Предыдущая страница реферата | 1  2  3  4  5  6 | Следующая страница реферата

In the case of impeachment of federal officials, the House has the sole right to bring charges of misconduct that can lead to an impeachment trial.
The Senate has the sole power to try impeachment cases and to find officials guilty or not guilty. A finding of guilt results in the removal of the federal official from public office.

The broad powers of the whole Congress are spelled out in the eighth section of the first article of the Constitution:
— to levy and collect taxes;
— to borrow money for the public treasury;
— to make rules and regulations governing commerce among the states and with foreign countries;
— to make uniform rules for the naturalization of foreign citizens;
— to coin money, state its value, and provide for the punishment of counterfeiters;
— to set the standards for weights and measures;
— to establish bankruptcy laws for the country as a whole;
— to establish post offices and post roads;
— to issue patents and copyrights;
— to set up a system of federal courts;
— to punish piracy;
— to declare war;
— to raise and support armies;
— to provide for a navy;
— to call out the militia to enforce federal laws, suppress lawlessness or repel invasions by foreign powers;
— to make all laws for the District of Columbia; and
— to make all laws necessary to enforce the Constitution.

A few of these powers are now outdated—the District of Columbia today is largely self-governing—but they remain in effect. The 10th Amendment sets definite limits on congressional authority, by providing that powers not delegated to the national government are reserved to the states or to the people. In addition, the Constitution specifically forbids certain acts by
Congress. It may not:
— suspend the writ of habeas corpus, unless necessary in time of rebellion or invasion;
— pass laws which condemn persons for crimes or unlawful acts without a trial;
— pass any law which retroactively makes a specific act a crime;
— levy direct taxes on citizens, except on the basis of a census already taken;
— tax exports from any one state;
— give specially favorable treatment in commerce or taxation to the seaports of any state or to the vessels using them; and
— authorize any titles of nobility.

LITTLE LEGISLATURES
A congressman once observed that "Congress is a collection of committees that come together in a chamber periodically to approve one another's actions. " That statement correctly identifies the standing and permanent committees that are the nerve centers of the U.S. Congress. In a recent two- year session of Congress, for example, members proposed a total of I], 602 bills in the House and 4,080 in the Senate. For each of these bills, the committees responsible had to study, weigh arguments [or and against, hear witnesses and debate changes, before the bills ever reached the House or
Senate floors. Out of almost ] 5,000 measures introduced, only 664—fewer than six percent—were enacted into law.

The Constitution does not specifically call for congressional committees. As the nation grew, however, so did the need for investigating pending legislation more thoroughly. The committee system began in 1789, when House members found themselves bogged down in endless discussions of proposed new laws. The first committees dealt with Revolutionary War claims, post roads and territories, and trade with other countries.
Throughout the years, committees have formed and disbanded in response to political, social and economic changes. For example, there is no longer any need for a Revolutionary War claims committee, but both houses of Congress have a Veterans' Affairs committee.

Today, there are 22 standing committees in the House and 16 in the
Senate, plus four joint permanent committees with members from both houses:
Library of Congress, printing, taxation and economics. In addition, each house can name special, or select, committees to study specific problems:
Because of an increase in workload, the standing committees have also spawned some 300 subcommittees. Almost 25,000 persons help with research, information-gathering and analyses of problems and programs in Congress.
Recently, during one week of hearings, committee and subcommittee members discussed topics ranging from financing of television broadcasting to the safety of nuclear plants to international commodity agreements.

And what do ail these "little legislatures" actually do? After all the facts are gathered, the committee decides whether to report a new bill favorably or with a recommendation that it be passed with amendments.
Sometimes, the bill will be set aside, or tabled, which effectively ends its consideration. When bills are reported out of committee and passed by the full House or Senate, however, another committee goes into action, ironing out any differences between the House and Senate versions of the same bill. This "conference committee, " consisting of members of both houses, completes a bill to all members' satisfaction, then sends it to the
House and Senate floors for final discussion and a vote. If passed, the bill goes to the president for his signature.

