1. Chapter 10
Congress

2. The National Legislature
Bicameral Congress
Historical: British Parliament
Practical: all states get equal representation regardless of size
Theoretical: one house could check the other

3. Congressional Terms Each term lasts two years Election in November
Term begins in January

4. Congressional Session
Period of time when Congress meets and conducts business
Two Sessions
One session per year

5. Special Sessions A meeting to deal with an emergency
Only the president can call a special session

6. The House of Representatives
Size
435 members
Based on state population
Each state gets at least one
Terms
Two years

7. Reapportionment Redistribute seats after every census (every 10 years)
A Growing Nation
As the population grew, the size of the House grew
The Reapportionment Act of 1929
Automatic reapportionment
Set number of 435
State proportions are set after each census

8. Congressional Elections
Date
Same in every state
Tuesday following the first Monday in November each even numbered year
Off-Year Elections
Occur in even years when there is no presidential election

9. Congressional Elections
Districts
States are responsible for drawing district lines
In 2001, Mississippi lost one of its votes in Congress and had to redraw district lines. We have 4 representatives
Gerrymandering
Cause odd shaped districts

10. Qualifications for House Members
Formal
25 years old
Citizen of the U.S. for 7 years
Live in the state from which he/she is elected
Informal
Vote-getting abilities
Party identification
Name familiarity
Ethnic characteristics
Political experience

11. The Senate Size Election Two from each state 100
17th amendment states that the voters choose senators, not members of the state legislature

12. The Senate Terms Qualifications Serve 6 year terms
Unlimited amount of terms
Qualifications
At least 30 years old
Citizen of U.S. for 9 years
Live in the state represented

13. The Members of Congress
Average member is a white male in his early 50s
Number of minority members is growing
Mostly protestant (60%)
Many were lawyers
Almost all went to college

14. The Job-Five Major Roles of Congress
Legislators-make laws
Representatives of the people
Trustees: vote on the merit of the issue
Delegates:vote the way they think their constituents would
Partisans: vote the way their party would
Politicos:combination of all three

15. The Job-Five Major Roles of Congress
Committee Members-decide if a proposal makes it onto the floors of the Senate and the House to be considered for law
Servants-help out constituents who have problems with the federal bureaucracy (paperwork, chain of command, etc.)
Politicians- try to keep their seat

16. Compensation Salary Non-salary compensation $174,000 a year
Special tax deduction
Travel allowances
Low healthcare costs
Retirement plan
Some can retire with a salary of $150,000 a year
Offices with a staff

17. Membership Privileges
Cannot be arrested unless they have committed treason, a felony, or breach of the peace
Cannot be sued for anything they say in session