chapter 7
purposes of casework
1) reelection ( law makers know that helping voters with problems is part of what they can do for the people in their states or districts.) 2 case work is one way in which congress oversees the executive branch. case work brings problems with the federal programs to the attention of members of congress. it provides opportunities for lawmakers and their staffs to get an closer look at how ell the executive branch is handling such federal programs as social security, veteran benefits, or workers compensation 3) casework provides a way for the average citizen to cope with the huge national government. in the years before the national government grew so large, most citizens with a problem turned to their local politicians- called ward heelers for help.
major bills account for
30 percent of the bills passed in each term of congress
senate
51 percent
political action committee
Extention of an interest group that contributes money to political campaigns-financial arm of the interest group
rider
a provsion on a subject other than the one covered in the bill.
law makers try to influence
agency decisions in several ways. they may pressure agency officials to give a favorable hearing to their states requests.
committees hold hearings and
make changes to the bill
conferees
managers. **If one house will not accept the version of a bill the other hose has passe, a conference committee must work out difference between the versions. They usually come from the house & senate committee members that handled the bill originally.
who can only introduce a bill
member of congress
voice vote
members call out aye or no
recorded vote
members votes are recorded electronically and displayed on the house chamber.
bills can be considered by the whole house at
once called committee of the whole
in addition to passing tax laws, to raise money, congress also has another important power over government spending
the power of appropriation or approval of government spending, is a congressional responsibility.
when both houses pass a joint resolution
the president's signature gives it the force of law.
in 1974: committee chairperson
wilbur mills resigned following a personal scandal.
congress can override a president's veto
with 2/3rds of a vote.
as in the house, the bill must
be referred to the appropriate standing committee
in a hearing
emails, letters, telegrams have the greatest impact on a bill
cloture
end debate over bill senate (3/5) (60)
closed rule
forbids members to offer any amendments to a bill from the floor. for many years the committees tax bills were debated on the house floor under a closed rule. this rule meant that only members of the ways and means committee could have a direct hand in writing a tax bill.
the bill must also pass through the
house rules committee
to introduce a bill in the senate
the presiding officer must recognize the senator who formally represents it
presidents may also use their powers to influence individual members of congress.
they can give or withhold support of lawmakers.
many lawmakers complain that although voters say they want less government
they demand more services from their members of congress.
all lawmakers have staff members called case workers
to handle the problems of their constituents. in most instances the case workers are able to handle the requests for help themselves. sometimes the problem can be solved with a simple question from a caseworker to the agency involved. at other times, however, the senator or representative may have to get directly involved.
the constitution gives the house of representatives the exclusive power
to start all revenue measures. almost all important work on tax laws occurs in the house ways & means committee. the ways and means committee decides whether to go along with presidential requests for tax cuts or increases. it also makes the numerous rules and regulations that determine who will pay how much tax?
roll-call vote
voting menthod in which everyone responds aye or no as their names are called in alphabetical ordder.
law makers also encourage their constituents to
write emails, telephone, email. IF problems come up when some one from the state is arranging a grant or federal contract, congressional members might step in.
more often lawmakers take the approach
" you scratch my back and i'll scratch yours" approach to public works legislation. believing that getting federal projects for the home state is a key part of their job, they usually help each other. such agreements by two or more lawmakers to support each other's is called logrolling.
law makers respond to thousands of requests from voters for help in dealing with executive agencies
1) a solider would like to move to a base closer to home due to his ill parents 2) a local business claims that the FTC is treating her business unfairly 3) a veteran had his GI insurance policy cancelled by a government agency the agency claims that the veteran forgot to fill out the form and return it. the veteran says he never got the form but he wants the life insurance 4) a new high school graduate would like help finding a job in washington.
helping constituents they must
1) act as problem solvers for voters who have difficulties with departments or agencies of the federal government. second they must, make sure their district or state gets its share of federal money for projects.
