Congress in ActionCongress in Action

How it all works!

Getting OrganizedGetting Organized

• The House of Representatives must organize from scratch each time, since all 435 seats were up for election. They elect leaders, clerk, Sergeant at Arms, Chaplain, etc.

• Members must all be sworn in.• Members adopt the rules for

the House (seldom changed).• Members are assigned to

committees (19 permanent committees).

• The Senate has been organized since 1789, without break--since only 1/3 of the seats are up for election at once.

• New members or reelected members must be sworn in.

• New members assigned to vacancies in committees.

New term of Congress begins on January 3, every odd-numbered year (following general elections in

November).

Presiding OfficersPresiding Officers• Speaker of the HouseSpeaker of the House is both the elected

leader of the House and the acknowledged leader of the majority party.

• President of the SenatePresident of the Senate is a job assigned by the Constitution to the Vice PresidentVice President.

• President President Pro TemporePro Tempore serves as President of the Senate in the absence of the Vice President. Typically a senior membersenior member of the majority partymajority party serves, though members of the majority party often rotate into the position.

Party CaucusParty Caucus

• Party chooses its leaders (including party leader and party whips) as well as a caucus chairman.

• The leaders form a policy committee, called an executive committee (except for House Democrats, who call it the Steering Committee).

• Party caucus often takes a position on major bills, though no one forces a member to vote the party line.

One for each party in each house of Congress.

Floor LeadersFloor LeadersOrganized along party lines

• Majority Leader and Minority Leader (a.k.a. Party Leader) chosen by their party, these members work to carry out the wishes of their party. Majority leader has the most power, as his party has the most votes. (Currently the Democratic Leader in the House is female—a first in Congress’ history.)

• Party Whip(s) chosen as an assistant(s) to the party leader. He checks with party members and advises the leader how many votes can be counted on for a particular matter. He may work to persuade an undecided member to vote the way the party would like.

Committee ChairmenCommittee ChairmenMembers who head a standing committee in each

chamber

• Seniority Rule: provision that allows for the ranking members to hold the more prestigious positions, both within the party and in the chamber. (Applied most strictly to committee chairmen.)

• Chairmen are always members of the majority party.

• House Republicans have instituted a new rule: Chairmen cannot serve for more than 3 terms. (Not required of Democrats should they gain the majority in the future.)

Seniority RuleSeniority Rule

• Advantages:– Known rule;

easy to apply– Established

leadership– Members

develop expertise

• Disadvantages:– Ignores ability– Discourages

newer members– Inflexible

leaders… “we’ve always done it this way before…”

CommitteesCommitteesWhere the work of Congress is done.

•Congress is first divided into two chambers by the Constitution and then further divided into committees by established rules.

•The House is made up of 19 permanent committees and the Senate is made up of 17 permanent committees.

•House members may serve on two permanent committees, while Senators often serve on two or three major panels.

Committee TypesCommittee Types•Standing Committees: permanentpermanent committees made up of members from oneone chamber.•Select Committees: temporarytemporary committees made up of members from oneone chamber.

•Joint Committees: permanentpermanent committees made up of members of bothboth chambers.•Conference Committees: temporarytemporary committees made up of members from bothboth chambers.

House Rules CommitteeHouse Rules CommitteeThe most powerful committee in Congress?

• This committee sets the conditions for the consideration of a bill. A bill can only be considered by the full House if it has been granted a rule by the committee.

• The Rules Committee sets a rule for each bill: time limit for debate, and which types of amendments are allowed, if any.

• This committee therefore controls all legislation that goes through the House of Representatives--therefore ALL laws must pass their inspection!

• In the Senate, the Majority Leader fulfills this role.

How a Bill Becomes a Law

The Life of a Bill is usually a short life as more than 10,000 bills are typically submitted in a term, yet

fewer than 10 percent become law.

Types of Measures:Types of Measures: BillsBillsWhat can be put into the hopper?

• Bills: need a Presidential signature.– Public Bills: apply to the entire nation as

a whole; for example a tax increase bill– Private Bills: apply to certain persons or

places; for example repaying a sheep rancher...