Congressional committees are vital because they do the nuts-and-bolts job of weighing the proposals, hammering them into shape or killing them completely. They continue to play a large part in the preparation and consideration of laws that will help shape the United States in its third century.

|STANDING, OR PERMANENT, COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS |
|HOUSE |SENATE |
|Agriculture |Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry |
|Appropriations |Appropriations |
|Armed Services |Armed Services |
|Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs |Banking. Finance and Urban Affairs |
|Budget |Budget |
|District of Columbia |Commerce, Science and Transportation |
|Education and Labor |Energy and Natural Resources |
|Energy and Commerce |Environment and Public Works |
|Foreign Affairs |Finance |
|Government Operations |Foreign Relations |
|House Administration |Governmental Affairs |
|Interior and Insular Affairs |Judiciary |
|Judiciary |Labor and Human Resources |
|Merchant Marine and Fisheries |Rules and Administration |
|Post Office and Civil Service |Small Business |
|Public Works and Transportation |Veterans' Affairs |
|Rules | |
|Science, Space and Technology | |
|Small Business | |
|Standards of Official Conduct | |
|Veterans' Affairs | |
|Ways and Means | |

OFFICERS OF THE CONGRESS
The Constitution provides that the vice president shall be president of the
Senate. He or she has no vote, except in the case of a tie. The Senate chooses a president pro tempore to preside when the vice president is absent. The House of Representatives chooses its own presiding officer—the speaker of the House. The speaker and the president pro tempore are always members of the political party with the largest representation in each house.

At the beginning of each new Congress, members of the political parties select floor leaders and other officials to manage the flow of proposed legislation. These officials, along with the presiding officers and committee chairmen, exercise strong influence over the making of laws.

THE LAWMAK1NG PROCESS
One of the major characteristics of the Congress is the dominant role committees play in its proceedings. Committees have assumed their present- day importance by evolution, not by constitutional design, since the
Constitution makes no provision for their establishment.

At present the Senate has 16 standing (or permanent) committees: the
House of Representatives has 22. Each specializes in specific areas of legislation: foreign affairs, defense, banking, agriculture, commerce, appropriations and other fields. Every bill introduced in either house is referred to a committee for study and recommendation. The committee may approve, revise, kill or ignore any measure referred to it. It is nearly impossible for a bill to reach the House or Senate floor without first winning committee approval. In the House, a petition to discharge a bill from a committee requires the signatures of 218 members; in the Senate, a majority of all members is required. In practice, such discharge motions only rarely receive the required support.

The majority party in each house controls the committee process.
Committee chairmen are selected by a caucus of party members or specially designated groups of members. Minority parties are proportionally represented on the committees according to their strength in each house.

Bills are introduced by a variety of methods. Some are drawn up by standing committees; some by special committees created to deal with specific legislative issues; and some may be suggested by the president or other executive officers. Citizens and organizations outside the Congress may suggest legislation to members, and individual members themselves may initiate bills. After introduction, bills are sent to designated committees which, in most cases, schedule a series of public hearings to permit presentation of views by persons who support or oppose the legislation. The hearing process, which can last several weeks or months, opens the legislative process to public participation.

One virtue of the committee system is that it permits members of
Congress and their staffs to amass a considerable degree of expertise in various legislative fields. In the early days of the republic, when the population was small and the duties of the federal government narrowly circumscribed, such expertise was not as important. Each congressman was a generalist and dealt knowledgeably with all fields of interest. The complexity of national life today calls for special knowledge, which means that elected representatives often acquire expertise in one or two areas of public policy.

When a committee has acted favorably on a bill, the proposed legislation is then sent to the floor for open debate. In the Senate, the rules permit virtually unlimited debate. In the House, because of the large number of members, the Rules Committee usually sets limits. When debate is ended, members vote either to approve the bill, defeat it, table it—which means setting it aside and is tantamount to defeat—or return it to committee. A bill passed by one house is sent to the other for action. If the bill is amended by the second house, a conference committee composed of members of both houses attempts to reconcile the differences.

