U.S. Congress (Ch. 10) U.S. Congress - U.S. National Legislature Bicameralism - two house legislature -Senate -House of Representatives

National Legislature Reasons for Bicameralism -History - Framers knew it well British Parliament bicameral since 1300’s -Practical - Framers created 2 houses to settle conflict between large states and small states

National Legislature -Theoretical - Framers wanted 2 houses in order for one house to check on another Terms of Congress -2 years in length -20th Amendment -current term of Congress - noon Jan. 3, 2017 to Jan 3, 2019 (115th Congress) -Terms of Congress once began on March 4th

National Legislature -each term divided into 2 sessions -Congress in session year round Special Session of Congress -only called by President -called in emergency situations -highly unlikely to happen again

House of Representatives House of Reps 435 members – (currently 241 R’s – 194 D’s ) Each state gets at least one (AK, DE, MT, ND, SD, VT, WY) U.S. Territories have one member but no vote Reps are elected to two-year terms - this makes them pay close attention to constituents No term limits

House of Representatives House of Reps Seats each state gets apportioned according to population Constitution - Congress shall reapportion House seats after each census As the nation grew- so did the House of Reps - 435 seats by 1910

House of Representatives Reapportionment Act of 1929 Permanent size of House is 435 - 1 seat for every about 710,000 people Following census - Census Bureau determines number of seats each state should have Plan is sent to Congress for approval Congress still has the power but Census Bureau does the work Next reapportionment will be based on the 2020 Census - it will take effect before the 2022 elections

Congressional Elections Same day in every state Off year elections -Congressional elections that occur in non-presidential election years (2006,2010,2014) Party in power usually loses seats in off-year elections.

Congressional Elections Districts 435 seats in House - 435 separate Congressional Districts Single member district - voters in district elect one representative for that district ND is 1 district State legislatures are responsible for drawing congressional districts in their state (Re-district every 10 years)

House of Representatives Gerrymandering How it’s done concentrate oppositions voters in one or a few districts Spread opposition among several districts

Example 50 Voting Precincts 5 Congressional Districts 10 precincts each

House of Representatives Wesberry v. Sanders, 1964 Supreme Court ended population differences among districts As much as possible, one persons vote must be worth as much an another’s

House of Representatives Formal Qualifications 1. must be at least 25 years old 2. citizen of U.S. for at least 7 years 3. inhabitant of state from which elected The House can punish members (majority vote) House can expel members (2/3 vote) House cannot exclude those meeting qualifications What happens if house seat is vacant?

U.S. Senate Upper House Constitution - “Senate shall be composed of 2 senators from each state” 100 = 52 R’s, 46 D’s, 2 IND’s Election of Senate 17th Amendment Before the 17th Amendment One Senator from a state is elected at a time Each Senator is elected from the state at-large

House of Representatives Informal Qualifications Vary from state to state, time to time, and district to district Based on vote-getting abilities (ex - party I.D.)

U.S. Senate election of Senate What happens if Senate seat is vacant? Terms of Senators - 6 years Strom Thurmond (48) / Robert Byrd (50) Terms are staggered - only 1/3 of terms expire every two years Continuous Body - all seats never up for election at same time

U.S. Senate Upper House Good source of candidate for President 1/3 of Senators once served in House Smaller membership Larger constituencies More national media attention More of a national politician than House members Longer terms

U.S. Senate Qualifications Must by at least 30 years old Citizen of U.S. for at least 9 years Inhabitant of state from which elected -can punish and expel members same as House

Members of Congress Representatives of the people Casting votes -Trustee - votes decided on merit -Delegate - vote the way they think constituents would want -Partisan - vote allegiance to party. This is a leading factor in determining votes -Politicos - Try to balance conflicting factors when voting

Members of Congress Committees and Laws How Congress makes laws -anyone can propose laws -must be introduced by member of Congress (hopper) -co-sponsors may help -Known as a bill before it becomes a law -bill is assigned to a committee for debate, research, and revision -committees specialize in different topics

Committees and Laws -committees hold congressional hearings to gather information on bill -committee recommends passage then sends to full body of House or Senate for vote -most bills don’t make it to the floor -if bill passes one house, it must pass the other (majority)

Committees and Laws after bill passes Congress it goes to the President President, special-interest groups, lobbyists, can affect the passage of a bill - If veto, Congress can override

Committees and Laws Committees Congress divides much of its work into committees Both houses have committees Standing committees, subcommittees, special committees, conference committees

Committees and Laws *Senate committees *House committees -agriculture,nutrition, and forestry -appropriations -appropriations -agriculture -armed services -armed services -foreign relations -education & work -budget -ways and means

Committees and Laws - oversight function - Select Congressional Committees review actions of executive branch and some parts of society

Leadership in Congress *House Presiding officer - Speaker of the House Party officers - Majority Floor Leader Majority Whip Minority Floor Leader Minority Whip

Leadership in Congress *Senate Presiding officers - President of the Senate President Pro Tempore Party officers - Majority Floor Leader Majority Whip Minority Floor Leader Minority Whip

Members of Congress Compensation Constitution - Congress fixes compensation for members 27th Amendment - not ‘til after next Congressional election Voter backlash Non-salary compensation (fringe benefits) -special tax deduction - for 2 residencies -travel allowances

Members of Congress Compensation -generous retirement -offices & staff in D.C. and home state -free parking at Capitol building and airports -Franking privilege -High Salaries - make public service more appealing to qualified people