Introduction

branchesThe Usa spent viii long years of desperate fighting for independence from 1775 to 1783. By 1789, the Founding Fathers had set about constructing a government "built on the central confidence of revolutionary-era republicanism: that no central authorization empowered to coerce or discipline the citizenry was permissible , since it merely duplicated the monarchical and aristocratic principles that the American Revolution had been fought to escape. The United States is now the oldest enduring republic in world history, with a set up of political institutions and traditions that take stood the examination of time."

According to Business firm.gov , "To ensure a separation of powers, the U.S. Federal Government is made up of three branches: legislative, executive and judicial. To ensure the regime is effective and citizens' rights are protected, each branch has its own powers and responsibilities, including working with the other branches." This is often referred to every bit " checks and balances ," and prevents whatsoever one part of government from wielding besides much political power.

Why it Matters

America benefits from a judicial branch positioned to halt executive co-operative overreach. The President of the United States cannot stay in ability indefinitely and is unable to force the U.S. Congress to pass laws. From the very starting time, and even so to today, the American people take access to and influence over their elected representatives.

The House of Representatives most directly reflects the desires of the American public due to the ratio of American citizens to U.S. Representatives and the abiding election bike every two years. Much of the deadlock of the U.Due south. government that nosotros witness today reflects a divided American people.

This brief focuses on the Legislative branch of the U.South. regime, in particular the House of Representatives, including the nuts and bolts of how its inner workings, and how everyday citizens can influence the legislative procedure. For a brief on the U.S. Senate, click here .

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What is the Legislative Branch?

The legislative co-operative is made up of the House of Representatives and the Senate , known collectively as the Congress. Amongst other powers, the legislative co-operative "makes all laws, declares war, regulates interstate and foreign commerce and controls taxing and spending policies."

CrashCourse U.S. Government and Politics, produced in collaboration with PBS, explains the Bicameral Congress (9 min):

Of all federal government institutions, the Firm of Representatives is designed to be closest to American voters, about closely reflecting the individual cares and concerns of American taxpayers. In fact, the Firm is the only establishment that has been direct elected past American voters since its formation in 1789.

"'If proportional representation takes place, the small States contend that their liberties will be in danger. If an equality of votes is to be put in its place, the large States say their money will exist in danger,'" explained Benjamin Franklin . What eventually "emerged from weeks of stalemate was called the 'Bang-up Compromise' and created a bicameral legislature with a Firm, where membership was determined past state population, and a Senate, where each state had ii seats regardless of population."

Size and Structure of the Business firm

There are 435 representatives in the House , and accept been since the number was fixed by constabulary in 1911. Each Business firm representative is elected to a two-year term serving the people of a specific congressional commune in a state. "Each country receives representation in the Business firm in proportion to the size of its population but is entitled to at least one representative." This means that states with big populations have more representatives than minor states take. Representation based on population was "one of the well-nigh important components of the Federal Constitutional Convention of 1787," as one of the founders' greatest concerns was designing a organisation of authorities that would better represent the public than did the British model from which they had won independence.

In add-on to the 435 representatives from the states, there is a Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico and Delegates from Washington D.C., American Samoa, Guam, The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands. The Resident Commissioner and Delegates are able to serve and vote on committees, but do non have the aforementioned total voting rights as the 435 state representatives.

The Role of the Census

Specifically, seats in the House " are apportioned based on state population according to the constitutionally mandated Census."  The Census, which occurs every ten years and is overseen by the Bureau of the Census, part of the U.South. Department of Commerce. Tying representation to Census data allows the number of each state's representatives to increase or decrease forth with fluctuations in land population. The Census information is and so used to determine congressional districts, areas in the country from which representatives are elected to the House. This process is chosen redistricting. For more on redistricting and the Demography, see The Policy Circle'southward Decennial Census Cursory.

Elections

Members of the House of Representatives " must represent election every ii years , after which it convenes for a new session and essentially reconstitutes itself – electing a Speaker, swearing-in the Members-elect, and approving a slate of officers to administer the establishment." Biennial elections are held in November, and the Congress commences in the following Jan. To be elected, a representative must be at least 25 years one-time, a U.s.a. citizen for at least seven years, and a resident of the state he or she represents. U.South. House candidates are not required to live in the congressional district they represent.

