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Lesson 19 Legislative Branch Slides

The document describes the structure and organization of the US Congress. It is divided into two chambers, the Senate and House of Representatives. The Senate has 100 members with two senators per state who serve 6-year terms. The House has 435 members who are elected to 2-year terms based on population. Together they make up the legislative branch and create laws for the US.

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21 views13 pages

Lesson 19 Legislative Branch Slides

The document describes the structure and organization of the US Congress. It is divided into two chambers, the Senate and House of Representatives. The Senate has 100 members with two senators per state who serve 6-year terms. The House has 435 members who are elected to 2-year terms based on population. Together they make up the legislative branch and create laws for the US.

Uploaded by

eliedsantiago637
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

Unit 4 Lesson 1
STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION OF CONGRESS
OBJECTIVE:
• Students will describe the bicameral structure, powers, and
organization of the U.S. Congress in order to demonstrate an
understanding of Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution.

ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
• What are the powers, structure and organization of the
legislative branches (United States Congress, MD General
Assembly, and local councils)?
KEY VOCABULARY
apportionment - The division of the 435 representatives to reflect the
shifts in population throughout the United States.
bicameral - Two chambers.
census - A periodic count of the population.
constituent - A person represented by a legislator or other elected official.
House of Representatives - One of the two chambers of Congress with 435
members.
impeachment - Charging a public official with a crime in office for which
they can be removed from power.
incumbent - Person in an elected position who is running for re-election.
president of the senate - The Vice President of the United States and leader
of the US Senate.
KEY VOCABULARY (CONT.)
redistricting - To set up new district lines after reapportionment is complete.
revenue - The total income of a business or a unit of government.
Senate - One of the two chambers of Congress with 100 members.
seniority - An unwritten custom dating back to the 1800s and is still followed in
both houses today. This provides that the most important jobs are held by
the members with the longest service in Congress.
Speaker of the House - The leader of the House of Representatives.
term of office - Length of time an official holds office.
STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION OF CONGRESS
When reading or watching the
daily news media, we most
often hear about the
President.
However, there are numerous
others involved in our
governmentʼs decision
making!
This lesson will explore the
structure and powers of
Congress, which is viewed as
the “peopleʼs” branch of
government.
PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT REVIEW

As you already learned, the framers


of the Constitution feared a
strong central government that
might become too powerful.
In the Constitution, the government
is separated into three branches:
the legislative, the executive, and
the judicial.
This unit will focus on the legislative
branch.
STRUCTURE OF CONGRESS

The primary function of the


legislative branch is to
make laws.
Congress is the lawmaking
body for the United States.
STRUCTURE OF CONGRESS: BICAMERAL

Like a bicycle, which has two


wheels, bicameral means that
Congress is divided into 2
chambers:

• the Senate
• the House of Representatives
U.S. Congress
• Has the most control over the U.S. budget
• Makes laws for the United States
▪ An idea for a law can come from anywhere
▪ But only Congress can introduce a bill
• Made up of House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
• 435 members
• Elects the President when no presidential candidate receives a
majority of the Electoral College vote
• Budget bills start in this chamber
• Impeaches (indicts/charges) the President and other officials
• Lower house of Congress
• Congressional districts are to be similar in population size
• A state will gain representatives when it has a population
increase greater than other states
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVE
REQUIREMENTS
● A person must:
●

○ be at least 25 years old,


○ be a resident of the state he or she represents, and
○ must have been a U.S. citizen for at least seven
years.
● House members are elected to 2-year terms.
● The leader of the House:
○ a member of the political party with a majority of
seats in the House of Representatives
○ called the Speaker of the House
SENATE MEMBERSHIP
• Each state elects 2 members to the U.S. Senate.
• Part of the legislative branch
• Name for the upper house of both Congress and MD
General Assembly
▪ Lower House in Maryland is the MD House of Delegates

• Must approve all Presidential appointments (federal


judges, cabinet)
• Must approve all treaties before they can go into
effect
SENATE REQUIREMENTS

To be eligible for the Senate, a person must:


• be at least 30 years old,
• a resident of his or her state
• a citizen for at least 9 years
Senators are elected to 6-year terms.
The leader of the Senate
• The Vice President of the United States
• Sometimes called the President of the Senate
• not an elected member of the Senate
• only votes in a tie

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