AP GOV COLLEGE BOARD Q'S
Which of the following committees of the House of Representatives sets the conditions for debate and amendment of most legislation?
Rules
An example of a discretionary item in the federal budget is
Spending on national parks
Which of the following types of committee deals with broad areas of public policy and can be found in both houses of Congress?
Standing
Which of the following is a unique power held by members of the Senate?
The ability to filibuster
Which of the following is true of the seniority system of Congress in relation to committee leadership and committee staffing?
The chairs of congressional committees tend to be senior members of the body's majority party.
Which of the following has decreased in Congress over the past twenty years?
The influence of committee chairs
Which of the following committees plays a major role in the House in shaping tax policy?
Ways and means
A committee chair in the House of Representatives is always
a member of the majority party in the chamber
Debate of a bill in the House of Representatives under a "closed rule" means that
amendments to the bill cannot be offered
A difference between the House of Representatives and the Senate is that in the House
bills are more likely to be amended on the floor
"Pork barrel" legislation helps the reelection chances of a member of Congress because such legislation
helps earn the member of Congress a reputation for service to his or her district
Much of the steady increase in federal government expenditures since 1960 has been caused by
increases in entitlement programs
Which of the following scenarios is an example of the trustee model of representation?
A member of Congress votes to close a popular tax loophole based on the belief that the money would be better spent paying down the national debt. The trustee model of representation involves elected officials voting in whatever manner they feel best serves their constituents, regardless of popular opinion regarding the issue.
Which of the following Supreme Court cases involved the principle of "one person, one vote"?
Baker v. Carr
Which of the following statements accurately summarizes the reasoning for the decision in Baker v. Carr (1962)
Because rural districts had fewer people, representation was unevenly distributed; thus, Baker was denied equal protection under the law.
Which of the following identifies the formal procedure for ending a filibuster?
Cloture
Which of the following statements about Congress is true?
Debate in both houses is structured by elaborate rules enacted by leaders of the majority party.
A member of Congress votes in favor of a bill as a result of receiving many letters of support for the bill from constituents. Which form of democratic representation best describes this voting decision?
Delegate Elected officials following the delegate role of representation vote on legislation based on the preferences of their constituents. This is shown in the scenario in which the representative votes on a bill after constituents expressed their preferences.
Which of the following actions by a congressional representative is an example of "pork barreling"?
Directing federal funds into the representative's district through legislation
Which of the following powers is shared by the House of Representatives and the Senate?
Establishing federal courts
Which of the following is an accurate comparison of the rules for debate used by the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate?
House of Representatives: Debate is limited. Senate: Members can filibuster.
Which of the following is an accurate comparison of the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate?
House of Representatives: Debate on bills is limited Senate: Debate on bills can be unlimited
Which of the following is an accurate description of the powers of the House of Representatives and the Senate?
House of Representatives: Initiates all revenue bills Senate: Confirms presidential appointments
Which of the following describes the ruling in Shaw v. Reno (1993)
Racial gerrymandering was ruled unconstitutional.
A member of the House of Representatives who wishes to be influential in the House itself would most likely seek a place on which of the following committees?
Rules
Which of the following scenarios best illustrates a member of Congress supporting pork-barrel legislation?
A senator from an agricultural state amending legislation to establish a potato research institute in his or her state Pork-barrel legislation is characterized as the appropriation of government funds for local projects that serve a representative's constituents. Therefore, a senator from an agricultural state amending legislation to establish a potato research institute is an illustration of this concept.
A first term member of the House of Representatives from North Dakota who wished to maximize opportunities for constituent service would be most likely to seek placement on which of the following committees?
Agriculture
Which of the following is an example of Congress using its implied powers?
Congress passing occupational safety regulations for the private sector Occupational safety regulations are not explicitly mentioned in the Constitution but are implied by Congress's ability to regulate trade under the interstate commerce clause.
Divided government
Governance divided between the parties, as when one holds the presidency and the other controls one or both houses of Congress (ie Pres+Senate vs House)
Which of the following is an accurate comparison of the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate?
House of Representatives: The Constitution's framers intended it to reflect the will of the people. Senate: The Constitution's framers designed it to represent the interests of the states. The framers designed the House to be more reflective of the people's will and the Senate to be more reflective of states' interests, giving them equal voice in that chamber.
Advocates of shifting the task of drawing United States House districts from state legislatures to independent commissions are likely to claim which of the following as an advantage of independent commissions?
Independent commissions significantly reduce the influence of partisan gerrymandering in the redistricting process.
Federal benefits that must be funded by Congress and must be paid to all citizens who meet eligibility criteria are called
Individual entitlements
Which of the following statements about the Senate is true?
Individual senators can exercise substantial influence over the legislative process.
Which of the following is generally true of the gerrymandering of congressional districts?
It creates districts that favor one political party over another.
Which of the following best describes pork barrel politics?
Members of Congress negotiate bills so that individual districts get money for projects that do not benefit the nation as a whole.
A "cloture motion" passed in the Senate _____
Returns a bill to committee.
Congressional district boundaries are usually redrawn every ten years by the
State legislatures
A person claiming that the House can pass legislation with a simple majority, but the Senate is unlikely to pass legislation unless a bill has the support of a 60-vote supermajority is most likely to cite which of the following institutional differences as the cause of this trend?
The House has strict limits on debate, while the Senate allows unlimited debate. The House of Representatives maintains time limits for each representative to speak, but the Senate allows senators to speak without limit, allowing one senator to filibuster legislation unless a 60-vote majority votes to invoke cloture.
Which of the following statements about rules of procedure in the House and Senate is correct?
The House operates more by formal rules, while the Senate operates more on informal understandings.
Congressional legislative powers include all of the following EXCEPT
pardoning felons
Congressional standing committees are best described as
permanent subject-matter committees
Most of the bills introduced in the House and the Senate are then
referred to committee but never sent to the full Congress
Nominations to the Supreme Court must be approved by a
simple majority vote in both the House of Representatives and the Senate
A major difference between the House of Representatives and the Senate is that
there is unlimited debate in the Senate but not in the House
