6.1 Organization of
Congress
A Bicameral
Legislature
• The Great Compromise established Congress as a two-part
or bicameral body
A Bicameral
Legislature
• In the Upper House (Senate) each state would have an equal
number of representatives- two, in the lower house (House
of Representatives) each state’s population would
determine representation
A Bicameral
Legislature
• The legislative branch is described in Article I of the
Constitution and our Congress includes 535 members
Terms of Congress
• Each term of
Congress lasts 2
years and starts on
January 3rd of oddnumbered years,
each “new”
Congress is given a
number to identify
its two-year term
Terms of Congress
• Each term is divided into two sessions; Congress may meet
during special sessions or in times of crisis, a joint session
occurs when the House and Senate meet together
In 2008 a joint session of Congress counted electoral votes.
The House of
Representatives
• The House of Representatives has 435 voting
members allotted according to population, the
Constitution guarantees each state at least one
representative
The House of
Representatives
• After each 10-year census Congress adjusts the
number given to each state, they serve 2 year terms
and focus on the concerns of their districts
The House of
Representatives
• State legislatures
draw boundaries
so districts
include roughly
the same number
of constituents,
or people
represented
The House of
Representatives
• Sometimes states
abuse this process
by
gerrymandering, a
gerrymander is an
oddly shaped
district designated
to increase the
voting strength of
a particular group
The Senate
• The Senate has
100 members, 2
from each of the
50 states; each
senator represents
the entire state,
they serve 6 year
terms
The Senate
• Elections are staggered so no more than one-third are up for
reelection at any one time; this ensures a certain amount of
stability and continuity
In 2008 Kay Hagen (D) was elected Senator; in 2010 Richard Burr (R) is up for re-election
Leaders in Congress
• In the House and Senate the political party to which
more than half the members belong is known as the
majority party the other party is called the minority
party
Leaders in Congress
• The leader of the House of
Representatives is known as
the Speaker of the House,
the Speaker steers legislation
through the House and leads
floor debates; if anything
happens to the President and
VP the Speaker is next in
line to become President
John Boehner (R) from Ohio
Speaker after 2010 midterm elections
Leaders in Congress
• The Vice President presides in the Senate but only
votes to break a tie; the President Pro Tempore acts
as chairperson for the Senate
VP Joe Biden- President of
the Senate
Senator Daniel Inouye- Hawaii
President Pro Tempore
Leaders in Congress
• Other powerful leaders are the majority and
minority floor leaders in each house, they speak for
their parties on issues; Party Whips help the floor
leaders, they make sure legislators are present for
key votes
House Minority Whip
House Majority Whip
Steny Hoyer- MD
Kevin McCarthy- CA
Committee Work
• Each house must consider
thousands of bills, or
proposed laws, in the
course of a session; to
make it possible to handle
so many bills each house
developed a system of
committees
• Congress has three types
of committees: standing
committees, select
committees, and joint
committees
Committee Work
• Standing Committees= are permanent
committees
• Select Committees are temporary committees
that deal with special issues, they meet for a
limited time until they complete their assigned
task
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:USCongressCommittees
• Joint Committees include members of both
houses, they meet to consider specific issues
Committee
Assignments
• Party leaders make committee assignments, they
consider members’ preferences, expertise, and
loyalty to the party; another key factor is seniority
or years of service
• The longest-serving committee member from the
majority party traditionally becomes chairperson;
they decide when and if a committee meets, what
bills are studied, and who will serve on which
subcommittee
Representative Edward J. Markey
of Massachusetts
Chairman of the Select
Committee on Energy
Independence and Global