UNIT 2 = VERY IMPORTANT POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF CONGRESS

60-70 word vocab list coming soon

Bicameralism

Congress being divided into two parts: The upper house (Senate) and the lower house (The House of Representatives)

Election cycles and Requirements for the House

 

100% Elected every 2 years

Minimum 25 years old

Citizenship for 7 years

Live in the state which they represent

Election cycles and Requirements for the Senate

 

33% Elected on rolling 6 year terms

Minimum 30 years old

Citizenship for 9 years

Live in the state which they represent

Characteristics of House

• 435 members

• Initiates all revenue bills (more influential than Senate on budget)

• House Rules Committee (influences the introduction and process of legislation through the House)

• Limited debates

Leadership in the House

SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE

• Elected by members of the House of Representatives

• Presides over the House

  • Assisted by party leaders and whips

• Plays a major role in committee assignments and legislation

Characteristic of the Senate

• 100 members

• Gives “advice and consent” (more influential than House on foreign affairs)

• Unlimited debates (filibuster)

Leadership in the Senate

• Formal leader: the Vice President of the U.S. (tie-breaking votes)

• Leader in Practice: Majority leader (chosen by party members)

  • Must work with the Minority leader

what is the senates power of Advise and Consent in Article 1 section 2 of the constitution?

• “Gives advice and consent” is a specific constitutional power given to the Senate in Article II, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution.

• It refers to the Senate’s power to:

  • Approve or reject treaties made by the President (requires a 2/3 vote).

  • Approve or reject presidential appointments to key positions, like ambassadors, cabinet members, and federal judges.

Senate has a special role in reviewing and approving treaties and diplomatic appointments, giving it more clout in foreign affairs than the House.

Congressional Districts

Each state is divided into congressional districts. The number of districts in a state equals the number of representatives that state has in the U.S. House of Representatives. Drawn by state legislatures, each district elects its representative to Congress. For example, in Maryland:

What is the census, and why is it important? (IT’S IMPORTANT BTW SO TRY TO REMEMBER IN CASE OF FRQ ESPECIALLY QUANTITATIVE ANYLSIS FRQ)

The census is a population count that the U.S. government conducts every 10 years (as required by the Constitution—Article I, Section 2). It gathers basic information about people living in the United States, such as age, sex, race, and household size.

Why it’s important in U.S. government:

1. Representation in Congress

   • The census determines how many seats each state gets in the House of Representatives (this process is called apportionment).

   • States that grow in population might gain seats, while those that shrink might lose them.

2. Redistricting

   • States use census data to redraw district lines for Congress and state legislatures.

   • This affects how communities are represented and can impact political power.

3. Federal Funding

   • Over $1.5 trillion in federal money is distributed based on census data—for things like schools, roads, hospitals, and public services.

   • An undercount can mean a state or community gets less funding than it needs.

4. Planning and Policy

   • Governments, businesses, and researchers use census data to understand trends and make decisions—like where to build schools, stores, or roads.

Are there state and local districts?

YES! States and local governments also create their own districts for representation in state legislatures and local councils, which are established to reflect the populations and needs of the communities within those areas.

MODEL OF REPRESENTATION: Trustee

A model of representation where elected officials make decisions based on their own judgment and beliefs.

MODEL OF REPRESENTATION: Delegate

A model of representation in which elected officials act according to the preferences and mandates of their constituents, prioritizing their voters' wishes over personal judgment.

MODEL OF REPRESENTATION: Politico

A model of representation that combines elements of both the trustee and delegate models, where elected officials act as both advocates for their constituents' wishes and make decisions based on their own judgment.

Redistricting

• Process of redrawing electoral district boundaries within states.

  • Occurs every 10 years after the Census is completed.

• In most states, boundaries are redrawn by the state legislature. In others, a commission handles the process.

  • Often, the process is very political.

Impacts of Redistricting

• redistricting can put incumbents’ seats at risk by:

  • Changing the composition of their constituencies OR

  • Forcing two incumbents to run for the same seat

Gerrymandering

• Drawing district lines to give one political party an advantage over another in elections.

• Way of “rigging” the system, so that the party in control maximizes the district elections that it wins.

Enumerated Powers of Congress: Economic Policy

• levy/collect taxes

  • Raise revenue (House)

• Coin & borrow money

• Regulate currency value

• Regulate interstate & foreign commerce

  Interstate commerce is the buying, selling, or moving of goods and services across state lines—basically, any economic activity that involves more than one U.S. state.

Enumerated Powers of Congress: Foreign Policy

• Regulate trade with other nations.

• Confirm ambassadors (Senate)

• Ratify treaties (Senate)

Enumerated Powers of Congress: National Security

• Declare war

• Raise/support army & navy

• Call up military to repel invasions and insurrection

Enumerated Powers of Congress: Other powers

• Impeachment

  House of Representatives can impeach the President, Supreme Court justices, and other federal officials with a majority vote, and then the Senate holds a trial and can remove them from office with a two-thirds vote.

• Confirmation of Nominations

  The Senate confirms presidential appointments, including federal judges, cabinet members, and ambassadors, often requiring a majority vote.

Implied powers

powers not directly stated in the Constitution but allowed through the “Necessary and Proper Clause” so Congress can carry out its expressed powers.

4 important examples:

1. Creating a national bank (to manage money and taxes)

2. Building interstate highways (to regulate commerce)

3. Drafting people into the military (to raise and support armies)

4. Establishing the IRS (to collect taxes effectively)

Reserved Powers

• Definition: Powers not granted to the federal government by the Constitution, nor prohibited to the states, are reserved for the states or the people (10th Amendment).

