LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
The Legislative Branch
Two “Houses” in Congress
House of Representatives (lower house)
▪ Representation Based on Population
▪ 435 Representatives
Senate (upper house)
▪ Equal Representation
▪ 50 Senators - 2 per State
Qualifications to be a Member
House of Representatives (lower house)
▪ 25 years old
▪ Citizen 7 years
▪ Reside in state they represent
Senate (upper house)
▪ 30 years old
▪ Citizen 9 years
▪ Reside in state they represent
Terms of Office
House of Representatives (lower house)
▪ 2 years
▪ unlimited re-election
Senate (upper house)
▪ 6 years
▪ unlimited re-election
▪ 1/3 of the Senate is re-elected every 2 years
Legislator’s Job Description
Law Maker - How a Bill Becomes a Law
Introduced in Committee in the House or Senate
Presented/Debated on the House or Senate Floor
Goes to other house to repeat the process
(must be identical in both houses)
Presented to President for signature or veto
Congress can override veto with 2/3 majority in both houses
Committee Member - Standing Committees for specific issues
Representative & Servant of Constituents
Politician - more about this in Session II
Your address determines who is your representative.
Find Federal and State Representatives at http://act.commoncause.org/site/PageServer?pagename=sunlight_advocacy_list_page.
Find County officials at
http://www.votespa.com/en-us/voting-and-elections/be-prepared/Pages/County-Contact-Information.aspx.
Find Township/Municipality officials at https://www.civicsforgrownups.org/copy-of-legislators-by-zip-4.