CONGRESS

Key Committees of Congress-House

Appropriations- Federal expenditures are controlled here.

Budget- Oversight of government spending.

Rules- Debate rules , bill sequence , and rules of amendments are set.

Ways and Means- Taxation legislation, Social Security.

Key Committees of Congress-Senate

Appropriations- Federal discretionary spending programs are set.

Budget- Oversight of government agencies and spending is done.

Finance- Duties are similar to those of the HR Ways and Means committee.

Foreign Relations- Policy debates and treaty votes are main duties.

Judiciary- Judges and justices are questioned and possibly confirmed.

Who creates, controls, or influences the agenda of Congress?

1. Senate and House leaders 2. Committee and Subcommittee Chairpersons 3. Party Leadership Committees 4. Lobbyists 5. PACs and interest groups 6. Congressional Staff Members 7. Party members, party leaders 8. The president and staff 9. Independent Agencies and Executive Agencies 10. Constiuents

The Basic Steps of Creating Laws

1. Staff members of House and Senate leaders assign bills numbers for processing (eg HR 1…., S 1…., etc)

2. Leaders get bills assigned to committees.

3. Committee chairpersons assign bills to subcommittees for study and debate.

4. “Markup procedure”- Subcommittees hold public hearings, amend bills, and vote on bills. If the bill is approved, it is then referred to the full committee.

The Basic Steps of Creating Laws

5. The committee can hold further hearings and debates, but it often votes based on the subcommittee recommendations.

6. The committee refers the bill to he full House or Senate floor.

7. The powerful House Rules Committee frames House debates, times, and so on. In the Senate, a unanimous consent agreement frequently structures debates, times, etc., similar to a rule from the House Rules Committee.

The Basic Steps of creating Laws

8. Floor debates can occur, and, if passed, the bill is referred to the other chamber.

9. Once both chambers have passed the bill, a conference committee is formed to reconcile the two versions into a single bill.

10. Both the House and the Senate vote on the conference committee version of the bill.

11. If the bill is approved it is sent to the president.

12. If the president signs it, the bill becomes federal law.

The Basic Steps of Creating Laws

13. If the president ignores the bill for 10 days (not counting Sundays), it automatically becomes law without the president’s signature.

14. “Pocket veto”- If the congressional session has fewer than 10 days remaining and the president ignores a new bill, then the bill dies at the end of the session.

15. If the president vetoes the bill, the House and Senate can vote to override with a 2/3 majority.

Legislative Tactics Legislative tactics are the strategies and devices used by

Congress and others in an attempt to block legislation or to get legislation passed.

Caucuses - May form voting blocs. The committee system - Plays a major role in the

passage of legislation; bills may die if committees fail to act upon them or reject them.

Filibuster and cloture - Filibuster is unlimited debate in an attempt to stall action on a bill. It occurs in the Senate only, and is possible because the Senate's rules for debate are almost unrestricted. Cloture is the method by which the Senate limits a filibuster. It involves a petition to end debate and requires the vote of at least 60 senators.

Legislative Tactics Pork barrel legislation - An attempt to provide

funds and projects for a member's home district or state.

Logrolling - An attempt by members to gain the support of other members in return for their support on the member's legislation; "I'll support your bill, if you will support mine."

Riders - Additions to legislation which generally have no connection to the legislation; generally legislation that would not pass on its own merit; when a bill has lots of riders it becomes a "Christmas tree bill"

Legislative Tactics Amendments - Additions or changes to legislation that

deal specifically with the legislation. Lobbying - Trying to influence members of Congress to

support or reject legislation. Conference committees - May affect the wording and

therefore the final intent of the legislation. Legislative veto - The rejection of a presidential or

executive branch action by a vote of one or both houses of Congress, used mostly between 1932 and 1980 but declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 1983 (Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Chadha) stating that Congress cannot take any actions having the force of law unless the president agrees.

Legislative Tactics Leaders can assign bills to openly hostile

committees or committee chairpersons in attempt to block legislation.

Chairpersons can delay the bill’s consideration (“pigeonhole”).

Samples of major laws created by Congress

1. Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act 2. Sherman Antitrust Act 3. Pure Food and Drug Act 4. Clayton Antitrust Act 5. Glass-Steagull Act 6. Social Security Act 7. Wagner Act 8. Hatch Act 9. Smith Act 10. Employment Act

Samples of major laws created by Congress

11. Taft-Hartley Act 12. National Security Act 13. Civil Rights Act 14. Voting Rights Act 15. Freedom of Information Act 16. Fair Housing Act 17. Occupational Safety and Health Act 18. Federal Election Campaign Act 19. Title IX, Educational Amendments 20. Endangered Species Act

Samples of major laws created by Congress

21. Simpson-Mazzoli Act 22. Americans with Disabilities Act 23. Family and Medical Leave Act 24. No Child Left Behind Act 25. Patriot Act. 26. McCain-Feingold Act 27. Sarbanes –Oakley Act 28. American Jobs Creation Act 29. Energy Independence and Security Act