The Washington Campus Overview of the Structure and Function of the United States Government The Executive, Legislative and Judicial Branches THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH Article II Section 1. The executive Power shall be
vested in a President of the United States of America.
He shall hold Office during the Term of four Years,
and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the
same Term, be elected. The power of the executive branch is vested in the President, who also serves as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces. THE PRESIDENT’S CABINET The President is advised by his Cabinet, which includes the Vice President and the heads of 15 Executive Departments. Cabinet members, called secretaries, are appointed by the President with the consent of a simple majority (51) of the Senate. The first Cabinet meeting – and the first use of the term, which isn’t contained in the Constitution or the Code of Federal Regulations – took place in 1791, when President George Washington’s Cabinet, including Vice­President John Adams, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of Treasury Alexander Hamilton, and Secretary of War Henry Knox met to discuss a loan which had been requested from the United States government. The word “cabinet” comes from the Italian word cabinetto, which means a small, private room. Members of the Cabinet (listed in order of presidential succession): Department of State: Secretary Condoleezza Rice Department of Treasury: Secretary Henry Paulson, Jr. Department of Defense: Secretary Robert M. Gates Department of Justice: Attorney General Michael Mukasey Department of the Interior: Secretary Dirk Kempthorne Department of Agriculture: Secretary Ed Schafer Department of Commerce: Secretary Carlos Gutierrez Department of Labor: Secretary Elaine Chao Department of Health and Human Services: Secretary Mike Leavitt Department of Housing and Urban Development: Secretary Alphonso Jackson Department of Transportation: Secretary Mary Peters Department of Energy: Secretary Samuel Bodman Department of Education: Secretary Margaret Spellings Department of Veteran Affairs: Secretary James Peake Department of Homeland Security: Secretary Michael Chertoff
For More Information on the Executive Branch, visit www.whitehouse.gov and click on the Your Government link.
Additional Cabinet­Rank Agencies and Organizations: Vice President of the United States: Richard B. Cheney Chief of Staff: Joshua B. Bolten Office of Management and Budget: Director Jim Nussle United States Trade Representative: Ambassador Susan Schwab Environmental Protection Agency: Director Stephen Johnson Office of National Drug Control Policy: Director John Walters Director of National Intelligence: Director Mike McConnell EXECUTIVE OFFICES In addition to the Cabinet, the President receives significant policy and administrative support from an array of Executive Offices. The Executive Offices of the President are led by individuals who are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, and while some Executive Offices are staffed solely by political appointees, other offices are staffed by a mixture of temporary political appointees and permanent career civil servants. Not only do Executive Offices provide expert policy advice to the President, they also coordinate the activities and policy agendas of the Executive Departments and Independent Federal agencies. The President has the power to establish new Executive Offices based on his or her needs or the policy concerns of the day, but many Executive Offices were established by Congress through the legislative process and cannot be eliminated by the President. The Executive Offices are located within the White House complex, including the West Wing of the White House, the Eisenhower Executive Office Building (which is also called the Old Executive Office Building), the New Executive Office Building, and Jackson Place. The offices include: *Council of Economic Advisers, CEA *Office of Administration, OA *Council on Environmental Quality, CEQ*Office of Management and Budget, OMB *Domestic Policy Council, DPC *Office of Science and Technology Policy, OSTP *National Economic Council, NEC *Office of National AIDS Policy *National Security Council, NSC *Office of National Drug Control Policy, ONDCP *Director of National Intelligence, DNI *Office of Faith­Based and Community Initiatives, OFBCI *Office of the United States Trade Representative, USTR *President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board FEDERAL AGENCIES (Executive Departments and Independent Agencies) Much of the work of the Federal government is accomplished through the Federal agencies, including Executive Departments as well as Independent agencies. There is a strong and necessary partnership between the political appointees and the career civil servants at each agency to accomplish the mission of the agency. Some agencies accomplish their mission by providing public services directly, while others accomplish their mission by providing grant funding to other entities, such as hospitals, research institutions, universities, community groups, state and local governments, and private companies or corporations. Still other agencies are regulatory agencies, with a primary mission of ensuring consumer and public health and safety. Examples of regulatory agencies include the Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Environmental Protection Agency. Some agencies exist as branches of Cabinet­level Executive Departments­ such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), all of which are agencies under the Department of Health and Human Services – while other agencies do not report through a Cabinet­level official and are considered to be Independent Agencies. For a full list of Federal agencies and commissions, go to http://www.whitehouse.gov/government/independent­agencies.html.
