Representatives, House of

Representatives, House of

▪ United States government
 one of the two houses of the bicameral (bicameral system) United States Congress (Congress of the United States), established in 1789 by the Constitution of the United States (Constitution of the United States of America).

      The House of Representatives shares equal responsibility for lawmaking with the U.S. Senate. As conceived by the framers of the Constitution, the House was to represent the popular will, and its members were to be directly elected by the people. In contrast, members of the Senate were appointed by the states until the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment (1913), which mandated the direct election of senators.

      Each state is guaranteed at least one member of the House of Representatives. The allocation of seats is based on the population within the states, and membership is reapportioned every 10 years, following the decennial census. House members are elected for two-year terms from single-member districts of approximately equal population. The constitutional requirements for eligibility for membership of the House of Representatives are a minimum age of 25 years, U.S. citizenship for at least seven years, and residency of the state from which the member is elected, though he need not reside in the constituency that he represents.

      During the first Congress (1789–91), there were 59 members of the House of Representatives. By 1912 membership had reached 435. Two additional representatives were added temporarily after the admission of Alaska and Hawaii as states in 1959, but at the next legislative apportionment membership returned to 435, the number authorized by a law enacted in 1941.

      The Constitution vests certain exclusive powers in the House of Representatives, including the right to initiate impeachment proceedings and to originate revenue bills. The organization and character of the House of Representatives have evolved under the influence of political parties (political party), which provide a means of controlling proceedings and mobilizing the necessary majorities. Party leaders, such as the speaker of the House and the majority and minority leaders, play a central role in the operations of the institution. However, party discipline (i.e., the tendency of all members of a political party to vote in the same way) has not always been strong, owing to the fact that members, who must face reelection every two years, often vote the interests of their districts rather than their political party when the two diverge.

      A further dominating element of House organization is the committee system, under which the membership is divided into specialized groups for purposes such as holding hearings, preparing bills for the consideration of the entire House, and regulating House procedure. Each committee is chaired by a member of the majority party. Almost all bills are first referred to a committee, and ordinarily the full House cannot act on a bill until the committee has “reported” it for floor action. There are approximately 20 standing (permanent) committees, organized mainly around major policy areas, each having staffs, budgets, and subcommittees. They may hold hearings on questions of public interest, propose legislation that has not been formally introduced as a bill or resolution, and conduct investigations. Among important standing committees are those on appropriations, on ways and means (which handles matters related to finance), and on rules. There are also select and special committees, which are usually appointed for a specific project and for a limited period.

      The committees also play an important role in the control exercised by Congress over governmental agencies. Cabinet officers and other officials are frequently summoned before the committees to explain policy. The Constitution (Constitution of the United States of America) (Article I, section 6) prohibits members of Congress from holding offices in the executive branch of government—a chief distinction between parliamentary and congressional forms of government.

      After the census of 1920, Northeastern and Midwestern states held 270 House seats and the South and West held 169. Thereafter, the balance between the two regions gradually shifted, and by the beginning of the 21st century the Northeast and Midwest accounted for only 183 seats, compared with the South and West's 252. Most notably, the number of representatives from New York declined from 45 in the 1930s to only 29 in 2002, while the number from California increased from 11 to 53.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • United States House of Representatives House Resolution 121 — HR121 redirects here. For the star (13 Cassiopeiae), see List of stars in Cassiopeia. United States House of Representatives House Resolution 121 (H.Res. 121) is a resolution about comfort women which Japanese American Congressman Mike Honda of… …   Wikipedia

  • House of Representatives — house of representatives: the lower house of a legislative body; esp cap H&R: the lower house of the U.S. Congress or a state legislature Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. house of representatives …   Law dictionary

  • House of Representatives — ˌHouse of Repreˈsentatives noun the larger of the two parts of the US Congress or of the parliament of Australia or New Zealand: • The measure requires approval by the Senate before it can go to the House of Representatives. compare Senate …   Financial and business terms

  • House of Representatives of Cyprus — Greek: Βουλή των Αντιπροσώπων Turkish: Temsilciler Meclisi Greek: Vouli ton Antiprosópon …   Wikipedia

  • House of Representatives of Nigeria — Type Type Lower house …   Wikipedia

  • House of Representatives of Malta — House of Representatives Kamra tad Deputati Type Type Unicameral …   Wikipedia

  • House Resolution 362 — House Concurrent Resolution 362 is a bill and non binding resolution[1] in the United States House of Representatives that was introduced on May 22, 2008 by Gary Ackerman [D NY] (for himself and Mike Pence [R IN]). It currently has 280 cosponsors …   Wikipedia

  • House concurrent resolution 50 — (or HCR50) is a joint resolution of the 2007 Regular Session of the Hawaii State Legislature, introduced on February 23, 2007 by state representatives Gene Ward, Karen Awana, Rida Cabanilla, Lynn Finnegan, Barbara Marumoto, Colleen Meyer,… …   Wikipedia

  • House of M — Cover of House of M 1 (Aug 2005). Art by Esad Ribic. Publisher Marvel Comics Publication date August  …   Wikipedia

  • House with Chimaeras — The front façade of the House with Chimaeras General information Architectural style Art Nouveau …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”