why so few bills become laws
1) law making process long & complicated 2) so many steps 3) law makers sometimes introduce bills they know that have no chance in becoming a law
for many years the committee's tax bills were debated on the house floor under a closed rule.
a closed rule forbids members to offer any amendments to a bill from the floor. this rule meant only members of the ways and means committee could have a direct hand in writing a tax bill.
when accepting a bill,
a committee can first completely re write it, make changes, or recommend that it be adopted as is before sending it back to the house or senate for further action. committee members & staff are considered experts on their subjects. if they think a bill should move ahead, other lawmakers will usually agree with them. time is a also a factor, lawmakers have heavy workloads and depend on the judgment of their peers.
when accepting a bill:
a committee must completely re write it recommend changes before sending it back to the house or senate for further action.
conference report
a majority of the memebrs of the conference committee from each house drafts the final bill, once accepted, this bill can be submitted to each house of congress for final action.
to introduce a bill in the house:
a representative drops the bill intoa hopper
line-item veto
allows a leader to reject specific lines or items in a bill while accepting the main body of legislation
bills must be referred to
appropriate standing committee
lawmakers attach riders to
bills they are likely to pass, although the presidents have sometimes vetoed such bills because of a rider they did not like.
to become a law, a bill must pass
both houses of congress in identical form. a bill passed in the house of representatives often differs at first from a senate's bill on the same subject.
each committee has a
chair from the majority and a rankign member from the miniority
how are bills introduced
citizens, interest groups, the president, officials in the executive office.
ideas of new bills come from
citizens,interest groups, president, or officials in the executive branch. various people may write new bills, such as lawmakers or their staff, lawyers from a senate or house committee, a white house staff member, or even an interest group itself.
senate rules committee is much weaker than the house
comittee
70 percent of the money the federal government spends is already
committed to other uses.
reporting a bill:
committees actions, changes, opinions
bills are considered by a
conference committee
public works bills
congress appropriates billions of dollars for a variety of projects. ( benefit the public) post offices, damns, military bases, harbor, and river improvements, highways
pocket veto
congress can refuse to act on abill.
how congress appropriates money
congress follows a two step process- an authorization bill & appropriations bill.
congress must pass laws to appropriate money for the federal government.
congress's approval is needed before departments and agencies of the executive branch such as the department of defense or the federal communications commission can actually spend money
each house has a standing committee that
considers their bills.
when is a joint resolution used
correct a law, appropriate money for a special purpose
simple resolution
covers matters affecting only one house of Congress and is passed by that house alone. ( not sent to the president for signature)
concurrent resolution
covers matters requiring the action of the house & senate , but on which a law is needed.
markup sessions
decide what changes if any are made to a bill
besides providing services for their constituents, members of congress also try to bring federal government projects and money to their
districts & states. lawmakers do this in three ways. 1) pork barrel legislation 2) federal grants & contracts 3) keeping federal projects.
in the senate no closed rule exists, and taxes
do become collections of amendments. many tax bills are amended so often on the senate floor, they become "christmas tree" bills similar appropriations bills that include many riders.
bills introduced in the house & senate are printed and distributed to lawmakers
each bill is given a title & a number. the first bill introduced during a session of the senate is designated as s.1, the second bill as s.2, and so forth. in the house, the first bill is h.r.1, and the second bill is h.r.2, this process is called first reading of a bill.
the appropriations committees
handle appropriation bills. house & senate 13 subcommittees- deal with the same policy areas in each house
in more recent years congress
has taken steps to limit the president's influence, letting congress remain more of a autonomous legislative group.
all law makers today are invovled in casework
helping constituents with their issues.
