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A Glossary of Legislative Terms
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Act: A piece of legislation that has passed in both chambers of Congress and has been signed into law by the President.
Adjourn: The end of the day in Congress, when all the Members go home.
Advise and Consent: Advise and Consent is the constitutionally allotted power to the Senate, by a 2/3 vote, to confirm nominations for judicial and executive positions. This rule also applies to international treaties.
Amendment: An addition or change to a bill proposed by a Member of Congress.
Appropriations Bill: Congress is the only body that is allowed to spend the money that belongs to the United States government. They spend this money by passing appropriations bills, which spell out exactly how much money will be given to each of the large federal agencies. There are 13 appropriation bills a year which fund the entire federal government!
The Beltway: (aka the Capitol Beltway) is a highway that encircles Washington, DC and cuts through parts of suburban Maryland and Virginia. A less literal meaning is when this term is used to reference matters solely important to Washington, DC workers or inhabitants. For example, "The only people who have heard about that are those living inside the Beltway."
Bill: A formal name for a proposed piece of legislation. A bill that originates in the house is titled H.R. and followed by a number which signifies the order in which it was introduced. In the senate it is labeled S, followed by a number in the same fashion.
- H. Res.: Stands for House Resolution. They take place only in the House of Representatives, and will not become law.
- H.Con.Res.: Stands for House Concurrent Resolution (in the Senate its S.Con.Res). This piece of legislation must be approved by both chambers of Congress, but will not be sent to the President to be signed into law, but rather is used to express opinions of the Congress, or set congressional related things such as adjournment dates and time, and the congressional budget.
- H.J.Res.: stands for House Joint Resolution (or in the senate S.J.Res). There are really not differences between House or Senate joint resolutions, and a regular bill. Both a bill and a joint resolution must pass in both chambers and receive the President's approval. Joint resolutions are mainly used to make Constitutional amendments, and for appropriations.
Capitol Hill: The location of the United States Capitol building (also called "the Capitol"). The Capitol sits atop a tall hill overlooking Washington, DC. Capitol Hill can also mean the area around the Capitol building, which sits at the very heart of DC. The Capitol Hill neighborhood is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city.
Casework: The process where a Member of Congress will assist a constituent (a person living in the Congressman's district) with a problem that the constituent is having.
Chairman: Typically the most senior member in a committee/subcommittee. The chairman resides over the (sub)committee hearings, decides rulings, and decides which bills will come up for a vote.
Chief of Staff: The staff member who is in charge of the office functions for the office of a Member of Congress and delegates responsibilities to the staffers.
Committee: a group of Members of Congress who in addition to their normal jobs in the House and Senate have some specialized knowledge, such as agriculture, transportation, or defense. This group meets to decide the fate of bills that have been introduced on the House or Senate floor, and that pertain to their area of expertise. When a bill is introduced, it is almost always referred to a committee. For example, a bill that regulates corn prices will be referred to the Agriculture Committee, which has Members who specialize in agricultural issues.
Conference: A formal meeting between members of the House and the Senate, most commonly to resolve differences in versions of the same bill that passed the House and Senate. If the House passes a bill that dictates that corn cannot be sold for more than $10 a bushel, and the Senate passes a bill which dictates that corn must be sold for at least $12 a bushel, the different bills must go to a conference. The conference will have Members of both the House and Senate, and they will agree on a compromise.
Congressional Record: Every word that is spoken on the Floor of the House gets recorded for history. Every speech gets recorded in the Congressional Record. You can look up what was said on the Floor of the House at any point in history.
Constituent: A person that lives in a given Representative or Senator's district. Constituents are those that vote members of congress into office.
Dear Colleague letter: A Dear Colleague letter is sent from on Member of Congress to all fellow Members informing them of a new bill, and asks for support by either co-sponsorship or a vote in support of the bill should it make it to the floor.
Deficit: A deficit occurs when the government spends more money that it brings in. The opposite of a deficit is a surplus; which occurs when the government brings in more in revenue than it spends. Last year's budget deficit was $248.2 billion.
District: A geographic area that is represented by one representative. Each representative has on office located in Washington, DC on Capitol Hill, and at least one office in the district (in many cases they have more than one). Representatives are also required to maintain a residence in their district while serving in Congress.
Federal Debt: The federal debt is the accumulation of each fiscal year's deficit. Currently our federal debt stands at $8.9 trillion.
Floor: The Floor refers to the chamber (one for the House and one for the Senate) where members go to vote or speak. When a member is speaking, he/she "has the floor". When members are gathered together in the chamber, they are "on the floor".
Hearing: A meeting called by a committee or subcommittee to investigate a piece of legislation, or to examine a certain topic. Hearings are formal, and are mostly open to the public. Witnesses and/or experts on pertinent subjects can be called to testify at hearings as well.
