Standard-SS8CG2: The Student will analyze the role
of the legislative branch of Georgia State Government
• a) Explain the qualification, term,
election, and duties of members of the
General Assembly
• E.Q: Why is the General Assembly
important to the citizens of Georgia?
Georgia State’s Bicameral Legislature (Lower & Upper house)
House of Representatives
(Lower house)
The Senate
(Upper House)
What are they doing? Making laws for you & me
Total Physical Response (TPR)
1.Each Pair will be assigned a different vocabulary word or
concept
2. Students discuss & define the meaning of the term or
concept to present with their performance
3. Students work together to create a physical
demonstration or acting out of the term or concept
(include an example)
4. Each group explains their definition or word and presents
their physical demonstration of the term or concept.
5. Students from other groups must ask questions about the
performances or vocabulary words
Vocabulary (Page-536-543)
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(1),General Assembly
(2),House of Representatives
(3),Senate
(4),Bill/ spending bill or laws
(5),Legislative sessions
(6),Reapportionment
(7), Governor of Georgia
(8), Lieutenant Governor of Georgia
This is where it all came from (Bicameral
legislature/ upper & lower houses to make laws)
House of Commons
(England) -Lower House
House of Lords
(England)- Upper House
In the U.S & Georgia The Republican & Democrat Parties dominate
politics. What 2 Parties dominate politics in England/ U.K?
Answer: Labor & Conservative both of which share similar ideologies
to our Democrat & Republican Parties respectively
Structure of the legislative branch in Georgia
• Law making body in Georgia (General Assembly)
• Bicameral legislature (Upper & Lower House)
( 1. House of Representatives & 2, Senate)
only House can write spending bills
senate confirms appointments made by the
governor.
Members of the General Assembly
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180 members of house of representatives
56 members of the senate
Elected by popular vote (Citizens of GA)
2 year terms of office with no term limits
Members districts have about the same number of
votes
Qualifications:
Citizen of Georgia & U.S @ least 2 years
Legal resident of district @ least one year
Senators @ least 25 years old
House of representatives @ least 21 years old
House and senate districts in Georgia
How are Georgia’s House & Senate districts determined?
By population of the districts. Loss of population= more
representatives and vice-versa
How a bill becomes a law
How a bill becomes a Law
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Any senator or representative can propose a bill
Bills related to spending must begin in the house
Same version of bill must pass house & senate
Compromise bill may come from conference
committee
• Governor can sign or veto bill if it passes house &
congress
The role of committees in passing bills
• Bills are assigned to committees based on the
content
• Committees study bills closely
• Some committees are permanent while others
are created for specific tasks only
• Committees can (1) Pass a bill (2) Not pass a bill (3) Pass a
bill with substitution (4) Do nothing & let the bill expire
Types of Committees in the legislature
• Standing Committees
• Interim Committees work on special assigned
tasks
• Conference Committees work out agreements
between the house of representatives &
senate
• Joint Committee has members of H.O.R &
Senate working on an assigned issue or topic
Reapportionment
• Redrawing districts to reflect population changes
• Takes place every 10 years when a census occurs
• Usually leads to arguments/ disagreements
between the 2 major political parties
• Gerrymandering used by both parties to
influence drawing of their districts