51 percent of 435 which is 218
house
all revenue bills start in the
house
the bill is reported to the floor
if the bill is passed by the committee, it is sent to the whole house for debate & vote the committee has reported the bill favorably to the floor the speaker determines which bills are discussed and for how long committee chairs and ranking memebrs give out time to debate to other members
congress can override a president's veto with a two thirds vote in both houses.
if this happens, the bill will become a law. it is usually difficult to get necessary 2-thirds vote in both the house of representatives and the senate, so congress does not override vetoes very often.
when congress passes laws to appropriate money for such federal local projects
it is called pork-barrel legislation. the idea is that a member of congress has dipped into the pork barrel (federal treasury) and pulled out a piece of "fat" a federal project for his or her district.
if a bills is not passed before the end of a congressional term
it must be reintroduced in the next congress to be given further consideration.
pigeonholding
killing the bill by a majority
the influence of parties
knowing which political party members of congress belong to will help predict how they will vote on major issues. party voting- in the house of representatives members vote with their party more than 70 percent of the time. senators who are generally more independent that house members are less likely to follow their party's position. party voting is much stronger on some issues than on others. on issues relating to government intervention in the economy, party members tend to vote the same way. party voting is also strong, on farm issues & fairly strong on social welfare issues. party voting is usually weaker on foreign policy issues because the two parties often do have fixed positions on international questions.
members of congress have often complained that presidents have more ways to influence
legislation & policy than do lawmakers
republicans
lower taxes, less government spending, local & state rather than federal solutions to problems, and policies to support business & corporations and limit government intervention in the economy.
the bill is debated and voted on in the senate
majority leader determines which bills are scheduled, when & how long
taxes
money that people and businesses pay to support the government. this is where the national government gets most of its money
law makers also try to make sure their districts
or states get their fair share of the available federal grants and contracts which are funded through the national budget.
law makers do not have direct control
over grants & contracts that they do over pork-barrel legislation. instead, agencies of the executive branch such as the department of defense or the department of labor award federal grants & contracts.
christmas tree bills
pass because of the essentail nature of the underlying bill.
influences on law makers
personality (ex: some members of congress are just willing to take risks) congressional staff also influences lawmakers decisions one way is controlling the information on which lawmakers base the decisions off by. another way is setting the agendas for individual lawmakers and for congressional committees that must favor a certain point of view.
a committee can
pigeonhole or kill the bill in the committee
political action committee
political fund-raising organizations established by corporations, labor unions, and other special interest groups. pac funds come from voluntary contributions by employees, stock holders, and union members. a pac uses its funds to support law makers who favor the PAC's position on issues.
although voter preferences and political parties strongly influence the decisions of lawmakers: two other influences
president and influence groups.
what are the two types of bills of congress
private bill- deals with individual people or places. public bills- deal with general matters and apply to the entire nations. ( issues as raising or lowering taxes, national insurance, gun control, civil rights, or abortion.)
why so few bills become laws
process long and complicated ( a bill can be delayed, killed or changed) law making process has many steps (sponsors of a bill must be willing to bargain and compromise with lawmakers & interest groups) compromise is the only way to get support to move a bill from one step to the next. without strong support, most major bills have little chance of becoming a law bills that have powerful interest groups oppose are not likely to get passed -lawmakers sometimes introduce bills they know that never have a chance in becoming a law call attention to the need for new legislation in an area such as health care or highway safety.
how are bills introduced
proposing & introducing (only a member of congress can introduce a bill in either house of congress) 2)in each house of congress, new bills are sent to committees that deal with their subject matter.
introducing a bill
proposing introducing committee action committee hearings markup session reporting a bill floor action conference action committee
appropriations bill
provides the money needed to carry out the many laws congress has passed.
the committee can
report the bill to the senate floor
lobbyists
representative of interest groups. try to convince members of congress, to support policies favored by the groups they represent. their efforts to persuade officials to support their point of view is called lobbying. the largest and most powerful lobbies have their own buildings and full time professional staffs in the nations capital.
votes are done electronically
roll call vote
a concurrent resolution
sets the date for adjournment of congress or it may express congress's opinion about an issue.
authorization bill
sets up federal program and specifies how much money may be appropriated for that program.
the bill is marked up
so it will pass on the floor
entitlements
social programs that continue from one year to the next.
democrats are more likely than republicans to favor
social welfare programs, job programs through public works, tax laws that help people lower incomes, and government regulation of business.
