Chapter 5+ Chapter 7 (section 1) Gov

What are the two houses in the bicameral legislature structure of Congress?

House of Representatives and Senate

What is the length of the term for the Senate and what do they represent?

6 years and they represent their entire state

What is the length of the term for the House and what do they represent?

2 years and represent their district

When do terms begin?

January 3

How long does each term in Congress last?

two years

How long is each session in Congress?

1 year

How long does Congress remain in session?

until members vote to adjourn; neither house can adjourn for more than 3 days without approval of the other house

Can the President call Congress back into special session if necessary (emergency)?

Yes

How many members are in the House?

435

What is an at large district?

a state which only has one representative for the entire state

What are the qualifications to be in the House?

at least 25 years old, U.S. citizen for at least 7 years, legal resident of state they represent (usually live in their district)

When are elections held for the House?

November of even-numbered years (off-year elections)

What can districts do to fill vacant seat?

hold a special election

What is taken every 10 years to assign representatives based on population (reapportionment)?

the Census

Around how many people does each district contain?

710,000 people

After the census what happens to district lines?

states redraw them after reapportionment (redistricting)

What is gerrymandering?

illegally redrawing district lines to give one political party an electoral advantage; “packing” vs. “cracking”

How many senators are there?

100 members (2 per state)

What are the qualifications to be a member of the Senate?

at least 30 years old, U.S. citizen for at least 9 years, legal resident of the state they represent

When are elections held for the Senate?

November of even-numbered years

If there’s an empty seat in the Senate what happens?

the governor can appoint someone to fill vacant seat or state can hold a special election

What is the salary of the House and Senate and how is that salary set?

House & Senate set their own salaries; they can vote for a pay raise but it won’t go into effect until after the next election (27th Amendment); salary of $174,000/year

Can members of Congress accept honoraria (money paid for speeches)?

no, its prohibited

What is franking?

free postage for official business

What are some perks members of Congress receive?

free stationery, medical clinic, gymnasium, dining room & cafeteria

What do members of Congress receive allowances for?

to pay for staff, trips home, cell phones (official use), newsletters

What tax deductions do members of Congress get?

income tax deduction for two residences

Once a member of Congress retires what is their pension?

up to 80% of their final salary; 401(k) plan

How long must a member of Congress serve to receive pension?

minimum of 5 years

When attending Congress or on the way to/from Congress, what are Congressmen free from?

arrest “except for treason, felony & breach of the peace”

If a Congressman says something, can they be sued?

no, they cannot be sued for anything said on floor of Congress

How can Congress refuse to seat new members?

by majority vote

How can Congress punish and expel members?

2/3rds vote

What is censuring?

for lesser offenses; vote of formal disapproval of a member’s actions

How many total members of Congress are there?

535, plus one delegate each from Washington, D.C., Guam, American Samoa, Northern Marianas Islands, Virgin Islands & 1 resident commissioner from Puerto Rico; 1 delegate-designate from Cherokee Nation

What can the delegates from US territories do?

Can’t vote on final passage of a bill, but can attend sessions, introduce bills, debate bills, and vote in committees

What are the former jobs most commonly held by members of Congress?

almost half are lawyers, but others are teachers, businesspeople, bankers, & doctors

What are the demographics of the members of Congress?

Half are white, 23% represent various racial & ethnic minorities; 27% are women

What are incumbents?

those officials already in office

What reelection rate do incumbents have?

90%

Why are incumbents more likely to be reelected?

raise funds more easily, district could be gerrymandered in their favor, better nown to their voters (TV, social media, etc.); “the devil you know”, casework

What is casework?

solving voter problems

What do each member of Congress have?

Websites, virtual town halls, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram

How many minutes are each member of the House allotted during debate?

5 minutes or less

Where is most work completed in the House?

committees who study & shape bills

Who selects its leaders, committee chairs, & control flow of legislative work?

majority party

What is not permitted in the House relating to voting?

absentee voting

What is the Speaker of the House?

presiding officer; elected by caucus

What is caucus?

private meeting of majority party

What are the roles/responsibilities of the Speaker of the House?

recognize members to speak, schedule bills for action, refer bills to committees; follows VP in line of succession to the presidency

What is the majority leader?

top assistant to Speaker; plan party’s legislation, steer bills through House, make sure committees finish work on bills; elected by party

What are whips?

assistants to floor leader; monitor how party members intent to vote, persuade undecided members to vote, and make sure party members are present to vote

What does the minority part of the House also have?

minority leader, and minority whip

What is the first step in creating a bill in the House?

proposed bill is introduced and read aloud; Speakers sends bill to appropriate committee for review (most bills die in committee; only 10-20% survive)

What is the second step in creating a bill in the House?

if committee reports favorably, bill placed on House calendar which lists the order of bills for Congress to consider

What can the Rules Committee do in the House?

move bills up/down on calendar, set time limits for debate and limit revision of bills, and block bills from reaching the floor

What is quorum?

minimum number of members needed to act on bills

What is the quorum in the House?

