LS606The Legislative Process

Dr. Christie L. Richardson

Kaplan University

Unit 1

Welcome to LS606!

Welcome to LS606The Legislative Process

• Welcome the class.– Thursdays 9-10 p.m. EDT/EST

• My name is Dr. Christie Richardson– AKA “Dr. R”

• Office Hours– Tuesdays & Thursdays 8-9 p.m. EDT/EST

• Other Methods of Contact– Email: crichardson4@kaplan.edu– Cell Phone: (912) 695-6993– Text Messaging

Syllabus• We have the following tasks:

– 8 Seminars– 9 Discussion Boards– 1 Unit 5 Chat– 1 Assignment– 5 Group (Wiki) Meetings– 1 Position Statement– 1 Final Project

• Academic Integrity• Netiquette Rules• Let me know if you have any questions or

concerns.

Other Support Systems

• Writing Center– Click on "My Studies" and then "Academic

Support Center” from your main page.

• Student Tech Support – 1-866-348-1196– TechSupport@Kaplan.edu

• Advising– 1-866-522-7747– academicadvising@kaplan.edu

Late Policy• A maximum penalty of 5% per week will be assessed

on all “late work.” • No late work will be “accepted more than 3 weeks

after the original due date” or after the conclusion of Unit 7 without an extenuating circumstance AND prior instructor approval.

• Your responsibility is to advise your instructor (ahead of time, whenever possible) of extenuating circumstances that might prevent you from completing work by the assigned deadline.

• Remember, if you’re late, communicate!

Unit 1 Conferences

• During Unit 1 (and it may work its way into Unit 2), I will be doing phone conferences with each student.

• This is our time to get to know each other.

• Email will be sent out ASAP to sign up for a date and time.

The Legislative Process

• What does legislative mean or even having a legislature?• The U.S. Congress has two primary roles.

– Legislative Assembly– Representative Body

• Its primary function is to enact laws consistent with the delegated powers assigned to Congress under Article I of the U.S. Constitution.

– Congress is also a collection of 100 senators and 438 House members elected from hundreds of legislative communities across the fifty states.

• Each member of Congress is responsible for representing a constituency.

The Functions of CongressLegislative Powers

• Taxing and Spending– Congress passes tax laws, which collect money for the

government and appropriations laws, which determine how the money is spent.

– Under the terms laid out in the U.S. Constitution, all tax bills must originate in the House of Representatives.

– Spending bills involve a two-stage procedure:• Authorizations

– Establishes specific programs and set limits on the amount that may be spent on them by the executive branch.

• Appropriations– Provide the actual money for the programs.

The Functions of CongressLegislative Powers

• The Budget Process– The annual budget process is dictated largely by the

Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. – This law created budget committees in both houses

of Congress and established the Congressional Budget Office to provide Congress with economic information.

– Congress considers the budget not as a single document but rather thirteen spending bills, each dealing with a basic area of governmental activity, such as defense, agriculture, homeland security, or education.

The Functions of CongressLegislative Powers

• Interstate Commerce– The commerce clause provides the constitutional basis

for many of the laws Congress has passed to control and regulate the American economy.

– The scope of the commerce clause has included air traffic control, radio and television broadcasting, labor-management relations, and stock and commodity exchanges.

– Congress also used the power of regulating interstate commerce to help end racial discrimination in businesses engaged in interstate commerce, such as hotels and restaurants.

The Functions of CongressRepresentation

• Congressional representation takes two basic forms: – Policy representation

• Mainly concerned with passing legislation that is in the best interests of the members’ constituents.

– Service • Non-legislative activities

– Locating late or lost Social Security checks,– Tardy tax refunds, and – Naturalization problems.

The Functions of CongressOther Constitutional Functions

• Watchdog and Oversight Functions– Congress is responsible for overseeing the

executive branch of the government, and thereby keeping the president and his administration accountable.

– This oversight function is carried out by congressional committees which may conduct investigations, compel people to testify, and hold in contempt those who refuse to cooperate.

The Functions of CongressOther Constitutional Functions

• Appointments– Presidential nominations of ambassadors, Supreme

Court justices and federal court judges, department heads, and “all officers of the United States” must face Senate confirmation.

• Electoral Functions– The House of Representatives has the power to elect

the president from the three candidates with the most Electoral College votes if no presidential candidate receives a majority of electoral votes in the general election.

The Functions of CongressOther Constitutional Functions

• Impeachment – The House of Representatives decides whether to bring

formal charges against government officials if it believes those individuals to be guilty of treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.

– If an individual is impeached, the Senate conducts a trial to determine whether the accused is guilty or not guilty.

– A two-thirds vote is required in the Senate for conviction. – Only when a person is both impeached in the House and

convicted in the Senate are they removed from office.

The Congressional District

• Seats in the House of Representatives are assigned to each state on the basis of population, with the largest states holding the greatest number of seats.

• The allocation of seats among the states is called reapportionment, which is performed every ten years after the census.

• The legislature of each state is responsible for determining the boundaries of the congressional districts within that state, as well as districts for state legislative districts, so that each district is approximately equal in population.

Drafting Legislation (Live)• Unit 1 – Teams are formed.

• Units 2 & 3 – Use online chat room in Live for teams to discuss and decide upon an issue.

• Unit 4 – Each team presents its issue to the class using Live

• Unit 5 – Each issue is debated during the synchronous seminar time

• Units 6 & 7 – Teams work on drafting their bills.

• Unit 8 – Finish drafting bill.

• Unit 9 – Finalized bills submitted for grading.