senate committee on finance deals with the responsibility of dealing with
tax matters.
voters can be taken by voice yeas or nays
teller vote
every year heads of departments & agencies
testify before the house & senate appropriations subcommittees about budgets. during the budget hearings, these officials explain why the need the money they have requested.
if congress is in session
the bill becomes a law after 10 days
the bill goes to senate
the bill is sent to the us senate. the senate version is written with the letter s. and a number. house bills have hr.
hearing
the committee listens to testimony from witnesses who may include experts on the subject of the bill, government officials, or representatives of interest groups concerned with the bill.
if one house does not accept the bill
the conferees work out the differences & compromises. the conference committee is supposed to consider only parts of a bill on which their is a disagreement, but sometimes it makes changes in the bill or adds provisions not previously considered by either chamber. a majority of the members of the conference committee from each house drafts the final bill, called a conference report. once accepted, the bill can be submitted to each house of congress for final action.
the constitution gives the house of representatives
the exclusive power to start all revenue measures
how a bill becomes a law
the house 1) representative hands bill to clerk or drops it in hopper 2) bill given hr number the senate 1) senator announces bill on the floor 2) Bill given s number Committee action 1) referred to house standing committee- bill is placed on committee calendar-referred to senate standing committee 2) referred to house subcommittee- bill sent to subcommittee for hearings and revisions- referred to senate subcommittee 3) reported by standing committee rules committee sets rules for debate and amendments- standing committee may recommend passage or kill the bill-reported by the standing committee floor action 1) House debates votes on passage 2) bill goes to senate for approval or a different version passes; goes to conference committee 1) senate debate votes on passage 2) bill passes; goes to house for approval or a different version passes; goes to conference committee. conference action conference committee works out differences and sends identical compromise bill to both chambers for final approval house votes on compromise bill and senate votes on compromise bill approved bill sent to president president sings bill or allows bill to become law without signing or president vetoes the bill
lobbyists use various methods to influence members of congress. they provide lawmakers with information about policies they support or oppose. they visit lawmakers in their offices or in
the lobbies of the capitol and try to persuade them to support their position,they encourage citizens to write the members of congress on the issues they favor or oppose. interest groups and their lobbyists also focus their attention on congressional committees.
veto
the presdient can refuse to sign the bill and return it to the hose of congress in which it orginated.
lawmakers do not have strong opinions about every issue they vote for.
they cannot know enough about all the issues to make informed decisions about every bill. therefore, the often, seek advice on how to vote from fellow party members who know more about an issue than they do.
in an election campaign, the candidate from the other party and opposing interest groups will bring up the lawmakers voting record
they may demand that the lawmaker explain votes that turned out to be unpopular back home. the opposite is also true. a legislator running for reelection, may call attention to his or her votes on certain measures in order to attract constituents support.
many law makers assign one or more of their staff members to act as specialists in contracts/grants. these staff members become experts on how individuals, businesses, and local governments can qualify for federal money
they will help constients apply for contracts & grants. the lawmakers jobs is to make sure federal grants and contracts keep coming into their state or district.
standing vote or division vote
those in favor of the bill stand and are counted and then those opposed stand and are counted
federal grants & contracts are very important
to lawmakers and their districts or states. these contracts are vital source of money & jobs and can radically affect the economy of a state. every year federal agencies such as the department of defense spends billions of dollars to carry out hundreds of government projects and programs. for example, when the air force decided to look at a new project at one of its bases in utah, almost 1,000 jobs and millions of dollars came into state. lawmakers often compete for such valuable federal grants & contracts. for example, several other states wanted the air force project, but utah's lawmakers won the price for their own state.
example of a private bill
waived immigration rights, so an american woman could marry a man from greece
almost all important work on tax laws, occurs in the house
ways & means committee, the ways and means committee decides whether to go along with presidential requests for tax cuts or increases. it also makes the numerous rules and regulations that determine who will pay and how much tax. some of these rulings are very simple while others are more complex.