Ch. 6
Congress at Work
Ch. 6, Section 1: Organization of
Congress
• Essential Questions
– What are the terms and sessions of Congress?
– How is congressional leadership organized?
– What are the rules of conduct in Congress?
Terms and sessions of Congress
• Terms begin on January 3 following the
November election
• Terms are divided into two one-year sessions
• Sessions are continuous
• No term limits are set on members
Organization of congressional
leadership
• organized by political party, a majority party,
and a minority party
• House leaders – Speaker of the House of
Representatives, majority and minority floor
leaders, and majority and minority whips
• Senate leaders – U.S. vice president, president
pro tempore, majority and minority floor
leaders, and majority and minority whips
Rule of conduct
• must meet constitutional qualifications
• follow rules of behavior, including in financial
matters
• can discipline members with a censure or by
expulsion
Ch. 6, section 2: The Committee
System
• Essential Questions
– What kinds of committees are there in Congress?
– How are committee assignments made?
– What kinds of staff help congressmembers and
committees perform their work?
The Committee System
• Types of committees”
– authorizing – establish gov’t. policies on problems such as crime
and how solutions will be funded
– appropriations – funds set aside for specific purposes
– standing – permanent committees (19 in house, 16 in senate)
deal with trade, foreign policy, finance
– subcommittees – standing committees further divided into 215
smaller, specialized subcommittees
– select – deal with special issues not covered by standing
committees, focus on investigations and are usually temporary
– joint – made up of both members of house and senate,
example, Joint Economic Committee
– conference – members of both houses, temporary, work out
compromises
How committee assignments are
made:
• based on member requests
• Committee chairs - based on seniority and
elected by members of the majority party
• “running” for assignments of popular
committees
Types of assistance to
congressmembers and committees:
• personal staff
• committee staff
• agencies – Congressional Budget Office ,
General Accounting Office, Government
Printing Office
Ch. 6, section 3 How a Bill Becomes a
Law
• Essential Questions:
– How are bills referred to a committee?
– What is the purpose of committee hearings and
markup sessions?
– What happens to a bill when it reaches the full
House or Senate floor?
– What courses of action can the president take on
a bill passed by Congress?
How bills are referred to a committee
• referred by the Speaker in the House of
Representatives
• referred by the presiding officer in the Senate
Purpose of committee hearings and
markup sessions
• Committee hearings allow supporters and
opponents for a bill to express their views
• Markup sessions allow decisions to be made
about the specific features of a bill
The course a bill takes when it reaches
the full House or Senate floor
• debated
• amended
• voted on
Courses of action the president can
take on a bill passed by Congress
• sign it
• veto it
• allow it to become law by keeping the bill for
10 days without signing it while Congress is in
session
• pocket veto it *
Ch. 6, section 4: Congress and the
Public Good
• Essential Questions
– Do special interests obstruct Congress in
promoting the public good?
– What is the main criticism of the committee
system, and how does it affect the public good?
– What role does Congress play in promoting the
public good?
Influence of special interests in
Congress and the public good:
• weak influence of interest groups, which can
either promote or hurt the public good
• strong influence of constituent interest in
home districts, members’ personal beliefs,
and interests of members’ political party,
which can undermine the general public
interest
Main criticism of the committee system
and its effect on the public good:
• committees unrepresentative of Congress or
the whole country
• concern that the system results in laws
promoting narrow, local interests
• Congress promotes the public good by
representing the local concerns of the people.
Chapter Wrap-up
• 1. What types of committees are in Congress and
why?
• 2. How are leaders in each house of Congress
selected?
• 3. How are committee assignments made?
• 4. Who assists members of Congress with their
work?
• 5. What are the six steps in the legislative process
after a bill is introduced?
• 6. What are some major criticisms of Congress?