2 THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH Article I, Section 1. All legislative Powers
herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of
the United States, which shall consist of a
Senate and a House of Representatives. The legislative branch of government consists of the U.S. Congress, which is divided into two chambers – the House and the Senate. The House has 435 Representatives, each of whom serves a two year term. The Senate has 100 members – 2 per state – and each Senator serves a six year term. While all House seats are up for re­election every two years, Senate elections are staggered such that only 1/3 of the Senate seats are up for re­election every two years. The political party that holds the most elected seats in each chamber is called the Majority Party, but both parties have leaders in place to set the policy agenda, serve as spokespeople, manage the legislative schedule and agenda, recruit votes for key pieces of legislation, and identify future party leaders. While the Vice President of the United States serves as President of the Senate, the Senate Majority also appoints a President Pro Tempora to serve in the Vice President’s absence during routine operation of the Senate. In the House, the Speaker holds the most prominent position, which includes serving as the presiding officer of the House as well as overseeing much of the non­legislative business of the House. In the event of the President’s death, the Speaker of the House is third in the Presidential Line of Succession, behind the Vice President, while the President Pro Tempore is fourth, behind the Speaker. In both chambers, and in both parties, the role of the Whip is to mobilize the vote of his/her party members on major issues. There are numerous congressional subgroups, caucuses, and coalitions that meet to discuss policy issues or build agendas based on shared interests or values. For example, you may hear someone refer to himself or herself as a Blue Dog. The Blue Dog Coalition is a group of moderate to conservative House Democrats. Senate Leadership House Leadership President of the Senate: Richard B. Cheney President Pro Tempora: Robert C Byrd (WV) Speaker of the House: Nancy Pelosi (CA) Majority Party: Democrat Majority Leader: Harry Reid (NV) Majority Whip: Richard Durbin (IL) Democratic Conference Chair: Harry Reid (NV) Democratic Policy Committee Chair: Byron Dorgan (ND) Minority Party: Republican Minority Leader: Mitch McConnell (KY) Minority Whip: Jon Kyl (AZ) Republican Conference Chair: Lamar Alexander (TN) Republican Policy Chair: Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX)
Majority Party: Democrat Majority Leader: Steny Hoyer (MD) Majority Whip: James Clyburn (SC) Democratic Caucus Chair: Rahm Emanuel (IL) Minority Party: Republican Minority Leader: John Boehner (OH) Minority Whip: Roy Blunt (MO) Republican Conference Chair: Adam Putman (FL) Policy Committee Chair: Thaddeus McCotter (MI) For More Information on the Legislative Branch, visit: www.house.gov or www.senate.gov For More Information about the Legislative Process, or for text or updates on legislation, visit: Thomas.loc.gov
3 CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES While individual Members of Congress primarily represent the interests of their state or district through their congressional offices, they each also serve on several Congressional Committees, which is where the legislative work of the Congress is conducted. Senior members of the majority party who serve as Committee and Subcommittee Chairs hold the most power in the legislative process as every piece of legislation must be approved by a committee before it can be considered by the whole House or Senate. The minority party also has the opportunity to designate a leader of each committee and subcommittee, and this individual is referred to as the Ranking Minority Member. The power of the Ranking Minority Member differs from committee to committee, typically at the call of the chair. Congressional committees hold hearings on legislative proposals, and must approve all legislation and amendments before they can be sent to the full House or Senate for consideration. A bill is introduced when a member (or members) drops it into the hopper, a box located on the floor of the House or Senate. The bill is then reviewed and referred to the committee or committees that have jurisdiction over the topics included in the bill. Because the committee process can be slow and unpredictable, legislation is generally written with a limited scope so as to get referred to as few committees as possible. Also, because committees are quite reticent to give up jurisdiction, legislation that would transfer a function from an agency under the jurisdiction of one committee to that of another is rarely written, and even less frequently passed. There are a number of permanent or standing committees in both the House and Senate, as well select committees that come together to serve a special purpose for a limited amount of time. In addition, there are also joint committees that include members of both the House and Senate. Perhaps most powerful among the committees are the House and Senate Appropriations Committees since these committees determine the Federal budget for the coming year. In fact, Appropriations Committee Chairs are so powerful that they are often times referred to as Cardinals. The House and Senate Rules Committees are also powerful because they determine the procedural rules under which a legislative proposal will be considered by the full House or Senate, including whether or not