AP Government & Politics - Congress

constituency

a body of voters in a specified area who elect a representative to a legislative body.

unicameral

a single legislative body or chamber

bicameral

the division of a legislature into two separate assemblies (or houses)

incumbency

the holding of an office or the period during which one is held.

pork-barrel legislation

the use of government funds for projects designed to please voters or legislators and win votes

gerrymandering

manipulate the boundaries of (an electoral constituency) so as to favor one party or class

Speaker of the House

the presiding officer in the House of Representatives; always a member of the majority party and the most powerful and influential member of the House.

power of the purse

the influence that legislatures have over public policy because of their power to vote money for public purposes. The United States Congress must authorize the president's budget requests to fund agencies and programs of the executive branch

voting block

a group of members with a common interest who tend to vote alike on an issue

Political Action Committee (PAC)

a private group that raises and distributes funds for use in election campaigns

17th Amendment

established the popular election of United States Senators by the people of the states. It supersedes Article I, §3, Clauses 1 and 2 of the Constitution, under which senators were elected by state legislatures

Appropriations Committee

a committee in charge of overseeing money allocated by the Legislature to various governmental departments and agencies for their operations

calendar

an organized list of legislation which has been reported out of committees and is ready for floor action

census

the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population.

Necessary and Proper Clause

aka elastic clause which allows Congress to pass laws to carry out its powers

(Art. I, Sec. 8, Clause 18)

majority leader

the elected leader of the majority party who serves as the chief spokesperson in the House of Representatives

minority leader

the elected leader of the minority party in the House.

standing committee

a permanent committee that meets regularly and is assigned work on an ongoing basis

conference committee

committee of the Congress appointed by the House of Representatives and Senate to resolve disagreements on a particular bill

oversight

refers to the review, monitoring, and supervision of federal agencies, programs, activities, and policy implementation

seniority system

the custom in Congress providing for the assignment of a committee chairpersonship to that member of the majority party who has served on the committee the longest

closed rule

an order from the House Rules Committee that sets a time limit on debate and forbids a particular bill from being amended on the floor

open rule

an order from the house Rules Committee that permits a bill to be amended on the floor

filibuster

an attempt to defeat a bill in the Senate by talking indefinitely, thus preventing the Senate from taking action on the bill

cloture vote

procedure that may be used to limit or end floor debate in a legislative body

veto

constitutional power of the president to send a bill back to Congress with reasons for rejecting it. A two-thirds vote in each house can override it.

pocket veto

veto taking place when Congress adjourns within 10 days of submitting a bill to the president, who simply lets it die by neither signing nor vetoing it.

roll-call vote

a congressional procedure that consists of members answering yea or nay when their names are called

whip system

a communications network in each house of Congress. Used to poll the membership to learn their intentions on specific legislative issues and assist the majority and minority leaders in various tasks

logrolling

legislator supports a proposal favored by another in return for support in his or hers

senatorial courtesy

An unwritten tradition whereby nominations for state-level federal judicial posts are not confirmed if they are opposed by a senator from the state in which the nominee will serve. The tradition also applies to courts of appeal when there is opposition from the nominee's state senator.

State of the Union Address

The president's annual statement to Congress and the nation.

majority-minority district

congressional districts designed to make it easier for citizens of a racial or ethnic minority to elect representatives.

continuing resolution

when Congress cannot reach agreement and pass appropriations bills, these resolutions allow agencies to spend at the level of the previous year.

enumerated powers

powers specifically given to the federal government by the constitution

Finance Committee

the Senate committee that, along with the House Ways and Means Committee, writes the tax codes, subject to the approval of congress as a whole

fiscal year

a 12 month period for planning the federal budget (begins on October 1 and ends on September 30)

implied powers

powers inferred by the express powers that allow congress to carry out its functions (powers not expressly stated in the constitution but are reasonably suggested)

omnibus bill

packages together several measures into one or combines diverse subjects into a single bill.

ex. reconciliation bills, combined appropriations bills, and private relief and claims bills.

redistricting

the redrawing of congressional and other legislative district lines following the census, to accommodate population shifts and keep districts as equal as possible in population

impeachment

a formal charge of treason or criminality raised against an elected federal official. Only the House may bring it while the Senate may only try to convict the accused. Conviction requires a two-thirds vote in the Senate and results in the removal of the accused from office.

Baker v. Carr

a court case that ordered state legislative districts to be as near equal as possible in population; Warren Court's judicial activism.

"One man, one vote."

Shaw v. Reno

a court case that decided that redistricting based on race must be held to a standard of strict scrutiny under the equal protection clause while bodies doing redistricting must be conscious of race to the extent that they must ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act

President Pro Tempore

a constitutionally recognized officer of a legislative body who presides over the chamber in the absence of the normal presiding officer

subcommittees

a portion of a committee appointed by a committee chair to research and study a particular bill or problem and to report its findings to the entire committee

rider

an amendment attached to a bill, usually unrelated to the subject of the underlying bill

quorum call

a parliamentary procedure designed to ensure that members of a legislative body are present before a vote is passed

Steering Committee

a committee that decides on the priorities or order of business of an organization and manages the general course of its operations

Rules Committee

a legislative committee responsible for expediting the passage of bills

Joint Committees

refers to a committee with members from more than one organization

Committee of the Whole

a device in which a legislative body or another deliberative assembly is considered one large committee.This is usually done for the purposes of discussion and debate of the details of bills and other main motions

franking privileges

allows Members of Congress to transmit mail matter under their signature without postage

Office of Management and Budget (OMB)

assists the President in overseeing the preparation of the Federal budget and in supervising its administration in Federal agencies. The _________ also oversees and coordinates the Administration's procurement, financial management, information, and regulatory policies

Congressional Budget Office (CBO)

is responsible for economic forecasting and fiscal policy analysis, scorekeeping, cost projections, and an Annual Report on the Federal Budget. The _________ enables Congress to have an overview of the federal budget and to make overall decisions regarding spending, taxation levels, and any federal deficit or surplus

General Accounting Office (GAO)

an independent, nonpartisan agency that works for Congress and investigates how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars

Often called the "congressional watchdog"

malapportionment

poorly appointed, especially divided, organized, or structured in a manner that prevents large sections of the population from having equitable representation in a legislative body

pigeonholed

a term used to describe when a committee uses its abilities to kill a bill by setting it aside and not acting on it

select committee

formed for a specific purpose and usually for a limited period of time. They rarely get legislative power. Instead they conduct investigations and studies. They are found in both the House and Senate.

Ways and Means Committee

a permanent committee of the House of Representatives, which makes recommendations to the House on all bills for raising revenue. The committee is the principal source of legislation concerning issues such as taxation, customs duties, and international trade agreements.

whip

officials in a political party who enforce other members in the party to vote in accordance with the party's policies

Reapportionment Act of 1929

a bill passed by Congress in 1929 to maintain that a constant 435 seats in the House according to each census. It also allows for shifts in population to allow seats to be shifted between states as well as allow states to draw their own congressional districts of any shape or size.

gridlock

happens when the legislature has difficulty passing laws because of an even split of votes, or when the two legislative houses are controlled by different parties, or if the executive branch and legislature are in different parties.