Bicameral Legislature

1000 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Essays on copyright law

Bicameral Legislature Bicameral legislature- A congress made up of two houses. In the U.S. it is the senate and the House of Representatives. Constitutional convention agreed to a bicameral legislation. Congressional Sessions- Each term of congress starts on January 3 of odd numbered years and lasts for two years. Sessions- a meeting that takes place twice in congress and usually lasts for most of the year. Congress remains in session until its members vote to adjourn. After adjournment the president may call congress back into meeting as a special session. Membership of the House- a total of 435 members make up the house of representatives. Seats are allotted to each state and the number of seats that state is allowed to have is based on its population. Every state is entitled to at least one seat no matter how small the population is. To qualify to be a member of the house you must be at least 25 years of age, a resident of the US for 7 years and a legal resident of the state you represent.(Usually live in the district they represent.) Terms of the house are for two years. Representation and reapportionment- the census bureau takes a national census, or population count, every 10 years to assign representation according to population. The population of each state determines the new number of representatives, which is called reapportionment. Congressional Redistricting- The process of setting up new district lines after reapportionment has been completed. Gerrymandering- means that the political party controlling the state government draws a districts boundaries to gain an advantage in elections. The term gerrymandering can be traced to Elbridge Gerry, a governor of Massachusetts. Membership of the Senate- The senate is c... ... middle of paper ... ...ongress has powers beyond those expressed in the first 17 clauses. The Writ of Habeas corpus is a court order to release a person accused of a crime to court to determine whether he or she has been legally detained. Powers of congress- money powers, commerce powers, military and foreign policy powers, and other legislative powers. Appropriations bills are proposed laws to authorize spending money. Interstate commerce- is commerce among the states. Copyright- the exclusive right to publish and sell a literary, musical, or artistic work for a specified period of time. A patent is the exclusive right of an inventor to manufacture, use, and sell his or her invention for a specific period, currently 17 years, and can be renewed. Impeachment- A formal accusation of misconduct in office against a public official. Only a charge of wrong doing, not a determination of guilt.

Show More
Related

  • Poloni-Staudinger And Wolf Essay

    559 Words  | 2 Pages

    Instead, the Constitution grants Congress the power to pass legislation regulating all commerce bar intrastate trade (U.S. Const. art. I, § 8, cl. 3). Coupled with the subsequent clause enabling Congress to pass any legislation they deem necessary in order to carry out the laws passed by dint of the body’s Constitutionally-enumerated powers (U.S. Const. art. I, § 8, cl. 18), the enumerated power to regulate interstate and international commerce endows Congress with a significant capacity to control the nation’s

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Elastic Clause And The Commerce Clause

    1241 Words  | 3 Pages

    Throughout the course of time the elastic clause and the commerce clause has been utilized in court cases and arguments. With time the clauses have changed the fit into the change of society. As represented by various court cases. A variation of interpretations has been drawn out within the time frame of its establishment. A loose and strict interpretation has been implemented in the constitution depending on point of views. Although, the interpretation of the constitution is strictly restricted to the Judicial Branch as concluded in the court case Marbury Versus Madison. The elastic clause is known as congress has the power to do what is “Necessary and Proper”. In contrast, commerce clause is, often, limited with concerning trading issues. Thus concluding, the Elastic Clause has more power rather than the Commerce clause.

    Read More

  • Essay On Texas Government

    355 Words  | 1 Pages

    Congress is in session far more than that of the part-time Texas legislature. The Texas Legislators must create laws for the second most populated, second largest State, This is not a part time task. The Texas congress could easily be in session year-round. Many issues brought up while the Texas Legislature is not in session are left in limbo as they await the next legislative session. An ideal legislature is working around the calendar to ensure that they are serving as leaders.

