How Does The US Congress Work?
Congress is an institution that is commonly referred to as the American legislative body. The United States Congress is a representative assembly of representatives of states, districts and states of incorporation. Congress also operates in tandem with the Executive branch of the government and is vested with certain constitutional powers. Congress delegates a specific number of days each year to the president of the United States to serve as the nation’s chief executive.
The United States Congress consists of both House of Representatives and the Senate and is bicameral in nature. Each chamber of Congress possesses its own jurisdiction over legislation and the legislative process. The members of Congress to determine how bills get passed through the legislative process through a complex system of voting and debate where each Senator and Representative are allowing a day to amendment their bills.
Every bill that comes before the U.S. Congress will require the approval of either a majority of voters in a general election or a super majority of state legislators before it becomes law. In the event that a bill passes both chambers of Congress and is signed by the President it then becomes a law. If the bill is disapproved by the President, it will need to be reintroduced in both Houses of Congress before becoming law. If it is passed in both Houses and is disapproved again by the President then it will need to be passed again in order for it to become law again. As long as it is passed by both houses it is legally binding on the American people.
The U.S. Congress has the power to either uphold or amend a bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate, however, only a two-thirds vote of both Houses is required for a bill to be enacted into law. The only time a bill is sent to a vote in the U.S. Congress it must be passed by a majority of both houses but cannot be changed from its original form without a subsequent majority vote. Each bill has to be passed with a two-thirds vote of both houses and every bill that become a law has to be re-approved with a super majority of two-thirds before becoming law. If a bill cannot pass with a simple majority of two-thirds of both Houses, then it has to be presented to a conference committee.
Conference committees are selected by the members of each house of Congress that are responsible for the formulation of bills. After each conference committee makes its recommendation to the members of Congress, the members must either approve or disapprove of such recommendations. Approval by the members of Congress results in a bill being passed into law and if such a bill becomes law it is also referred to a conference committee in which all members are expected to participate. The second procedure requires the concurrence of two-thirds of both Houses of Congress for any bill to become law.
The first article of the constitution of the United States Congress clearly states that the Congress must be composed of separate Houses. Therefore, no two houses of Congress can consist of more than one person. Each of the two houses may hold meetings in joint sessions at the beginning and end of each legislative session, but their actions have to be approved by a majority of both Houses of Congress and a majority of states as well. The role of both the Houses is very similar. They are not allowed to originate any bill that has not been authorized by the United States Congress, but once such a bill is introduced, it has to be passed by both Houses of Congress and the states as well for it to become a valid law.
