Gov Legislative Branch

Bill

a statute or proposed law before it becomes official

Conference Committee

a joint committee that is appointed to hold a conference for creating a compromise version of a bill

Constituents

members having the power to elect or appoint within an organization or community

Entitlement

a government program that guarantees and provides benefits to a particular group

Filibuster

an obstructive tactic to delay or prevent a piece of legislation from passing; employed by an individual Senator or group of Senators who oppose a bill

Gerrymander

the process of manipulating a geographic area into voting districts so as to give unfair advantage to one party in elections

Impeachment

to charge a public official with improper conduct in office, criminal or civil

Impoundment

the decision not to spend money appropriated by Congress rather than spend as prescribed

Incumbent

a person who currently holds an official position or political office

Lobbying

the act of influencing the thinking of government officials for or against a specific cause

Majority leader

the leader who represents the majority political party in a legislature

Reappointment

the process of dividing the number of state representatives and senators based on population in order to ensure districts of equal size

Select Committee

a temporary congressional committee appointed to deal with a special purpose or issue

Standing committee

a permanent committee in the house or senate with jurisdiction over legislation in a particular area

Tax

a monetary charge or other levy imposed upon a taxpayer by the state

Majority Party

The party with the most members in the House of Representatives

Minority party

The party with the fewest members in the House of Representatives

Vice President

The president of the senate who only votes in the event of a tie and presided over the senates session.

Speaker of the House

The presiding officer of the House; next in line for president after VP; influences what bills go to what committees/committee assignments; appoints party leaders

Minority Leader

Leads the minority party of the senate; shares power with the majority leader; sees that their party members attend important debates and vote on important bills

President Pro Tempore

Presides over the senates sessions if the Vice President is absent

Subcommittee

Smaller committee that is broken off from a single standing committee in order to investigate single issues

Joint committee

Committee made up of House and senate members that deals with business between the house and the senate; focuses public attention on major issues

Political action committee

an organization that raises and spends money to elect candidates or influence elections

Economic interest group

Interest group that represents all aspects of the economy; food, health law, media cars, and utilities

Examples: Union Pacific, National Association of Home Builders, General Motors, American Bar Association (ABA), and the American Medical Association (AMA).

Societal interest group

Interest group based on individual characteristics, like gender, or race or religion

Example: NAACP

Ideological interest group

Interest group based on political beliefs and ideologies like liberal or conservative that focus on major issues.

Public interest group

Interest groups than advocate for family human rights consumers in the common good

Example: teachers union

Government interest group

Interest group that seek influence regarding policy and budgeting from local state and foreign governments

Examples: National League of Cities, National Governors Association, and the National Conference of Mayors.