Structure of Congress – Goal 2 – Ch 6

A Bicameral Legislature The Great Compromise established Congress as a two- part or bicameral body The US Capital Building -- Capital Hill, Washington DC

A Bicameral Legislature In the Upper House (US Senate) each state would have an equal number of representatives (two), in the lower house (House of Representatives) each state’s population would determine representation (NC-13)

A Bicameral Legislature The legislative branch is described in Article I of the Constitution and our Congress includes 535 members (435-HOR; 100-S)

Terms of Congress Each term of Congress lasts 2 years and starts on January 3rd of odd-numbered years, each “new” Congress is given a number to identify its two-year term

Terms of Congress Each term is divided into two sessions; Congress may meet during special sessions or in times of crisis, a joint session occurs when the House and Senate meet together Example: State of the Union Address – Given every January to Congress (joint session)

The House of Representatives The House of Representatives has 435 voting members allotted according to population, the Constitution guarantees each state at least one representative

The House of Representatives After each 10-year census Congress adjusts the number given to each state, they serve 2 year terms and focus on the concerns of their districts [represent their district]

The House of Representatives State legislatures draw boundaries so districts include roughly the same number of constituents, or people represented

The House of Representatives Sometimes states abuse this process by gerrymandering, a gerrymander is an oddly shaped district designated to increase the voting strength of a particular group (ILLEGAL)

The Senate The Senate has 100 members, 2 from each of the 50 states; each senator represents the entire state, they serve 6 year terms Elections are staggered so no more than one-third are up for reelection at any one time; this ensures a certain amount of stability and continuity US Senators from NC (1) (2)

Leaders in Congress In the House and Senate the political party to which more than half the members belong is known as the majority party the other party is called the minority party Democrats- minority party Republicans- majority party

Leaders in Congress The leader of the House of Representatives is known as the Speaker of the House, the Speaker steers legislation through the House and leads floor debates; if anything happens to the President and VP the Speaker is next in line to become President

Leaders in Congress The Vice President presides in the Senate but only votes to break a tie; the President Pro Tempore acts as chairperson for the Senate VP Mike Pence (R)- President of the Senate Seantor-Orrin G. Hatch (R)

Leaders in Congress Other powerful leaders are the majority and minority floor leaders in each house, they speak for their parties on issues; Party Whips help the floor leaders, they make sure legislators are present for key votes

Committee Work Each house must consider thousands of bills, or proposed laws, in the course of a session; to make it possible to handle so many bills each house developed a system of committees Congress has three types of committees: standing committees, select committees, and joint committees

Committee Work Standing Committees= are permanent committees (ex: recommend bills, funding) Select Committees are temporary committees that deal with special issues, they meet for a limited time until they complete their assigned task (example: committee on aging) Joint Committees include members of both houses, they meet to consider specific issues (ex: committee on taxes)

Committee Assignments Party leaders make committee assignments, they consider members’ preferences, expertise, and loyalty to the party; another key factor is seniority or years of service The longest-serving committee member from the majority party traditionally becomes chairperson; they decide when and if a committee meets, what bills are studied, and who will serve on which subcommittee