Once passed by both houses, the bill is sent to the president, for constitutionally the president must act on a bill for it to become law. The president has the option of signing the bill—by which it becomes law—or vetoing it. A bill vetoed by the president must be reapproved by a two- thirds vote of both houses to become law.

The president may also refuse either to sign or veto a bill. In that case, the bill becomes law without his signature 10 days after it reaches him (not counting Sundays). The single exception to this rule is when
Congress adjourns after sending a bill to the president and before the 10- day period has expired; his refusal to take any action then negates the bill—a process known as the "pocket veto."

CONGRESSIONAL POWERS OF INVESTIGATION
One of the most important nonlegislative functions of the Congress is the power to investigate. This power is usually delegated to committees—either the standing committees, special committees set up for a specific purpose, or joint committees composed of members of both houses. Investigations are conducted to gather information on the need for future legislation, to test the effectiveness of laws already passed, to inquire into the qualifications and performance of members and officials of the other branches, and on rare occasions, to lay the groundwork for impeachment proceedings. Frequently, committees call on outside experts to assist in conducting investigative hearings and to make detailed studies of issues.

There are important corollaries to the investigative power. One is the power to publicize investigations and their results. Most committee hearings are open to the public and are widely reported in the mass media.
Congressional investigations thus represent one important tool available to lawmakers to inform the citizenry and arouse public interest in national issues. Congressional committees also have the power to compel testimony from unwilling witnesses, and to cite for contempt of Congress witnesses who refuse to testify and for perjury those who give false testimony.

INFORMAL PRACTICES OF CONGRESS
In contrast to European parliamentary systems, the selection and behavior of U.S. legislators has little to do with central party discipline. Each of the major American political parties is basically a coalition of local and state organizations which join together as a functioning national party—Republican or Democratic—during the presidential elections at four- year intervals. Thus the members of Congress owe their positions to their local or state electorate, not to the national party leadership nor to their congressional colleagues. As a result, the legislative behavior of representatives and senators tends to be individualistic and idiosyncratic, reflecting the great variety of electorates represented and the freedom that comes from having built a loyal personal constituency.

Congress is thus a collegial and not a hierarchical body. Power does not flow from the top down, as in a corporation, but in practically every direction. There is only minimal centralized authority, since the power to punish or reward is slight. Congressional policies are made by shifting coalitions which may vary from issue to issue. Sometimes, where there are conflicting pressures—from the White House and from important economic or ethnic groups—legislators will use the rules of procedure to delay a decision so as to avoid alienating an influential sector. A matter may be postponed on the grounds that the relevant committee held insufficient public hearings. Or Congress may direct an agency to prepare a detailed report before an issue is considered. Or a measure may be put aside
("tabled") by either house, thus effectively defeating it without rendering a judgment on its substance.

There are informal or unwritten norms of behavior that often determine the assignments and influence of a particular member. "Insiders," representatives and senators who concentrate on their legislative duties, may be more powerful within the halls of Congress than "outsiders," who gain recognition by speaking out on national issues. Members are expected to show courtesy toward their colleagues and to avoid personal attacks, no matter how extreme or unpalatable their opponents' policies may be. Members are also expected to specialize in a few policy areas rather than claim expertise in the whole range of legislative concerns. Those who conform to these informal rules are more likely to be appointed to prestigious committees or at least to committees that affect the interests of a significant portion of their constituents.

OVERSIGHT POWERS OF CONGRESS
Of the numerous techniques that Congress has adopted to influence the executive branch, one of the most effective is the oversight function.
Congressional oversight prevents waste and fraud; protects civil liberties and individual rights; ensures executive compliance with the law; gathers information for making laws and educating the public: and evaluates executive performance. It applies to Cabinet departments, executive agencies, regulatory commissions and the presidency.

Рекомендуем скачать другие рефераты по теме: отечественная война реферат, предмет культурологии, диплом о высшем образовании.



Предыдущая страница реферата | 1  2  3  4  5  6 | Следующая страница реферата

Поделитесь этой записью или добавьте в закладки