• Examples:

  • Education (setting up and regulating schools)

  • Marriage laws

  • Police powers (law enforcement and public safety)

  • Regulating trade within the state (intrastate commerce)

Concurrent Powers

• Definition: Powers that both state and federal governments can exercise simultaneously.

• Examples:

  • Taxing (both state and federal governments can collect taxes)

  • Borrowing money

  • Making and enforcing laws

  • Building roads

  • Establishing courts

Inherent powers

are the powers that the national government has simply because it is a sovereign state in the world, even though they are not explicitly mentioned in the U.S. Constitution. Like getting r diplomatic recognition

Oversight Powers

the powers of Congress to monitor, review, and investigate the actions of the executive branch and its agencies to ensure they are enforcing laws properly. This includes holding hearings, issuing subpoenas, and demanding reports to keep the government accountable and prevent abuse of power.

EXECUTIVE BRANCH, specifically the bureaucracy.

Importance of Committees in Congress

Committees and subcommittees are organized to conduct most of the work of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Membership in committees is determined by parties leaders in Congress.

Standing Committee

Permanent committees established by the rules of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Select/Special Committe

Temporary committees created to complete a specific task within a set timeline.

Joint Committe

Committees comprised of members of both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Jurisdiction over matters of joint interest.

Conference Commitee

Joint committees comprised of members of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, created to resolve differences over a particular bill.

Examples of standing committees for the house

Appropriations Committee: responsible for appropriating funding for most functions of the government

Rules Committee: responsible for rules under which bills will be presented to the House of Representatives

Ways and Means Committee: responsible for reviewing and making recommendations for the budget

Examples of standing committees for the senate

Appropriations Committee: responsible for appropriating funding for most functions of the government

Armed Services Committee: responsible for legislative oversight of the nation’s military

Judiciary Committee: responsible for considering and reporting on legislation affecting the federal judiciary, as well as holding hearings on judicial nominees

Examples of Special/Select Committees

• Select Committee on the Climate Crisis

• Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress

• Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol

Examples of Joint Committees

• joint Economic Committee

• Joint Committee on the Library

• Joint Committee on Printing

• Joint Committee on Taxation

Committee Leadership

-The Chair

• Leader of committee with authority over the committee’s agenda

• Presides over meetings

• Maintains decorum and rules of the committee

  And the Ranking Member which is the most senior member of a committee from the minority party

Revenue

income generated for the government (example: taxes)

Expenditure

an expense of the government that needs to be paid

Deficit

situation that arises when the government’s expenditures exceed its revenues.

Surplus

situation that arises when the government’s revenues exceed its expenditures.

Debt

money that the government has borrowed that must be repaid.

Appropriations

funds that Congress has allocated (set aside) to pay for specific things.

HOW THE GOV GETS MONEY TO PAY ITS DEBT

1. From Revenue

• Personal income tax (progressive)

• Corporate income tax

• Social insurance taxes (Social Security and Medicaid)

2. From Borrowing

• Bonds and Intragovernmental debtDebt

• The government must pay interest on debt

Debt ceiling limits how much money the government can borrow

Tax expenditures (tax breaks)

Tax expenditures are special tax breaks, like deductions, exemptions, or credits, that reduce how much individuals or businesses owe in taxes. They're basically government spending through the tax code, used to support certain activities—like homeownership, education, or investing—without directly handing out money.

Mandatory Spending

 spending that is required by existing laws and “locked in” the budget; includes Entitlement Programs

Entitlement Programs

programs that provide benefits to those who qualify under the law, regardless of their income (examples: Social Security & Medicare)

Discretionary Spending

spending for programs and policies at the discretion of Congress; approved each year through appropriations bills

How does the government spend money?

• National defense

• Interest on the national debt

• Income security expenditures - money for elderly, poor, needy;  includes entitlements

• Other discretionary spending

What is interest? What is Interest on the National Debt?

Interest is the extra money you have to pay when you borrow money—kind of like a thank-you fee to whoever lent it to you. So if you borrow $10 and have to pay back $11, that extra $1 is the interest.

Interest on the national debt is the money the U.S. government has to pay every year just to cover the interest on all the money it has borrowed over time. It’s like when you have a huge credit card bill—you have to keep paying interest even if you don’t pay off the full amount.

Why is it hard to cut the budget?

1. Expenses grow incrementally each year.

2. A lot of spending is uncontrollable (entitlement programs, interest payments on national debt).

3. A lot of people and groups want money.

   1. Interest groups

   2. Agencies

   3. Programs desired by Congress and the President

      PEOPLE ARE GETTING OLDER AND THE POPULATION IS GROWING

Balanced Budget

budget when the revenue is equal to, or exceeds, the expenditures

How is a budget made?

Congress sets the budget.

What is the process by which the budget is created?

1. President proposes the budget

   1. President set priorities; Office of Management & Budget (“OMB”) coordinates agency requests and helps develop a budget.

   2. President sends proposed budget to Congress.

2. Congress sets the budget

   1. Congressional Budget Office (“CBO”) analyzes it.

   2. Congress agrees on a budget resolution (how much they will spend).

   3. Congress makes changes in programs to meet budget requirements.

   4. Congress passes an appropriations bill.

If they don’t pass the budget on time, they pass a continuing resolution.