    Read More

  • Three Branches of the Texas Government

    1619 Words  | 4 Pages

    Our Legislative Branch has two chambers or as some will call it bicameral. The chambers consist of the Senate and the House of Representatives just like the National Legislative Branch. In our Senate we currently have a total of 31 members and there are 150 members in the House of Representatives. Senators hold their seat for 4 years and their election years are spread out while the House of Representatives are elected for two-year terms. In our Texas Legislature we have a few authority figures. “The Texas Constitution provides that the lieutenant governor shall serve as president of the senate, the presiding officer of that body. The lieutenant governor is elected statewide by voters of Texas and is the second-highest ranking officer of the executive branch of government”. (Texas Medical Associaton) In the House of Representatives we have a Speaker of the House who is chosen in each time a new legislature starts by its own members. “The speaker maintains order during floor debate, recognizing legislators who wish to speak and ruling on procedural matters.” (Joe Straus Speaker) There are also many committees who act as important gatekeepers and shape the proposed legislation. (University of Texas at Austin). The main pu...

    Read More

  • The War Powers Act or The War Powers Resolution

    558 Words  | 2 Pages

    The War Powers Act or sometimes referred to as the War Powers Resolution is passed by congress. A group of Senators led by Jacov K. Javits of New York proposes fundamentally to change the constitutional relationship between President and Congress in the field of foreign affairs (Rostow). This act is an aftermath of the Vietnam War and it addresses a set of procedure for both President and Congress in the situation where the United States forces abroad could lead the United States into armed conflict. This act can be broken down into several parts. The first part asserts the policy behind the law, and the President’s power as a Commander in Chief is exercised only as a respond to declaration of war by Congress or in respond to national emergency; an attack upon the United States. The second part requires the President to discuss and consult with Congress before take an action in the U.S. Armed forces into hostilities and continue to discuss as long as the U.S. Armed forces remain in such condition. The third part explains that President should meet the requirement when he wants to introduce U.S Armed forces. The fourth part concerns more in congressional action and procedure. For instance, this part explains the procedure regarding legislation to withdraw the U.S. forces. The fifth part states the rules to be used in interpreting the War Power Act. At last, the sixth part explains separability provision in which if there is any part of the law is invalid, the rest of the law shall not considered invalid too.

    Read More

  • The Redistricting Game

    1392 Words  | 3 Pages

    Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution states that, “Representatives…shall be apportioned among several states...according to their respective Numbers.” Apportionment is the mathematical process of dividing and allocating the four hundred and thirty five seats in the House of Representatives among the fifty states based on the population figures collected by the Census Bureau. This process, according to the Constitution, must be conducted “within every subsequent Term of ten Years.” Each of the fifty states is guaranteed one representative. The number of House of Representatives from each state fluctuates every ten years due to population deviation.

    Read More

  • Congressional Term Limits

    943 Words  | 2 Pages

    Change is difficult and requires strong support from the voters to start the process. Currently, the two houses of the United States Congress are not restricted as to the number of terms they may serve. Under our Constitution, members of the Senate may serve an unlimited number of six-year terms and members of the House of Representatives may serve an unrestricted number of two-year terms. Their job consists of protecting the interests of their constituents (the voters back home). They organize committees to study issues of public policy, recommend action, and pass laws. Both houses of Congress must approve a bill for it to become a law. To begin the process of restricting the years of Congressional terms, it would require recommending a bill for an amendment separately and the proposal being debated in the two houses of Congress. If the bills were passed by two-thirds of the legislators in each House of Congress, then the bills would be combined into a Joint Resolution which would be sent to each of the fifty States. The Joint Resolution would be placed upon each Sta...

    Read More

  • Electoral College Argumentative Essay

    1378 Words  | 3 Pages

    Every ten years after a census, politicians redraw the district boundaries that determine the house and state legislature. The problem with this system is that the same politicians who redraw the district boundaries are the ones who are being elected by the

