The Legislative Branch
The Senate and House of Representatives
The Senate's Requirements
To be in the Senate you must:
- Be 30 years of age
- A US citizen for 9 years
- You need to live in the state that you represent
- Vice President is President
- 100 members and 2 Senators from each state
- Senator's serve for 6 years
House of Representatives Requirements
In order to be elected to be in the House of Representatives you must:
- Be at least 25 years old
- Be a United States citizen for a minimum of 7 years
- New people of the House are elected every 2 years in order to keep new voices flowing
- 435 members are elected, and they are divided among the 50 states
- 6 non voting members who represent: The District of Columbia, The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and four other territories
- Each State gets at least one representative.
(does not necessarily have to be a resident of the district.)
The Powers and Responsibilities of The Senate
The Senate's powers and responsibilities are:
- Ratify treaties by a ⅔ vote
- Confirm presidential decisions
- Vice President votes on tie
- Confirm presidential meetings
- Impeach federal officials
- President veto's bill
- Agree or disagree vote
- Bill is overwritten
- House does this
- Broken rules leads to 2/3 vote
- Filibuster
- End debates that go no where with 2/3 vote
- Investigate Government
- Restrain powers and Educate the public
- Judge elections,
- Returns, and qualifications for members.
The Powers and Responsibilities of The House of Representatives
- The House of Representatives has many important duties.
- Approve amendments
- Create income bills
- Fire federal officials
- If election ties, president picked by House
- President veto's bill
- Agree or disagree vote
- Bill is overwritten
- Senate does this
- Elected by the people themselves
- Do all work
- Lead meetings
- Lead Political Parties
- One speaker voted to lead
- Power of arguments
- assign rules and jobs
- 2nd in line to President
Recent Actions of The House of Representatives
- May 19th,
- Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations
- 295-112
- $82 billion dollars
- $2 billion over Fiscal Year 2016
- Support to veterans and their families
- Military equipment
- Training for soldiers
- Department of Veteran Affairs
- $73.5 billion
- Military
- $8 billion
- Fulfills promises to Vets
- Tax payers money to good use
- May 18th
- Zika Response Appropriations Act
- 241-184
- $622 million to agencies
- Infants and women are important for future
- Effectively and efficiently
- Funds from Fiscal year 2016
- The Department of Health and Human Resources
- U.S. Agency for International Development, prioritizing mosquito control and vaccine development
- Ebola outbreak
Recent Actions of The Senate
- Comprehensive and Addiction recovery act
- Chuck Grassley
- 94-1
- Fights overdose reversal drugs
- increased prevention education
- Addiction recovery
- May 15th
- FOIA. (Freedom of Information Act)
- Chuck Grassley
- Up to date on the government
- Request for government records
- Officials must be open minded