amendments will be allowed and how much time will be allowed, if any, for debate. Finally, the House Ways and Means Committee is powerful because all tax bills must originate from this Committee. It is important to understand the different roles that Members of Congress play with respect to their district/state responsibilities as well as their committee responsibilities. Committee leaders must consider the impact of legislation passed by the committee on the nation as a whole and not just on his or her district or state. Committee leaders have enormous control over which legislative proposals are considered by the committee and ultimately sent to the full House of Senate for consideration. While elected officials love to brag about the bills they have introduced, in truth, most are referred to committees, where they die a slow death in some staff person’s desk drawer. Bills that don’t support the Chair’s or the party leaders’ policy priorities don’t advance through the legislative process. It is important to know who the committee and subcommittee leaders are and to build relationships with members of key committees, even if you are not a geographic constituent of those members. In some cases, however, there are real advantages to partnering in your advocacy effort with others who are constituents of key committee leaders and members as constituents are always more likely to gain access to a member than are non­constituents. It is also critical to get to know the committee staff. Committee staffer, as compared to personal office staffers, tend to be older and more experienced; they frequently hold advanced degrees including in science, law, and medicine; and often times they have relevant experience outside of government. Committee
4 staffers are much more focused on policy considerations than on election politics, and they will be responsible for writing the actual legislative language considered by the committee, including amendments; will organize congressional hearings including the screening and recommending of witnesses; will prepare the chair’s and ranking member’s statements and committee speeches. Do not underestimate the power of committee staff, and understand that a meeting with an informed committee staffer may be the most valuable use of your time on Capitol Hill! House Committees Standing Committees Senate Committees Standing Committees Appropriations Armed Services Agriculture Budget Education and Labor Energy and Commerce Financial Services Foreign Affairs Homeland Security House Administration Judiciary Natural Resources Oversight and Government Reform Rules Science and Technology Small Business Standards of Official Conduct Transportation and Infrastructure Veteran’s Affairs Ways and Means Appropriations Armed Services Agriculture, Nutrition, Forestry Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Budget Commerce, Science and Transportation Energy and Natural Resources Environment and Public Works Finance Foreign Relations Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Homeland Security and Gov’t Affairs Judiciary Rules and Administration Small Business Veteran’s Affairs Select Committees Ethics Intelligence Indian Affairs Aging Select Committees Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming Joint Committees Joint Economic Committee Joint Committee on Taxation Joint Committee on Printing Joint Committee on the Environment
Committees carry out either an authorization or an appropriation function. Authorizing committees enact laws to create or to continue an agency or program, as well as to allow the subsequent enactment of appropriations or funding. Appropriations committees enact legislation that provides funding for the authorized agency or program. It is much easier for an authorizing committee to create a new program and establish a funding limit than it is for the appropriations committees to find the money to fund the program. So if you are able to get a program enacted into law via an authorization bill, remember that your work is less than half done. Authorizing committees can be instrumental, however, in either directing Federal agencies or creating opportunities for Federal agencies to develop new regulations that will positively or negatively impact your business. 5 THE FEDERAL BUDGET Each year the President initiates the annual appropriations process by submitting his or her budget request to Congress. There is much negotiating that goes on behind the scenes between the various agencies and the White House, with OMB and the Executive Office providing significant guidance on policy priorities that must be reflected in the agency budgets. Agencies submit a request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which is followed by informal “hearings” in which agency officials defend their request to OMB program staff. OMB staff meet with agency officials as well as with other Executive Offices staff to develop each agency budget, which is then presented to the OMB Director and the President for their approval. On the Monday after Thanksgiving, OMB provides a budget “passback” to each agency, which details the request that the President intends to make for budget authority for that agency. The agency then has an opportunity to appeal the passback, and by mid­December, OMB and the President will have considered those appeals and issued a final passback to each agency. The passback process is supposed to be confidential, but when agencies are disappointed with their passback, they will often times leak information to valued constituents who might lobby on behalf of the agency for