    Read More

  • The Detrimental Practice of Gerrymandering

    988 Words  | 2 Pages

    When gerrymandering occurs, a political party draws the boundaries of an electoral district in a way that helps their party win elections over the other parties. For example, if a Republican controls a state, and it appears like the party will lose a seat in the future, the Republicans will draw the district in a way to exclude as many Democratic voters as possible. Perhaps they will do this by removing a democratic stronghold from one district and adding it to another district that will either easily go Republican or will have a Democratic representative no matter what happens. Before 1964, the majority party could draw districts in any way they wanted to, and chaos ensued. Consequently, in 1964, the U.S Supreme Court legislated that the districts “had to contain equal population, and be as compact as possible” (“Gerrymandering”). Every ten years the U.S. issues a census to determine the population of each state. After this, each state receives their share of the 435 seats, and then the state gets to break the population into the corresponding number of districts. This whole process, known as reapportionment, takes weeks to determine, and in many cases, courts must determine the shape and area of each district. Even though the districts must contain equal population, gerry...

    Read More

  • Single-Member Districts

    764 Words  | 2 Pages

    The single-member district election system is the most common and best-known electoral system currently in use in America. It is used to elect the U.S. House Representatives, as well as many state and local legislatures. Under single member district systems, an area is divided into a number of geographically defined voting districts, each represented by a single elected official. Voters can only vote for their district’s representative, with the individual receiving the most votes winning election. This method of electing representatives is better than any alternative solution in various ways. Four compelling reasons to support the single-member district election system include the fact that single-member districts give each voter a single, easily identifiable district member; the way single-member district voting helps protect against overreaching party influence; that single-member districts ensure geographic representation; and finally, that single-member districts are the best way to maximize representatives’ accountability.

    Read More

  • Structure of American and California Governments

    9636 Words  | 20 Pages

    The legislative branch of America helps create the laws or legislation. Ideally, it works to create a society that is safe for all members. The State of California like the federal government has a bicameral legislature, in other words, composed of two chambers. The upper chamber is called the senate, while the lower is called the assembly. A unique process for the state level is that it allows for the initiative. This process circumvents the state congress and can create laws without their aide. In the state of California, every ten years, following a US census, which collects demographic information, state legislators draw redistricting plans for itself, California seats in the US House of Representatives, and the State Board of Equalization. There have been attempts to create a “non-partisan” redistricting commission, but this has been turned down by voters numerous times. Proposition 14, 39, 118, and 119 were all turned down by voters to create a non-partisan districting commission. Every decade a large portion of the state congress’s energy is spent on redistricting. In fact, two of the last four censuses, Supreme Court has had to step in to break a deadlock. In 1970, Ronald Reagan, a Republican, vetoed all together the Democratic redistricting plan. The Supreme Court had to step in and created its own plans for California to follow. Then in 1981, Democrats proposed redistricting as well as congressional delegation redistricting. The Republicans stopped this by adding referendums to the state ballot. Because it was too close to elections though, Supreme Court overturned these referendums in 1982. In 1984, they officially passed the new redistricting plan which was very similar to the original plans.

    Read More

  • Tenth Amendment Essay

    1467 Words  | 3 Pages

    Both the tenth amendment and the articles of confederation state that the powers not listed are reserved for the states. The reason why the tenth amendment was included was because of the fight that the anti-federalists put up. They demanded state and individual rights, so James Madison drafted the bill of rights. The Commerce Clause refers to Article 1, Section 8, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which gives Congress the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes.”

    Read More

  • Redistricting Pros And Cons

    665 Words  | 2 Pages

    FairVote says redistricting is done in most states by the state legislature to draw both state legislative and congressional district lines. FairVote (2017)

    Read More

  • The Role of the Senate and House of Representatives

    571 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are three classes. of Senators, and a new class is elected every 2 years. The House of Representatives comprises 435 Representatives. The number representing each State is determined by population, but every State. is entitled to at least one representative.

    Read More

  • Implied Powers of Congress

    938 Words  | 2 Pages

    The United States Congress is the legislative branch of our government made up by the Senate and the House of Representatives. Our Congress, just as all branches of our government, derives its power from the US Constitution, specifically Article 1 section 8 which outlines the specific enumerated powers of Congress. This Article also outlines the implied powers of Congress. These implied powers include all things which are deemed necessary in order for Congress to carry out the jobs assigned to it by their enumerated powers.

    Read More

More about Bicameral Legislature

Open Document