pocket veto

1. The indirect veto of a bill received by the President within ten days of the adjournment of Congress, effected by retaining the bill unsigned until Congress adjourns.

2. A similar action exercised by a state governor or other chief executive.

pock′et-ve′to v.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

pocket veto

1. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) the action of the President in retaining unsigned a bill passed by Congress within the last ten days of a session and thus causing it to die

2. (Government, Politics & Diplomacy) any similar action by a state governor or other chief executive

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

pock′et ve`to

1. an automatic veto of a bill, occurring when Congress adjourns within the ten-day period allowed for presidential action on the bill and the president has retained it unsigned.

2. a similar action on the part of any legislative executive.

[1835–45, Amer.]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun

pocket veto - indirect veto of legislation by refusing to sign it

veto - a vote that blocks a decision

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References in periodicals archive

If the President signs or does not sign the bill during the 10-day period, it becomes law; however, if Congress adjourns sine die during the 10-day period, thereby preventing the bill's return, it is disapproved by "pocket veto." If the President vetoes the bill during the 10-day period, it is returned to the chamber in which it originated (as a "return veto"), along with a message explaining the President's objections.

Presidential approval or disapproval

However, despite continued objections and the easy possibility of a pocket veto, the president eventually signed the bill into law.

Ronald Reagan and the Politics of Immigration Reform

It would appear that the pocket veto case, Kennedy v.

Recess appointments: a legal overview

The purpose of this article is to shed light on another area in which presidential aggrandizement of a constitutionally based power has steadily progressed below scholarly and political radar screens: so-called "protective return" pocket vetoes. This article will first discuss the basis for the pocket veto and its relationship with the regular veto.

The law: the "protective return" pocket veto: presidential aggrandizement of constitutional power

A failure to act does not result in a "pocket veto"; the only way to disapprove a bill is to veto it.

2018 Leqislative wrap Up: The West Virginia State Medical Association ("WVSMA") was actively involved in advocating certain legislation relating to medical practice and public health. At times, that advocacy took the form of providing significant support for or input to policy decisions made by legislators. At other times, WVSMA opposed legislation and played a critical role in its defeat

By April 7, 2017, the Governor will have acted to sign, veto or pocket veto those efforts.

Healthcare legislation in the forefront during the 2017 New Mexico Legislative Session

Waiting until the last possible day before a pocket veto would have gone into effect, Republican Gov.

Forfeiture reform: new rules for New Mexico

The President's third option is called a pocket veto. A pocket veto can be accomplished if Congress is no longer in session and the President does not sign the bill within the 10-day time limit.

Establishing federal laws

Yet in pocket vetoing the bill, he also did something that, under the terms of the pocket veto power described in the Constitution, is impossible: he returned the pocket vetoed bill to the clerk of the House of Representatives.

The historical presidency: growing executive power: the strange case of the "protective return" pocket veto