The Life of a Representative

Co-ordinate to Congressional Management Foundation'due south Life in Congress study , when representatives are in Washington, D.C., they study spending their fourth dimension every bit follows:

  • 35% on "Legislative/Policy Work"
  • 17% on "Elective Services Work"
  • 17% on "Political/Campaign Work"
  • 9% on "Press/Media Relations"
  • 9% on "Family/Friends"
  • 7% on "Administrative/Managerial Work"
  • half dozen% on "Personal Fourth dimension"

When in their abode district, they reported spending fourth dimension every bit follows:

  • 32% on "Constituent Services Work"
  • xviii%  on "Political/Entrada Work"
  • 14% on "Press/Media Relations"
  • 12%  on "Legislative/Policy Work"
  • 9% with "Family/Friends"
  • 8% on "Personal Time"
  • 7% on "Administrative/Managerial Work"

Compensation

Article I, Section 6 of the Constitution requires Congress to make up one's mind its ain pay. Congress's " electric current automatic adjustment formula , which is based on changes in individual sector wages," was established by the Ethics Reform Human activity of 1989. The last pay adjustment was in January 2009. Since, virtually representatives earn $174,000 annually, while the majority and minority leaders make $193,400. The Speaker earns the largest bacon at $223,500. Additionally, representatives "are discipline to some specific laws and regulations regarding the acceptance of gifts ," particularly gifts from registered lobbyists or from private entities that retain or employ a lobbyist.

What does the House of Representatives do?

Responsibilities of the Business firm

Per the Constitution , the Firm and Senate together make and pass federal laws, introduce bills and resolutions, offer amendments, and serve on committees that enable members to develop specialized cognition on the matters nether that committee'due south jurisdiction. Though both make up Congress, there are a few distinctions between the two. In particular, the Constitution "provides that simply the House of Representatives may originate acquirement bills, " and past tradition information technology as well originates cribbing bills.

Additionally, while the Constitution does not specifically mention investigations and oversight , "the authorization to deport investigations is implied since Congress possesses 'all legislative powers'." The House initiates impeachment proceedings and passes articles of impeachment (the Senate sits every bit a court to try the impeachment).

Finally, during a presidential election, the House of Representatives steps in if no candidate receives a majority of the total electoral votes. Each state delegation has one vote to choose the President from among the top three candidates with the largest number of electoral votes.

Leadership in the House

After each election, the political political party that wins the most representatives is designated the " Majority ." The other political party is the " Minority. " The majority party holds fundamental leadership positions, such as Speaker of the House. The aforementioned party can have the majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate, or the chambers can be split. 3rd parties rarely have plenty members to elect their own leadership, so independents generally join one of the larger political party organizations to receive committee assignments.

The House is run by bulk rule.  When a majority of members vote to do something in the Firm, it gets washed. Majority rule makes passing legislation relatively efficient, and that ways that the political party in the minority has less power to set the agenda or pass its proposals. This contrasts with the Senate, where a single senator – in the majority or the minority – can generally force a vote or stop a neb in its tracks.

House Leadership includes the Speaker of the House, Majority and Minority Leaders, and Majority and Minority Whips.

The Speaker of the Firm is the presiding officer of the Business firm, and is elected by the members of the House. The Speaker administers the Adjuration of Office to House members, chairs certain committees or nominates committee chairs (namely the chairs of the Business firm Administration Committee and the Rules Commission ), and appoints members of various committees and Firm staff. After the Vice President, the Speaker is second in line to succeed the Vice President.

Majority and Minority Leaders stand for their corresponding parties on the House flooring. Each is elected by his or her respective party. The majority leader is 2d to the Speaker and schedules legislative business organization, planning legislative agendas rather than serving on committees. The minority leader serves as the minority party'due south spokesperson, essentially the minority party'due south counterpart to the Speaker. He or she also chairs the minority political party's committee assignment panel.