Hopper: The "hopper" a box (made of mahogany) on the clerks desk in the House chamber. In it, are deposited bills and resolutions that will be introduced on the floor by members.
Impeachment: A formal charge brought against any elected federal official, for any sort of criminal activity. The House is the only body that can bring an Impeachment charge, while it is only in the Senate that the accused can be tried and convicted. In order to convict and remove a person from office, there must be a 2/3 majority vote in the Senate.
Intern: Almost all offices on Capitol Hill accept student interns into their office. An intern is a volunteer who will assist with administrative work such as writing memos, sorting mail, and answering phone calls. Typically, these interns are of college age and have aspirations of getting into politics upon completing their studies. Internships are highly competitive and include an application process. Most interns have ties to the state and/or district that they are interning for. Congressional internships are a great way to network, and learn the ropes of Capitol Hill, and ultimately will help refine potential career paths.
Law: When the House and Senate pass a piece of legislation, and it is signed by the President, it becomes a law.
Legislative Assistant: Each congressional office employs several Legislative Assistants, or LAs to focus on certain issues and advise the Member of Congress on legislation regarding those issues.
Legislative Correspondent: A legislative correspondent, or LC is a staff member responsible for responding to the mail received by a Member of Congress.
Lobby: Lobbying is the act of groups and/or individuals who wish to influence the passage or defeat of particular legislation. The term "lobby" comes from the fact that people wishing to speak with legislators would frequent lobbies or corridors waiting for the opportunity.
Majority Leader: The Majority Leader is elected by his/her party. In the House, the Majority Leader is second in command to the Speaker of the House and is the party's legislative strategist. In all cases they are one of the party's chief spokespersons.
Majority Whip: The Majority Whip is elected by the party caucus and acts almost as an assistant to the Majority Leader. The Majority Whip's job is to gather support for party tactics and legislation
Marking up a Bill: The process of changing (or "amending") a bill in a committee, to get input from a number of other Members on the committee before the bill gets voted on by the full House.
Minority Leader: The Minority Leader is elected by the minority party in both the Senate and the House. They work closely with the Majority Leader. They strive for unity among their party's members. They also work to form coalitions so as to create voting majorities.
Minority Whip: The Minority Whip carries out the same duties as the Majority Whip but for the Minority party. And contrary to the Majority Whip, elected by the party caucus, the Minority Whip is elected by the minority party.
Override of a Veto: Should the President choose to veto a bill passed in both chambers of congress, by a 2/3 majority vote (290 in the House, 67 in the Senate) they can override the veto and have the bill passed into law.
Pennsylvania Avenue: Pennsylvania Ave. is a major street (7 miles long) in the heart of the city of Washington, DC. The avenue connects the White House to the Capitol. Pennsylvania Avenue is the route of major parades and important processions and is nicknamed "America's Main Street".
Pocket Veto: Should the President decline from signing or vetoing a bill that has come before him, it will be automatically vetoed after 10 days should the congress be adjourned or out session.
Power of the Purse: The "power of the purse" is the constitutionally mandated power given to Congress to raise and spend money. Historically, this power has been used by congress to limit the power of the President.
Quorum: The minimum number of members that must be present in either the Senate or House in order to conduct daily business. In the House there is a requirement of 218, in the Senate, 51.
Senator: A Member of Congress who serves a term of 6 years. Each senator must meet the requirements of being at least 30 years of age, been a US citizen for no less than 9 years, and be a resident of the state from which they are elected. There are 2 senators from each state, 100 in all.
Seniority: Seniority is based on length of time one has served in the House or Senate. With seniority come certain privileges such as preferential treatment in the assigning of committees, and appointment of chairmanship of said committees.
Simple Resolution: A non-binding way of expressing the opinion of the members or to take action in a single chamber such as the creation of a committee, or dealing with a specific, internal rule. In the House it is designated as H.Res. and in the Senate as S.Res.
Speaker: Officially called the Speaker of the House, the Speaker presides over the House of Representatives after being selected by all the Members in his or her party, and then is formally elected by the whole chamber. Currently, the Speaker of the House is Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, California.
Staff Assistant: A Staff assistant performs a variety of duties in a congressional office, including most of the administrative tasks and assisting constituents.
Sponsor: In both the House and Senate, the sponsor of a bill is the Member who writes the legislation, introduces it on the floor, and is in charge getting people to vote for the bill.
Surplus: see 'Deficit'
Veto: the President's disapproval of a bill that comes before him to be signed into law. The veto can only be overturned by a 2/3 majority vote in both the House and Senate.
Vice President: the Vice-President, in addition to being second in command of the United States, is also President of the Senate, as mandated in the Constitution. Should there be a tie on a Senate vote, he may, but is not required to cast the tie-breaking vote.
Vote: voting is the process by which members of congress express approval or rejection of a given bill, amendment or other matter up for passage.