1. Legislative Branch Makes the Laws

2. The Basics Legislative Branch=Congress, which is divided into the House of Representatives & the Senate (bicameral) Representatives (House) are elected according to a state’s population and Senators are elected 2 per state Representatives=435 Senators=100 Representatives elected every 2 years Senators elected every 6 years

3. Requirements House of Representatives Must be at least 25 yrs. old Must be a citizen of the United States for at least 7 years Must live in the state in which he/she is elected Senate Must be at least 30 years old Must have been a citizen of the United States for at least 9 years Must live in the state in which he/she is elected

4. Structure House of Representatives Senate

5. Checks & Balances Can impeach elected officials (put them on trial for wrong-doing) Can override a President’s veto Must approve the President’s selections for judges and other officials

6. How a Bill Becomes a Law There is a simple process Congress must use to make laws. 1. A member of Congress (either the House or the Senate) must propose a bill. 2. The bill must then go to committee. a) The committee in each house must review it and possibly edit it. b) If the either committee dislikes the bill, they can “kill it” or refuse to bring it to a vote. c) Once the bill passes through each committee, different versions may exist. A joint committee (House and Senate) must agree to the same language for the bill.

7. How a Bill Becomes a Law 3. The bill then goes to each house for a vote. 4. It must pass with a majority of 51% in each house to move on to the next step. 5. The President must either sign the bill or veto it. 6. If the President vetoes the bill, Congress can override it. Each house must vote to override the veto with a 2/3 majority vote.

8. How an Amendment is Ratified 1. There are two ways an amendment can be proposed. A. Congress Both the House and the Senate must approve the proposal by a 2/3 majority (Most Common) B. State Convention At a convention called by 2/3 of the States 2. After an amendment is proposed, it must be ratified (approved). This can be done in two ways. A. State Legislatures (Most Common) ¾ of the State Legislatures approve B. State Conventions ¾ of the State Conventions approve

10. Bill of Rights Many of the Framers refused to support a new Constitution unless it guaranteed rights for individuals called the Bill of Rights. The first 10 amendments are called the Bill of Rights. These are your MOST BASIC rights as a citizen!!! We will study these more next week!