Georgia’s Legislative
Branch:
SS8CG2a & SS8CG2b
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Members of the General
Assembly
Notes:
The General Assembly is
bicameral (has 2
chambers/houses). One is
the House of
Representatives, and one is
the Senate. There are 180
members of the House of
Representatives and 56
members of the Senate.
Members of the legislature
are elected by popular vote
to 2 yr. terms of office.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Members of the General
Assembly
Notes:
There is no limit on the number
of terms a representative or
senator can serve. Each of these
members is elected by voters in
a house or senate district.
Equally important, each house
district contains about the same
number of people as all of the
other house districts. And each
senate district contains about
the same number of people as
all the other senate districts.
.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Qualifications for the
Senate
Notes:
At the time of their election,
members of the senate are
required by Georgia’s
constitution to be at least 25
yrs. of age, citizens of the
United States, and citizens of
GA for at least 2 yrs. In
addition, they must have
been legal residents of the
district from which they were
elected for at least 1 yr.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Qualifications for the
House of
Representatives
Notes:
Members of the House of
Representatives must be at
least 21 yrs. of age, citizens
of the United States,
citizens of Georgia for at
least 2 yrs., and legal
residents of the district
from which they were
elected for at least one
year.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Duties for both
chambers
• Serving on standing
committees
• Pass state’s operating
budget
• Enacting laws
• Redistricting (every 10
years)
• Vote to place Constitutional
Amendments on the
election ballot (2/3 vote)
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
The Georgia General
Assembly
Notes:
The GA General Assembly
meets each year for a 40
day session, beginning on
the second Monday in
January. Breaks and
recesses do not count as
part of the 40 days, so the
sessions usually last until
the middle of March.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
The Georgia General Assembly
Notes:
The House of Representatives and
the Senate operate in similar
fashion except for two important
differences:
1. Only the House of
Representatives can write
spending (appropriations)
bills.
2. Only the Senate can confirm
appointments the governor
makes to executive offices.
Either house can propose and pass
bills, and all bills must be
approved by both chambers before
being sent to the governor
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Presiding Officers
LT. Gov. Casey Cagle
Speaker David
Ralston
Notes:
The Lieutenant Governor
presides over (leads) the
Senate. Members of the House
of Representatives elect a
Speaker as their presiding
officer. The Speaker, like the
Lieutenant Governor, appoints
committees and their
chairpersons and assigns bills
(proposed laws) to those
committees. The LT Gov. does
not have a vote in the Senate,
but the Speaker of the House
votes when it is necessary to
break a tie.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Presiding Officers
Notes:
A presiding officer also has
the power to determine the
order of business, control
debate, rule out proposed
amendments to bills,
enforce rules of procedure
for the General Assembly,
control meeting times and
recesses of the General
Assembly, and order a roll
call vote on any issue.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Committee System
Notes:
Members of the Georgia
House and Senate are
organized into committees.
All bills must be reviewed by
a House or Senate committee
before they can be brought to
either the whole house or
sent for a vote. The
committee system makes it
possible for members to
study bills closely. There
would not be time for such
study if each bill were
discussed only by the entire
House and Senate.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Committee System
Notes:
Some committees are
permanent, lasting from one
session to the next. These are
called standing committees.
Some of the standing
committees include: Ways
and Means Committee,
which handles bills involving
taxes; The Appropriations
Committee, which works on
the budget; and the Judiciary
Committee, which deals with
bills concerning the state’s
laws and court system.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Committee System
Notes:
Other committees are organized
for a specific task and only last
until their work is completed. One
type of special committee is an
interim committee, one that works
on assigned issues and concerns
between sessions of the legislature.
Another special committee is a
conference committee, which is
appointed when the House and
Senate pass different versions of a
bill. This committee is made up of
3 senators & 3 representatives and
must try to find a way to write one
bill that both houses will pass.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
Committee System
House
of
Reps.
Senate
Notes:
A joint committee, another
special committee, is made up
of members from both houses
and works on an assigned topic
or issue.
A member of the General
Assembly may serve on several
committees. Committee chair
persons decide when their
committees will meet. They
choose the order in which
assigned bills will be discussed
and when bills will be voted on.
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
1)
16 step lawmaking process
A legislator introduces an idea for a law
(this could be based on the needs of his
or her constituents, suggestions made by
the Governor or Floor Leader, or his or
her own ideas or beliefs)
2) The legislator goes to the Office of Legal
Council to determine and remedy any
legal issues that the bill may face.
3) The legislator files the bill with the Clerk
of the House or Secretary of Senate
4) The bill is formally introduced (1st
Reading)
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
16 step lawmaking
process
5) The bill is assigned to a standing
committee
6) The bill receives a 2nd reading
(process differs in House and
Senate)
7) The bill is considered by
committee (bill can be engrossed,
killed or amended)
8) The bill is reported favorably by
the committee and returned to the
Clerk or Secretary
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea:
16 step lawmaking
process
9) The bill is placed on a general
calendar
10) The rules committee meets and
prepares a rules calendar
11) The presiding officer calls up bills
for calendar
12) The bill receives a 3rd reading (bill
is now up for debate and voting)
Georgia’s Legislative Branch:
Main Idea: 13) If bill is approved, it is sent to the other house
16 step law14) If bill is passed by second house, it is returned.
making
If bill is not accepted it is either killed or
process
brought before a conference committee.
15) If accepted by both houses, the bill is sent to the
Governor for approval.
**The Governor may sign bill or do nothing (it
becomes law). Governor may veto bill (Assembly
can override with veto with 2/3 vote).
16) Act is printed in the Georgia Laws Series and
becomes law the following July 1.