LEGISLATIVE BRANCH• General Information• House of Representatives• Senate• Leadership• Committees• Powers of Congress• How a Bill Becomes a Law• Checks & Balances

CONGRESS: GENERAL INFORMATION

PURPOSE – TO MAKE LAWS

CONGRESSIONAL TERMS• 2 Years in Length• Currently the 111th Term of Congress

CONGRESSIONAL SESSIONS• Regular Session – Must Meet once a Year

(January 3 – December)• Special Session – President Calls – Times of

Crisis• Joint Session – State of the Union Address

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESBASIC INFORMATION

• Term Length – 2 Years• Requirements for

Members25 years old7 year US CitizenResident of the

State• 435 Members• Based on State

Population• Changes w/ Census (10

yrs)

VOCABULARY• Census – Population

Count• Constituents – people

who vote in an election• Gerrymandering –

dividing a state into odd-shaped districts for political reasons

SENATE

BASIC INFORMATION• Term Length – 6 years (1/3 every 2 years)• Requirements for Members

30 years old9 year US citizenResident of the State

• 100 members• 2 per state

CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHOUSE OF

REPRESENTATIVES• Speaker of the House –

Chosen by the majority party• Majority Leader – Leader of

political party with most seats

• Minority Leader – Leader of party with fewer seats

• Majority Whip – From majority party – job is to get majority members to support party legislation.

• Minority Whip – From minority party – job is to get minority members to support party legislation.

SENATE• President – VP of the US• President Pro Tempore –

Usually the most senior member of the majority party

• Majority Leader – Leader of political party with most seats

• Minority Leader – Leader of party with fewer seats

• Majority Whip – From majority party – job is to get majority members to support party legislation.

• Minority Whip – From minority party – job is to get minority members to support party legislation.

Committees(Little Legislatures)

Types of Committees• Standing – permanent;

have in each term.• Subcommittee – each

standing committee is further divided into subcommittee.

• Select Committee – set up for a particular issue.

• Joint Committee – made up of members of both houses.

• Conference Committee – a joint committee that irons out differences in different versions of house bills.

Committee Membership

• Each house leader chooses committee chairperson. Comes from majority party.

• Party leaders also decide who will be in the committees.

• Seniority System – those who have been in Congress longer get more favorable committee assignments.

POWERS OF CONGRESSEXPRESSED POWERS

• Powers specifically granted to Congress in the Constitution.TAX ESTABLISH POST OFFICES DECLARE WAR IMPEACHMENTRAISE & MAINTAIN REGULATE INTERSTATE ARMY, NAVY & FOREIGN TRADECOIN MONEY ESTABLISH LOWER COURTSBORROW MONEY NATURALIZATION RULES

IMPLIED POWERS• Necessary & Proper Clause – Congress may make all laws

necessary & proper to the execution of government.(AKA – ELASTIC CLAUSE)

Powers of Congress(Money, Trade, & Foreign Policy)

Taxes• Tax Bills – Begin in the House (Why?)• Authorization Bill – Creates a Project.• Appropriations Bill – Provides $ for a

Project.Trade

• Commerce Clause – gives Congress power to regulate foreign & interstate trade.(air traffic, railroads, trucking, radio, television, air pollution, stock market)

Foreign Policy• Powers dealing with other countries.

(declare war, oversee army & navy, approve treaties, regulate trade)

Powers of Congress(Non-Legislative Powers)

• Amending the Constitution – propose 2/3 of Congress

• Counting Electoral Votes – If no 270 – House votes

• Impeachment Process – House Impeach; Senate holds trial (removal/punishment)

• Oversight – Review presidential actions, and how well laws are enforced.

• Investigation – Investigate executive/judicial actions.

Powers Denied to Congress

1. Suspend the Writ of Habeas Corpus

2. Pass a Bill of Attainder

3. Pass an Ex Post Facto Law

4. Tax Exports

Congressional Benefits/Staff/etc…

• Salary & Benefits - $165,200; free office space, parking, trips to/from home state/district, franking privilege.

• Staff – Gather info on bills, arrange meetings, write speeches, deal with requests from home state/district, deal with lobbyists.

• Committee Staff – Draft bills, gather info, organize hearings, negotiate with lobbyists.

• Agencies that Assist Congress Library of Congress

Congressional Research ServiceGeneral accounting OfficeCongressional Budget Office

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW

Step 1: Proposing a Law• Bill – a proposed law (must be passed)

• Sponsor – a person in Congress that introduces a bill

• Senate – bills are introduced in the morning session

• House of Representatives – bills are placed in a hopper; (wooden box for bills)

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW

Step 2: Committee Consideration• Bills are assigned to a certain committee by

the presiding officer of each house; (House – Speaker; Senate – Majority Leader)

• Committee will study the bill, and eventually must take action

• The purpose of committees is to serve as a filter, strengthen, or disregard needless legislation.

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAWStep 2 continued: Committee Action

1. Pigeonholing – practice of killing a bill by refusing to pass out of committee. (Bill is dead unless discharge petition in the House)

2. Mark/Amend – change all or parts of the bill. Committee can delete, add, reword, or rewrite the bill.

3. Report out of committee favorably – committee will recommend that the bill be passed.

4. Report out of committee unfavorably – committee does not want to take responsibility for killing the bill, but does not want the bill to be passed.

Bypassing Committee• Discharge Petition (House of Reps Only) – needs

218 signatures; committee pigeonholes a bill majority want passed.

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAWStep 3: Floor Action/Debate

1. Rules of Debate• House – one bill at a time; discussion must

be relevant to the bill• Senate – more leisurely; fewer members, 3

to 4 bills at a time, unlimited speaking time• Filibuster – tactic by a member of the

Senate in which they try to block the passage of a bill by monopolizing time.

• Cloture – measure to stop filibuster; 1/6 must ask; 3/5 must vote for motion.

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAWStep 3: Floor Action/Debate (continued)

2. Voting • After debate, the house will conduct a vote. In this

step, a majority vote is necessary to pass.• If there is no majority, the bill is dead.Once the bill has passed one house of Congress, it

must be sent to the other, and go through the same process.

Issues the may occur in the other House1. Bill is changed by the committee studying the bill.

If this occurs and the house passes the bill, it must be sent to a conference committee.

2. Conference Committee – made up of members of both houses. They will iron out differences in the bill, and then send the bill back to both houses to vote again.

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAWStep 4: Presidential Action

• A bill will be sent to the President if it has passed both houses of Congress by a majority vote, and it is the exact bill in both houses. The president has 10 days to act on the bill once the President receives the bill.

Presidential Action – (10 days to Act)1) Sign the bill – becomes law.2) Hold the bill for 10 days.• If Congress adjourns in 10 days, the bill is

dead. (pocket veto)• If Congress stays in session, the bill will

pass without signature.3) Veto – the president rejects the bill.

(Presidential check over Congress)

HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW

Step 5: Congress – Override the Veto

• Congress has the authority to override a presidential veto. If the President vetoes a bill, it goes back to Congress.

• A bill that has been vetoed, must be passed bay 2/3 majority of both houses to become law. If not it is dead.

• Congressional Check over the President.

CHECKS & BALANCES