for scholarships,
grants, and loans to pay for college.
in late february, just before
florida’s regular legislative session
began, valdés and the students filed
their bill in the house online. they
hit the button together. high fives
and cheering followed. “seeing
the bill submitted was the most
amazing experience out of the whole
process,” sevion daniels, 18, recalls.
step 2
heading to committee
the bill’s first stop in the house was
a subcommittee—the careers and
workforce subcommittee to be
exact. the house is divided into
groups of lawmakers who focus on
different topics. committees and
subcommittees conduct hearings
and gather more information about
bills. then they decide whether
those bills should be scrapped,
changed, or moved along for more
house members to consider.
laraina and her classmate
genesis salcedo lima visited
the state capitol in late march to
address the careers and workforce
subcommittee on behalf of their bill.
“we were so scared because we’re a
couple of teenagers in front of this
big group of adults,” laraina recalls.
still, their efforts paid off—the
subcommittee...

Explanation:

To solve these comprehension questions, we analyze the text:

Question 1

From the text: "Laraina and her classmates came up with the proposal as part of a bill - drafting competition."

• Option A: The text doesn't say classes for adulthood prompted the bill. Eliminate.
• Option B: A state representative helped after they had the idea, not prompted it. Eliminate.
• Option C: The bill is about life skills for adulthood, not applying for jobs. Eliminate.
• Option D: Matches the text.

Question 2

The Smart Living Act (their bill) aimed to ensure Florida high schoolers graduate with important skills for adulthood (from context about life skills like applying for scholarships, etc.).

• Option A: Matches the purpose.
• Option B: The bill is about skills for adulthood, not getting jobs before graduating. Eliminate.
• Option C: The bill is to help students, not make them lawmakers. Eliminate.
• Option D: The bill is about life skills, not diet. Eliminate.

Question 3

From the text: "Valdés agreed to sponsor their bill in the state House of Representatives" (sponsor = introduce the bill).

• Option A: Sponsor doesn't mean reject. Eliminate.
• Option B: Sponsor doesn't mean pay. Eliminate.
• Option C: Matches "introduces" the bill.
• Option D: Sponsor is before passing, not the one who passes. Eliminate.

Question 7 (partial analysis, e.g., for "What does HB 1255 state?")

The "Step 3: Amending the Bill" section is about amending HB 1255 (adding the teens’ idea) and companion bills, Senate committee process. It does not explain what HB 1255 originally states (that info is about the amendment, not the bill’s original content).

Answer:

s:

1. D. They participated in a bill - drafting competition.
2. A. graduate with important skills for adulthood
3. C. introduces
4. D. What does HB 1255 state? (assuming the question is about which is unanswered, and this option is the one not answered in Step 3)

(Note: For the "steps of the legislative process" question, from the text: Steps are Drafting (Step 1) → Committee Hearing (Step 2) → House and Senate vote → Governor’s desk. So the correct order - related option would follow this logic.)