Ch. 6 Congress at Work

Ch. 6, Section 1: Organization of Congress Essential Questions – What are the terms and sessions of Congress? – How is congressional leadership organized? – What are the rules of conduct in Congress?

Terms and sessions of Congress Terms begin on January 3 following the November election Terms are divided into two one-year sessions Sessions are continuous No term limits are set on members

Organization of congressional leadership organized by political party, a majority party, and a minority party House leaders – Speaker of the House of Representatives, majority and minority floor leaders, and majority and minority whips Senate leaders – U.S. vice president, president pro tempore, majority and minority floor leaders, and majority and minority whips

Rule of conduct must meet constitutional qualifications follow rules of behavior, including in financial matters can discipline members with a censure or by expulsion

Ch. 6, section 2: The Committee System Essential Questions – What kinds of committees are there in Congress? – How are committee assignments made? – What kinds of staff help congressmembers and committees perform their work?

The Committee System Types of committees” – authorizing – establish gov’t. policies on problems such as crime and how solutions will be funded – appropriations – funds set aside for specific purposes – standing – permanent committees (19 in house, 16 in senate) deal with trade, foreign policy, finance – subcommittees – standing committees further divided into 215 smaller, specialized subcommittees – select – deal with special issues not covered by standing committees, focus on investigations and are usually temporary – joint – made up of both members of house and senate, example, Joint Economic Committee – conference – members of both houses, temporary, work out compromises

How committee assignments are made: based on member requests Committee chairs - based on seniority and elected by members of the majority party “running” for assignments of popular committees

Types of assistance to congressmembers and committees: personal staff committee staff agencies – Congressional Budget Office, General Accounting Office, Government Printing Office

Ch. 6, section 3 How a Bill Becomes a Law Essential Questions: – How are bills referred to a committee? – What is the purpose of committee hearings and markup sessions? – What happens to a bill when it reaches the full House or Senate floor? – What courses of action can the president take on a bill passed by Congress?

How bills are referred to a committee referred by the Speaker in the House of Representatives referred by the presiding officer in the Senate

Purpose of committee hearings and markup sessions Committee hearings allow supporters and opponents for a bill to express their views Markup sessions allow decisions to be made about the specific features of a bill

The course a bill takes when it reaches the full House or Senate floor debated amended voted on

Courses of action the president can take on a bill passed by Congress sign it veto it allow it to become law by keeping the bill for 10 days without signing it while Congress is in session pocket veto it *

Ch. 6, section 4: Congress and the Public Good Essential Questions – Do special interests obstruct Congress in promoting the public good? – What is the main criticism of the committee system, and how does it affect the public good? – What role does Congress play in promoting the public good?

Influence of special interests in Congress and the public good: weak influence of interest groups, which can either promote or hurt the public good strong influence of constituent interest in home districts, members’ personal beliefs, and interests of members’ political party, which can undermine the general public interest

Main criticism of the committee system and its effect on the public good: committees unrepresentative of Congress or the whole country concern that the system results in laws promoting narrow, local interests

Congress promotes the public good by representing the local concerns of the people.

Chapter Wrap-up 1. What types of committees are in Congress and why? 2. How are leaders in each house of Congress selected? 3. How are committee assignments made? 4. Who assists members of Congress with their work? 5. What are the six steps in the legislative process after a bill is introduced? 6. What are some major criticisms of Congress?