Bulk and Minority Whips serve as middlemen to between their party leaders and members. They "maintain communication between the leadership of the political party and its members, marshal support for party positions on the flooring, count votes on central legislation, and persuade wavering Members to vote for the party position."

The Speaker of the House is elected past the unabridged House of Representatives, while the Republican Conference and Democratic Caucus elect the other leadership positions. The Republican Briefing is the formal organization of Republican Members in the House, and the Democratic Caucus is that of the Autonomous Members.

Run across current House Leadership positions here.

The Role of Committees

Committees " are permanent panels governed past House bedchamber rules, with responsibleness to consider bills and issues and to accept general oversight relating to their areas of jurisdiction." Committees have different legislative jurisdictions, only each considers, shapes, and passes laws related to its jurisdiction, and monitors agencies, programs, and activities inside their jurisdiction. Each committee has a chair that leads the full committee, and a ranking fellow member who leads the minority members of the committee. Commission assignment direct affects a representative's work in Congress. After a Congressional election, political parties assign newly elected representatives to standing committees

Crash Course U.S. Government & Politics explains what Congressional committees do (8 min):

Some of the most well-known committees include:

  • The House Committee on Means and Means , which oversees all taxation, tariffs, and other revenue-raising measures.
  • The House Committee on Appropriations , which has jurisdiction over setting specific government expenditures.
  • The House Committee on Foreign Affairs , which has jurisdiction over foreign help and oversees national security developments affecting foreign policy.
  • The House Committee on the Judiciary, which oversees the judiciary and civil and criminal proceedings.

Most committees are regular standing committees, which keep from one Congress to the adjacent. At that place are also select committees, special committees formed for a short period of time for a specific purpose such equally an investigation, and there are several joint committees with the Senate. See a total list of all House Committees here .

Legislation in the Business firm

Legislation begins with an thought . It may come from a Congressman, a staffer, a constituent, or a thought leader or expert on a given subject area. You may recollect the School Business firm Rock video , which walks through the legislative process in an accessible way and is nifty to share with your kids (3 min):

Drafting Legislation

Working with House parliamentarians —  lawyers and clerks who provide nonpartisan guidance on rules and procedures — and other Congressional staff on Capitol Hill, the Congressional representative's staff drafts the bill. The parliamentarians accept specific expertise; they work closely with staff in a non-partisan style to draft the specific language of the bill. Staff works to build sponsors and cosponsors before the neb is introduced.

Introducing a Beak

Any Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner tin can introduce a bill when the house is in session by " placing it in the 'hopper, '" a box on the House Clerk'southward desk in the Capitol building. The Member who introduces the beak is known as the master sponsor. The bill is then formally assigned a number by the Clerk. A neb originating in the Firm will start with "H.R." (for the House of Representatives, as opposed to "S." for the Senate). The Speaker'south office then assigns that bill to its committee(s) of jurisdiction, which and so assigns the bill to a subcommittee(south).

Committee Process

The Subcommittee seeks input from relevant departments and agencies and holds public hearings. After hearings, in that location is a markup on the legislation , in which "views of both sides are studied in particular and at the conclusion of deliberation a vote is taken to determine" whether or not the subcommittee recommends the bill to the total committee. In the full commission, the subcommittee reports on the beak; this meeting provides an opportunity for Members to amend the legislation. There is also the possibility that the committee tables the bill or fails to take action , which prevents the nib from reaching the full Business firm. Y'all tin sentry House Committee hearing videos hither .

To get to the full House, the committee staff writes a report describing the purpose of the nib, why the neb is recommended, and an analysis of each role of the bill and how the beak may affect existing law. A full committee marker-up and the conclusion of what legislation makes it to the Business firm flooring is tightly controlled by the Committee Chairman's office and leadership. When the legislation is reported favorably out of the full committee it awaits a decision by leadership to schedule time for it to exist debated on the Firm floor. This conclusion is a negotiation based on priorities of the committee and of leadership.

