AP Gov Chapter 13

Bicameral Legislature

Bicameral Legislature

a lawmaking body made up of two chambers or parts

Filibuster

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

Marginal districts

political districts in which candidates elected to the house of representatives win in close elections, typically by less than 55 percent of the vote

Safe districts

Districts in which incumbents win by margins of 55 percent or more.

Conservative Coalition

an alliance between republican and conservative democrats

Majority Leader

the legislative leader elected by party members holding the majority of seats in the House or the Senate

Minority Leader

the legislative leader elected by party members holding a minority of seats in the House or the Senate

Whip

A senator or representative who helps the party leader stay informed about what party members are thinking

Party Polarization

a vote in which a majority of Democratic legislators oppose a majority of Republican legislators

Caucus

an association of congress members created to advance a political ideology or a regional, ethnic, or economic interest

Standing Committees

permanently established legislative committees that consider and are responsible for legislation within a certain subject area

Select Committees

Congressional committees appointed for a limited time and purpose.

Joint Committees

committees on which both senators and representatives serve

Conference Committees

a joint committee appointed to resolve differences in the senate and house versions of the same bill

Proxy

A written authorization to cast another person's vote

Public bill

a legislative bill that deals with matters of general concern

Private bill

a legislative bill that deals only with specific, private, personal, or local matters.

Simple resolution

an expression of opinion either in the House or Senate to settle procedural matters in either body

Concurrent Resolution

an expression of opinion without the force of law that requires the approval of both the House and the Senate, but not the president

Joint Resolution

a formal expression of congressional opinion that must be approved by both houses of Congress and by the president; constitutional amendments need not be signed by the president

Multiple Referral

a congressional process whereby a bill may be referred to several committees

Sequential Referral

a congressional process by which a speaker may send a bill to a second committee after the first is finished acting

Discharge petition

a device by which any member of the House, after a committee has had the bill for thirty days, may petition to have it brought to the floor

Closed Rule

An order from the House Rules Committee that sets a time limit on debate; forbids a 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

Restrictive Rule

an order from the House Rules Committee that permits certain kinds of amendments but not others to be made into a bill on the floor

Quorum

the minimum number of members who must be present for business to be conducted in Congress

Quorum Call

a roll call in either house of Congress to see whether the minimum number of representatives required to conduct business is present

Cloture Rule

a rule used by the senate to end or limit debate

Double-Tracking

A procedure to keep the Senate going during a filibuster in which the disputed bill is shelved temporarily so that the Senate can get on with other business.

Voice Vote

a congressional voting procedure in which members shout "yea" in approval or "nay" in disapproval, permitting members to vote quickly or anonymously on bills1

Division Vote

A congressional voting procedure in which members stand and are counted.

Teller Vote

a congressional voting procedure in which members pass between two tellers, the "yeas" first and the "nays" second

Roll-Call Vote

a congressional voting procedure that consists of members answering "yea" or "nay" to their names

Pork-Barrel Legislation

legislation that gives tangible benefits to constituents in several districts or states in the hope of winning their votes in return

Franking privilege

the ability of members to mail letters to their constituents free of charge by substituting their facsimile signature for postage

Incumbency

the fact that being in office helps a person stay in office because of a variety of benefits that go with the position

riders

amendments to bills, often in the form of appropriations, that sometimes have nothing to do with the intent of the bill itself and many times are considered to be pork barrel legislation

christmas tree bills

A bill that has many riders to increase its chances of being passed

Representational view

When members of Congress vote to please their constituents in order to secure re-election

Organizational View

When members of Congress vote based on cues from colleagues and party members

Attitudinal View

When members of Congress vote based on their ideologies and political party

House of Representatives

must be 25, 7 years of citizenship, 2 year term, 435 members, speaker of the house, no limit on terms

Senate

term-6 years, number of members-100, requirements- must be 30 and a U.S. citizen for 4 years, leaders- Vice President, duties- represent each state.

Congressional Research Service (CRS)

As a politically neutral body, it does not recommend policy, but it will look up facts and indicate the arguments for and against a proposed policy.

General Accounting Office (GAO)

Created in 1921 to perform routine audits of the money spent by executive departments. It also investigates agencies and makes recommendations on every aspect of government.

Office of Technology Assessment (OTA)

a congressional staff agency that studied and evaluated policies and programs with a significant use of or impact on technology; abolished in 1995

Congressional Budget Office (CBO)

An agency of Congress that analyzes presidential budget recommendations and estimates the cost of proposed legislation.

Calendar Wednesday

Is a House procedure that on Wednesdays committees can bring for floor consideration non priviledged measures they have reported