Chapter Ten: Congress

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2005 Consolidated Appropriations Act

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an omnibus bill of $388 million made in the 108th congress

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Appropriation

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In law and government, appropriation is the act of something for its application to a particular usage, to the exclusion of all other uses.

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Authorization

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Legislation that formally establishes a program or activity and sets a funding limit for that program or activity.

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Bicameral

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A two-house Legislature. In the U.S., they are Senate and the House.

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Caucuses

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A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement. The exact definition varies among political cultures.

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"christmas-tree bill"

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a political term referring to a bill that attracts many, often unrelated, floor amendments. A Christmas tree bill consists of many riders.

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closed rules, open rules

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A Closed Rule bans amendments to a bill on the House floor, with the exception of Committee amendments.An Open Rule permits all relevant amendments to be offered to a bill, without any restrictions. House.

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cloture

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the formal end to a debate or filibuster in the Senate requiring a three-fifths vote.

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committee of the whole

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A committee of all Members of the Legislative Assembly that meets to discuss bills in detail.

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conference committee

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A committee made up of members from both chambers. Its purpose is to resolve the differences between the House and Senate version of a bill.

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congressional calendars

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The time period over which Congress meets.

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discharge petition

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A discharge petition is a means of bringing a bill out of committee and to the floor for consideration without a report from a Committee and usually without cooperation of the leadership. Discharge petitions are most often associated with the U.S. House of Representatives, though many state legislatures have similar procedures.

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Easley v. Cromartie

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stated that redistricting for political reasons did not violate Federal Civil Rights Law banning race-based gerrymandering.

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"elastic clause"

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Gives Congress the power to make any law deemed "necessary and proper".

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filibuster

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Prolonged discussion of a bill to delay legislative action.

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franking privilege

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power of members of Congress to send out mail free, without paying postal charges. This is one of the benefits or perquisites of being a House Representative or Senator, since members of Congress can use mailings to cultivate a positive popular image among their constituents.

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germane amendments

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Germane amendments must be strictly relevant to the bill on focus.

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gerrymandering

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drawing the boundaries of an election district so that one party or group has a significant advantage. The strategy generally used is to concentrate opposition votes in a few districts, while spreading out the rest of the opposition over many districts. Gerrymandering is often used to help get candidates of a particular party elected, or to help increase minority representation in government.

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incumbency

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The incumbent, in politics, is the current holder of a political office.

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joint committees

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committees comprised of representatives and senators that are responsible for holding public hearings and reporting on all legislative matters referred to them.

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logrolling

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exchanging political support for political favors, especially by members of Congress and other legislatures

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majority leader of the House

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historically the Majority Leader has worked closely with the Speaker and been responsible for scheduling legislation for floor consideration. The Majority Leader also helps plan daily, weekly, and annual legislative agendas; consults with Members to gauge the climate on particular issues; urges colleagues to support or defeat measures on the floor, and works to advance the goals of the majority party. Lastly, the majority leader is also responsible for monitoring floor activities, particularly the opposition party’s parliamentary maneuvers.

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majority leader of the Senate

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These leaders serve as the chief Senate spokesmen for their parties and manage and schedule the legislative and executive business of the Senate. By custom, the Presiding Officer gives the Majority Leader priority in obtaining recognition to speak on the floor of the Senate.

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Malapportionment

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Any system where one group has significantly more influence than another, such as when voting districts are unevenly spread out across a population

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marking up

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the changing or rewriting of bills

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minority leader of the House

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serves as floor leader of the opposition party, and is the minority counterpart to the Majority Leader. Generally, the minority leader is on the ballot for Speaker of the House during the convening of the Congress. He or she is usually the party's top choice for Speaker if party control flips after an election. The minority leader usually meets with the Majority Leader and the Speaker to discuss agreements on controversial issues.

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Minority leader of the Senate

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The minority party speaker for the Senate.

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minority. majority districting

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the search for opti-mal electoral areas that combine desirable properties (e.g. compactness) and avoid undesirable properties (e.g. gerrymandering).

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oversight

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an unintentional omission resulting from failure to notice something

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party whips

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a role in party-based politics whose primary purpose is to ensure control of the formal decision-making process in a parliamentary legislature. Whips are party 'enforcers', who typically offer both inducements and punishments to party members. In modern times, most whips are concerned primarily with ensuring a desired attendance for an important vote.

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pigeonholing

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The majority of bills in Congress are pigeonholed, or forgotten for weeks or forever, and never make it out of the committee.

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pork barrel legislation

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laws that directs funds to local projects in an area which a member of Congress represents.

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president pro tempore

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President "for a time": a Senator elected to serve as the temporary President in the absence of the President of the Senate.

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resolutions:simple, concurrent, joint

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In addition to bills Congress can pass resolutions. A simple resolution is passed by House or Senate; usually establishes rules, regulations, or practices that do not have the force of law. A concurrent resolution comes from both houses, and often settles housekeeping and procedural matters that affect both houses. Simple and concurrent resolutions are not signed by the President and don't have the force of the law. A joint resolution requires approval by both houses and the President's signature.Joint resolutions are sometimes passed when the houses of Congress react to an important issue that needs immediate attention.

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revenue bills

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Bills that levy taxes.

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select committees

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formed for specific purposes and are usually temporary. A famous one is the one that investigated the Watergate scandal. sometimes long-standing select committees eventually become standing committees.

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seniority system

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The congressional system of automatically choosing chairmen with the longest continuous service on the committee.

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shaw v reno

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The court ruled in a 5-4 decision that redistricting based on race must be held to a standard of strict scrutiny under the equal protection clause.

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speaker of the house

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The presiding officer in the House of Representatives. The Speaker is elected by the majority party in the House.

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standing committees

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permanently established legislative committees that consider and are responsible for legislation within a certain subject area

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term limits

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limits on the length of time that a politician can stay in office.

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votes: teller, voice, division, role call, electronic

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teller : members file past the clerk, first "yeas" and then "nays"
voice: simply shouting "yea" or "nay"
division: members stand to be counted
roll call"answering "yea" or "nay" with their names
electronic: most common form today. Each member just inserts a plastic card in a slot to record his or her vote.

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Wesberry v Sanders

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he Court issued a ruling on February 17, 1964 that districts have to be approximately equal in population.

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marginal districts

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a district in which both parties are relatively close with the votes. Neither party has a significant advantage.

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safe districts

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A district in which one party is significantly dominant.

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whip

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member of a political party in a legislature whose task is to ensure that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires.

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public bill

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A legislative bill that deals with matters of general concern. A bill involving defense expenditures is a public bill.

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private bill

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a legislative bill that deals with specific, private, personal or local matter, like a bill pertaining to an individual becoming a naturalized citizen

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rider

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A provision added to a bill so that it may "ride" to approval on the strength of that bill. Riders are generally attached to Senate appropriations bills.

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quorum

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Twenty-one members in the Senate, eighty-one members in the House.

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quorum call

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roll call to determine whether a quorum of that house is present.