218

After the bill survives the committees and is debated in the House what happens?

House votes to pass/reject bills

Who is the President of Senate?

the Vice President

What does the President of Senate do?

cannot participate in debate; can only vote in the event of a tie

Because the VP is rarely present who presides in the Senate?

President Pro-Tempore (majority party; longest serving member)

Does the Senate also have other leaders?

yes, majority and minority leaders; whips

What procedure do bills follow in the Senate?

the same procedure in House BUT NO RULES COMMITTEE

Who controls the flow of bills to committees and the floor?

Senate leaders

How long can members of the Senate debate for?

unlimited amounts of time

What are the 2 calendars of the Senate?

Calendar of General Orders (bills) & Executive Calendar (presidential treaties & nominations)

How are bills brought on the floor in the Senate?

unanimous consent

What do Senators do to alert party leaders about bills they would object

hold bills

What is filibustering?

stalling legislative process to prevent voting; only way to end debate is vote of cloture

What is a vote of cloture?

60 senators vote to end debate & go to final vote

What is the cloture rule not needed for?

presidential nominees except Supreme Court nominees

What do committees do?

craft bills, hear testimony, propose amendments to bills, vote to send bill to House/Senate

What is the role of committees in Congress?

Divide work of Congress into smaller groups; lawmakers specialize on certain issues; select those few bills worthy of further consideration; work on compromises for bills; help the public learn about key issues

What are subcommittees?

a group within a committee that specializes in a subcategory of an issue

What are the 4 types of committees?

standing, select, joint & conference

What are standing committees?

permanent committees

What are select committees?

temporary (can be renewed); studies one issue & reports findings to Congress

What are joint committees?

temporary/permanent; members from both houses; studies a topic & reports findings to Congress

What are conference committees?

temporary; members from both houses to create one version of a bill passed by both houses

Who run committee meetings?

chairpersons

What is the seniority system?

longest serving member from majority party will be the chairperson

Who do members of Congress rely on?

staff to write bills, keep informed on issues, listen to constituents, write committee reports & attend meetings, write speeches

What are the personal staff of a Congressman?

1. administrative assistant (AA)

2. legislative director (LD)

3. legislative assistants (LAs)

4. press secretary

5. caseworkers

What do administrative assistants (AA) do?

runs lawmaker’s office as chief of staff

What do legislative directors (LD) do?

briefs lawmaker on legislative issues & leg. agenda

What do legislative assistants (LAs) do?

keep lawmaker informed about bills; research & draft bills; writes speeches

What do press secretary do?v

draft press releases, conduct town hall meetings, schedule press conferences

What do caseworkers do?

handle requests for help from constituents

Who are committee staff?

same as personal staff, but they work for committee directly

What is the Library of Congress (LOC)?

world’s largest library; over 155 million items; handles requests from lawmakers, committees & staff for information

What is the Congressional Budget Office (CBO)?

coordinates budget work of Congress, study budget proposals of president & project costs of programs

What is the Government Accountability Office (GAO)?

watchdog of Congressional spending; oversees how money is spent & recommends budget cuts

What is the Government Printing Office (GPO)?

digital record of all bills, committee hearings, congressional speeches, congressional voting records, etc.; promotes transparency in government

What are private bills?

deal with individual people/places (immigration problem, claims against government); very few of these bills

What are public bills?

general matters that apply to the nation (taxes, gun control, healthcare, civil rights, abortion, etc); majority of bills

What are resolutions?

make policy on an unusual/temporary matter

What are joint resolutions?

passed in both houses; has the force of law when signed by president, correct an error in a previous law, appropriate money for special purpose, propose a constitutional amendment, declare war

What are simple resolutions?

matters only affecting one house; no force of law, not sent to president, chamber rules, creating select committee, censure, etc.

What are concurrent resolutions?

both houses, but no law is needed; no force of law, not sent to president, date or Congressional adjournment, express congressional opinion