After a commission has reported a bill, the bill is placed on the calendar . This means the beak is eligible for floor consideration, but not that information technology volition necessarily make it to the floor. In the House, it is up to the majority party leadership to decide which bills the Business firm will consider on the floor, and in what gild.

Committee on Rules

Once leadership has decided that a specific piece of legislation will receive floortime, the House Majority Leader alerts the committee of jurisdiction that the bill will be considered on the Business firm Flooring, and this kicks off the Rules Committee process.

The Committee on Rules , or Rules Committee, is one of the oldest standing committees in the House. The Committee is commonly known equally "The Speaker'due south Committee" – prior to 1910, the Speaker chaired the Rules Commission, and today it is the mechanism by which the Speaker maintains command of the House Floor. The Rules Committee is sometimes also referred to as " the traffic cop of the House ," as it determines how much time volition be allowed for argue on each piece of legislation considered on the House floor, and if any (and which) amendments will be allowed to be considered during the contend.

Nigh bills are considered nether a procedure known as break of the rules , "which limits fence to twoscore minutes and does not allow amendments to be offered by members on the floor." Otherwise, the nib is considered nether terms tailored for the item beak. In this case, the House adopts a resolution called a special rule from the Rules Committee. After the Rules Committee reports the rule for considering the bill and the House votes to adopt the rule, the House tin then proceed to the floor debate.

Floor Fence

One time the dominion has been adopted, the Firm normally considers the bill "in a procedural setting called the Committee of the Whole , which is essentially "the House assembled in a different form; it is a commission of the House equanimous of every Representative that meets in the House bedroom." This procedure "allows members an efficient way to consider and vote on amendments."

After the floor contend on amendments and the underlying legislation, the Committee of the Whole reports to the full Business firm, which then votes on the bill. The bill passes the Business firm by a uncomplicated majority , 218 votes of the 435 full. Information technology then goes to the Senate and waits to be scheduled for floor time.

See The Policy Circle's Senate Brief to see how the process continues.

Additional Resources

Glossary of terms

Different types of legislation

Alternative legislative procedures in the House

Ways to Get Involved/What Yous Can Practise

Measure out & Identify : Who are the influencers in your state, county, or community? Larn about their priorities and consider how to contact them

  • Do y'all know who your Congressional Representative is ? What about your country elected officials ?
  • Track your representatives' votes with GovTrack .

Reach out: You are a catalyst. Finding a common cause is a great opportunity to develop relationships with people who may be outside of your immediate network. All it takes is a small team of two or three people to set a path for real improvement. The Policy Circumvolve is your platform to convene with experts y'all want to hear from.

  • Find allies in your customs or in nearby towns and elsewhere in the land.
  • Foster collaborative relationships with colleagues, neighbors, friends, and local organizations to mobilize an effort to bring attending to your issue to your local Congressional office. As well accomplish out to community leaders to educate them and asking their engagement on the upshot.

Plan: Prepare some milestones based on your country's legislative agenda .

  • Yous can find the legislative calendar for the House of Representatives hither .
  • Don't hesitate to contact The Policy Circle team, communications@thepolicycircle.org , for connections to the broader network, advice, insights on how to build rapport with policy makers and establish yourself as a civic leader.

Execute: Requite information technology your all-time shot. You lot can:

  • Research: Make sure you know the facts about the outcome you lot are raising. Government agencies, call back tanks, and media outlets tin can all be proficient resources. Recall to research all sides of the issue to make certain yous understand various angles. You lot tin can also talk with people who are affected by the issue with which you are concerned; anecdotal information combined with measured data can be powerful.
  • Write: Although nosotros may be more inclined to email in the digital historic period, writing an old-fashioned letter to your local elected representatives or to members of Congress is still one of the most effective ways to influence lawmakers.
      • See these tips for stride-by-stride instructions to write letters to elected officials, including how to address your representative, reference specific legislation, and properly send your correspondence.
  • Organize: Organize people to call in, follow-upwards on written material, and reach out to other customs members to educate them on the consequence. Demonstrating broad support can exist very effective in influencing a legislator to support your position.

Working with others, you lot may create something great for your community. Here are some tools to acquire how to contact your representatives and write an op-ed .