Chapter 5: The Organization of Congress
Chapter Overviews
[logo] Essential Question
What is the basic structure and organization of Congress as it represents the interests of voters?
Section 1 Congressional Membership
The U.S. Congress is a bicameral legislature with two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each
term of Congress begins on January 3 in years ending in an odd number, and lasts for two years. Congress remains
in session until its members vote to adjourn. The House of Representatives has 435 members elected for two-year
terms. A census that determines each state's population is taken every 10 years. Population determines the number
of representatives that each state will have in the House—a process called reapportionment. After finding out their
number of representatives for the next 10 years, each state legislature draws the boundaries of their congressional
districts—one district for each representative. The Senate has 100 members—2 from each of the 50 states. Senators
represent their entire state.
Members of Congress enjoy a number of benefits and resources: the franking privilege, a medical clinic, a
gymnasium, large allowances to pay for staff and trips home, an income tax deduction to maintain two homes (one in
their home state and one in the capital), and a pension upon retirement. Membership in Congress changes slowly
because officeholders seldom lose reelection. Challengers for open seats and incumbents rely on TV, the radio, and
the Internet to campaign for office.
Section 2 The House of Representatives
The main task of each house in Congress is to make laws. The committees of Congress perform most legislative
activity. The majority party in both the House and Senate gets to select the leaders of that body, control the flow of
legislative work, and appoint the chairs of all the committees. The Speaker of the House has great power presiding
over House sessions.
A law starts as a bill, which is introduced and sent to the appropriate committee for study, discussion, and review.
Bills that survive committee review are put on one of the five House calendars. The House Rules Committee then
decides whether to move the bill ahead, hold it back, or stop it completely. If the bill reaches the floor of the House, a
quorum of 218 members is needed to vote on the bill.
Section 3 The Senate
Leadership in the Senate closely parallels leadership in the House, but the Senate has no Speaker. The vice
president presides but cannot vote except to break a tie. The majority party leader steers the party's bills through the
Senate. The minority leader critiques the majority party's bills and keeps his or her own party united. Senate leaders
control the flow of bills to committees and to the floor. One way for senators to defeat a bill they oppose is to filibuster
against it.
Section 4 Congressional Committees
Both the House and Senate depend upon committees to consider the thousands of bills that are proposed each
session. Committees are the key power centers in Congress. Lawmakers in committees listen to supporters and
opponents of a bill, work out compromises, and decide which bills will or will not have a chance to become law.
Through public hearings and investigations, committees bring issues and problems to the public. Congress has four
basic kinds of committees: (1) standing committees, each with several subcommittees that specialize in a
subcategory; (2) select (or temporary) committees; (3) joint committees made up of House and Senate members; and
(4) conference committees that resolve differing versions of a House and Senate bill.
Assignment to the "right" committee can help congressional careers, putting members in a position to act on bills
important to their constituents, to influence national policies, and to influence other members in Congress. The key
House committees are Rules, Ways and Means, and Appropriations. The most prestigious Senate committees are
Foreign Relations, Finance, and Appropriations. Party leaders in both the House and Senate have the job of
assigning members to a limited number of standing committees and subcommittees. The chairpersons of standing
committees are the most powerful people in Congress.
Section 5 Staff and Support Agencies
Trained staffers help lawmakers draw up bills, be informed on issues, and represent their constituents. Lawmakers
rely heavily on personal staffers, about one-third of whom work in the lawmakers' home states and the rest in the
capital. Personal staffers include administrative assistants, legislative assistants, and caseworkers who handle
requests from constituents. Lawmakers also rely on committee staffers who work for the many House and Senate
committees. Committee staffers are largely responsible for the work involved in making laws.
Several agencies in the legislative branch provide services that support Congress. The Library of Congress has a
Congressional Research Service that does research for lawmakers, staffers, and committees. The Congressional
Budget Office coordinates the budget work of Congress and studies the proposals put forward by the president each
year. The Government Accountability Office is the nation's watchdog over how the funds Congress appropriates are
spent. The Government Printing Office does the printing for the entire federal government, including the
Congressional Record and the Statistical Abstract of the United States.