more money. All official correspondence from the agency will support the President’s budget request. The Federal Budget is divided into 20 functions or categories of spending, such as Function 050 for National Defense; Function 250 for Science, Space and Technology; Function 400 for Transportation, and Function 550 for Health. The budget includes both mandatory spending and discretionary spending. Mandatory spending is directed by law, but not by annual appropriations laws, thus is not subject to the “discretion” of the appropriators. Mandatory spending includes Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare. These programs are called entitlement programs because individuals who meet certain eligibility criteria already established in law are entitled to receive funding or benefits. Discretionary spending covers the rest of the Federal budget, and requires annual appropriations legislation. Authorization bills are policy bills that frequently establish maximum spending levels for Federal agency programs and budgets, but authorization bills are non­binding and provide no actual funding. It is the appropriations bills that actually set funding levels for the coming year. Appropriations bills are not supposed to include policy provisions, although given the difficulties Congress has had in passing authorization bills of late, policy provisions are creeping into the “must pass” appropriations bills. Appropriations bills are supposed to be passed prior to the beginning of the Federal fiscal year, which is on October 1st, but since Congress has not been able to pass its appropriations bills on time for many years, each year they have had to pass multiple Continuing Resolutions to keep the Federal government running until a budget can be passed. In some years, Congress runs out of time to pass all of the individual appropriations bills, so they combine all or most of the appropriations bills into a single Omnibus Spending Bill, which is a very long bill in which all sorts of funding and policy provisions can get buried. There has also been much discussion of late about congressional earmarks, or funds designated by an individual Member of Congress for a special interest project, organization or purpose, usually in his or her state or district. For earmarks to be the rule of law, they must be included in the bill that is passed by Congress and signed by the President. However, the Congress has grown increasingly reliant on including earmarks in the conference report that accompanies every bill, a document is not subject to scrutiny or vote by the full House or Senate. Agency leaders feel compelled to fund conference report earmarks given the negative impact that a disagreement with a Member of Congress could have on the agency. In an attempt to improve the transparency of congressional earmarks, the Office of Management and Budget recently established a website to disclose the author and amount of all Federal earmarks (earmarks.omb.gov). Similarly, the
6 Congress has new rules regarding earmarks that require the author of the earmark to be disclosed in the legislation. CONGRESSIONAL AGENCIES Congress has oversight responsibility for several agencies that assist the Congress in carrying out its duties. Congressional Budget Office, CBO: Created by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974, the CBO provides information to the Congress about the revenue to be generated, the yearly and total costs or the Federal savings associated with any bill being advanced by a Committee. The cost associated with a piece of legislation is often times referred to as the CBO “score”. Library of Congress, Congressional Research Service, CRS: The Library of Congress is the nation's oldest federal cultural institution and serves as the research arm of Congress. It is also the largest library in the world. Within the Library of Congress is the Congressional Research Service (CRS) whose non­partisan staff are nationally recognized experts on a range of issues and disciplines, including law, economics, foreign affairs, public administration, the information, social, political sciences and natural sciences. The breadth and depth of this expertise enables CRS staff to provide quick, comprehensive, and accurate analyses of complex issues of policy interest. CRS services and reports are available only to members and their staffs. General Accountability Office, GAO: GAO gathers information to help Congress determine how well executive branch agencies are doing their jobs. GAO’s work routinely answers such basic questions as whether government programs are meeting their objectives or providing good service to the public. Ultimately, GAO ensures that government is accountable to the American people. LEGISLATION Legislation can originate in either chamber, with the exception of revenue or tax bills which must originate in the House. Frequently the House and Senate pass different versions of legislation on the same topic, but through a process called conference, both chambers must ultimately agree and vote upon a single bill before it can go to the President. Typically ­ but not always­ it is easier to reach a conference agreement when a single political party holds the majority in both chambers. However, it is almost always harder to pass a bill in the Senate where the parliamentary procedure allows for extended debate, or filibuster, which serves to block passage of the bill. Because 60 votes are required to end a filibuster (called a cloture vote), the majority party really needs 60 individuals rather than 51 to have the power of party­line votes.