– Riders: are proposed amendments to a bill that often have nothing to do with the bill itself; typically a weak bill that would not pass on its own merit is attached to a bill likely to pass.

Types of Measures: Types of Measures: ResolutionsResolutionsWhat can be put into the hopper?

• Resolutions: No Presidential action required– Joint Resolutions: have the force of law; require

action by both chambers; used to deal with unusual or temporary matters; means of amending the Constitution.

– Concurrent Resolutions: do not have the force of law; require action by both chambers; states the official position of the Congress on an issue;

– Simple Resolutions: do not have the force of law; require action of only one chamber; housekeeping method of amending rules or procedures.

Life of a Bill: Life of a Bill: HouseHouse• First Reading

– Bill is read– Assigned a number (by the Clerk)– Assigned to a committee (by the Speaker)

• Committee Meetings– Usually break into subcommittees (Most changes made

here!)• Makes recommendations to the full committee

– Committee votes to:1) PigeonholePigeonhole (“come back to it…”)2) AmendAmend3) Write a similar billWrite a similar bill4) RecommendRecommend 5) Don’t recommendDon’t recommend

– Discharge Petition - Used to force a committee to take action on a bill it has had for more than 30 days.

Life of a Bill: Life of a Bill: HouseHouse• House Rules Committee

– Set length of time and guidelines for debate.

– Place the bill on the appropriate calendar.

• Second Reading (Floor Debate)– Must follow rules for the bill.

– Typically managed by party or floor leaders.

– Quorum required.• Committee of the Whole : Only 100 members

required. Act as one big committee. Used to expedite action; relaxed rules. (Usually used at the end of a session or when pressed for time.)

Life of a Bill: Life of a Bill: HouseHouse• Voting

– Voice Vote– Standing Vote– Roll Call Vote (most common in the Senate)

– Teller Vote (replaced by Electronic Vote)– Electronic Vote

• Members can vote at 48 stations by inserting a unique key card and voting Yea, Nay or Present.

• Third Reading– Bill is printed in final form.– Title is read, and final vote is taken.– Signed by the Speaker and sent to the Senate

Life of a Bill: Life of a Bill: SenateSenate• The general process is the same as the House, but for a

few exceptions:– No Rules CommitteeNo Rules Committee; bill placed on the calendar by

majority leader (after consulting with minority leader).

– No time limit for debateNo time limit for debate; debate on most bills ends at a time agreed upon by party leaders. A unanimous consent agreement ends the debate, unless someone objects.

– FilibusterFilibuster: an attempt to kill a bill by talking it to death; now used more as a threat to force a compromise.

• ClotureCloture: if 16 Senators sign a petition and 60 Senators agree to it, a filibuster can be stopped--limiting debate to an additional 30 hours before a final vote is taken.

Life of a Bill:Life of a Bill: ConferenceConference• If a bill successfully passes both chambers in the exact

same form, this step can be omittedthis step can be omitted. (RARERARE!)• A conference committee, a temporary joint committee, is

formed to hammer out a compromise bill; the committee is typically made up of ranking members of the standing committees that reviewed the bill in each chamber.

• The compromise bill must be accepted or rejected without amendment. Rarely does a conference committee bill fail to win approval.

• This step is sometimes referred to as a “third house of Congress” because of its importance in winning approval for major pieces of legislation.

Life of a Bill: Life of a Bill: PresidentPresident

• Sign the bill. Major pieces of legislation are often signed in a ceremony using dozens of pens!

• Veto (“I forbid” in Latin), the President may refuse to sign, instead attaches a veto message to the bill, stating his reasons for not signing, and returns the bill to its house of origin.

Life of a Bill: Life of a Bill: PresidentPresident

• Allow the Bill to become law without his signature. By not acting on a bill within 10 days of receiving it (not counting Sundays) he allows the bill to become law.

• Pocket Veto. If Congress adjourns within 10 days of submitting a bill to the President, and the President does not act, then the bill dies--just as if he had vetoed it.

The congress

Chapter 12!