Legislative Branch Notes Ciarletta

Types of Committees: Standing committees: Subcommittees: committee with fixed membership and jurisdiction, continuing from Congress to Congress. Subcommittees: Formed to tackle very specific tasks within the jurisdiction of the standing committee. Select or special committees: Groups appointed for a limited purpose and a limited duration. Joint committees: Includes members of both chambers to conduct studies or perform housekeeping tasks. Conference committee: Includes members of House and Senate to work out differences between similar bills.

Positions in the House of Representatives: The Ways and Means Committee: The Committee on Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The Appropriations Committee: The committee is responsible for passing appropriation bills along with its Senate counterpart. The bills passed by the Appropriations Committee regulate expenditures of money by the government of the United States.

Positions in the House of Representatives House Rules Committee: The Committee on Rules, or Rules Committee, is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. Rather than being responsible for a specific area of policy, as most other committees are, it is in charge of determining under what rule other bills will come to the floor.

How House Seats Are Distributed: Reapportionment: Every 10 years US House of Rep. seats are shuffled based upon movements in the population. This is called “reapportionment” Malapportionment: Is what happens when US Congressional districts are not representative of a community, either by excluding a certain group or having too few people. Gerrymandering: A strategic tactic used by political parties to water down the representation of another party by putting all of their voters into one district.

Terms to Know Elastic Clause: Deficit Surplus: The Elastic Clause, also known as the “Necessary and Proper Clause,” is perhaps the most important clause in the U.S. Constitution, though it is also the most controversial. The Clause gives Congress the authority to use powers not explicitly named in the Constitution, if they are necessary in order to perform its responsibilities as outlined in the Constitution. Deficit The terms national deficit and national surplus usually refer to the federal government budget balance from year to year, not the cumulative amount of debt Surplus: A budget surplus is a period when income or receipts exceed outlays or expenditures.

Terms to Know: Incumbency Advantage: Divided Government: The incumbent often has more name recognition because of their previous work in the office they occupy. Incumbents have easier access to campaign finance and government resources that can be indirectly used to boost a campaign. Divided Government: Refers to the situation when the White House is held by one party and Congress is controlled by another.

Terms to know: Entitlement: Pork-Barrel Legislation: Logrolling: Most mandatory spending consists of entitlement programs such as Social Security benefits, Medicare, and Medicaid. These programs are called "entitlements" because individuals satisfying given eligibility requirements set by past legislation are entitled to Federal government benefits or services. Pork-Barrel Legislation: Pork barrel is a metaphor for the appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or primarily to bring money to a representative's district Logrolling: the practice of exchanging favors, especially in politics by reciprocal voting for each other's proposed legislation.