7 How a Bill Becomes a Law (1)
8 How a Bill Becomes a Law (2) 1. First the bill must be introduced into the House of Representatives or the Senate. Then it is assigned a number (H.R. ## for House bills, S. ## for Senate bills). 2. Then the bill is assigned to the Subcommittee and the Committee which has jurisdiction – for instance, bills introduced in the House of Representatives about agriculture would go to the House Committee on Agriculture. Often a bill is referred to more than one committee. The members of the committee study the bill, scheduling hearings, soliciting experts in the field and representatives of business, industry, and others interested in the legislative issue. They then decide if they want to approve it for debate, pass it out of committee and refer it to the appropriate committee for a “rule” and to be placed on the House or Senate calendar for a vote. 3. The legislation is scheduled for floor consideration, and members debate whether or not to pass the bill. 4. If the bill passes the House and Senate, it goes to the Conference Committee for Conference Action. This committee reaches a compromise on the differences between the two versions of the bills. The Conference Report – referred back to each body for a final vote – must have the same language to be presented to each body—both the House and the Senate. 5. If approved by both the House and Senate, the bill is then sent to the President for a signature or veto. 6. If the President signs the bill, it becomes a law. If the President vetoes the bill, it does not. 7. Once the President has vetoed a bill, it is no longer in the process to become a law and has been ‘killed’. The only exception is if Congress should decide to vote again on the bill in an attempt to override the President’s veto. A 2/3 vote in both bodies of the Congress is necessary. Should that happen, the bill can become a law even without the President’s signature. To see the text of any piece of legislation, as well as a summary of any bill, its status, and the Committee Report that accompanies any bill, visit the Library of Congress’s “Thomas” website at http://thomas.loc.gov/. On this site, you can look up a bill by number, title, and can even do a search by key word. Some terms you may see used in Thomas are: Engrossed Bill – an engrossed bill is the official copy of the bill, plus amendments, as approved by one chamber. When it is sent to the other chamber, it is said to be “received”. Enrolled Bill – the final version of the bill that is passed in identical form by both the House and the Senate and sent to the President.
9 THE JUDICIAL BRANCH Article III, Section 1. The Judicial Power of the United States, shall
be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the
Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The Judges, both
of the supreme court and the inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices
during good Behavior, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their
Services, a Compensation, which shall not be diminished during their
Continuance in Office.
The judicial branch hears cases that challenge or require interpretation of the legislation passed by Congress and signed by the President. It consists of the Supreme Court and three lower Federal courts ­ the U.S. Courts of Appeals, the U.S. District Courts, and Bankruptcy Courts. Appointees to the federal bench serve for life or until they voluntarily resign or retire. U.S. SUPREME COURT The Supreme Court is the most visible of all the federal courts. Each year, based on its discretion as well as guidelines created by Congress, the Supreme Court hears a limited number of cases, most of which began in federal or state courts, and generally which involve federal or Constitutional law. The number of Justices is determined by Congress rather than the Constitution, and since 1869, the Court has been composed of one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices. Justices are nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate. Current Members Chief Justice of the United States: John G. Roberts, Jr. Associate Justices: John Paul Stevens Antonin Scalia Anthony Kennedy David H. Souter Clarence Thomas Ruth Bader Ginsburg Stephen G. Breyers Samual A. Alito, Jr. U.S. DISTRICT COURTS The United States district courts are the trial courts of the federal court system. Within limits set by Congress and the Constitution, the district courts have jurisdiction to hear nearly all categories of federal cases, including both civil and criminal matters. Every day hundreds of people across the nation are selected for jury duty and help decide some of these cases. There are 94 federal judicial districts, including at least one district in each state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Three territories of the United States ­­ the Virgin
10 Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands ­­ have district courts that hear federal cases, including bankruptcy cases. You can view a map of the federal court districts at http://www.uscourts.gov/images/CircuitMap.pdf) Bankruptcy courts are separate units of the district courts. Federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction over bankruptcy cases. This means that a bankruptcy case cannot be filed in a state court. There are two special trial courts that have nationwide jurisdiction over certain types of cases: 1) The Court of International Trade addresses cases involving international trade and customs issues; and 2) The United States Court of Federal Claims has jurisdiction over most claims for money damages against the United States, disputes over federal contracts, unlawful "takings" of private property by the federal government, and a variety of other claims against the United States. U.S. COURTS OF APPEALS There are 94 U.S. judicial districts which are organized into 12 regional circuits, each of which has a United States court of appeals. A court of appeals hears appeals from the district courts located within its circuit, as well as appeals from decisions of federal administrative agencies. In addition, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has nationwide jurisdiction to hear appeals in specialized cases, such as those involving patent laws and cases decided by the Court of International Trade and the Court of Federal Claims. BANKRUPTCY COURTS Each of the 94 federal judicial districts handles bankruptcy matters, and in almost all districts, bankruptcy cases are filed in the bankruptcy court. Bankruptcy cases cannot be filed in state court. Bankruptcy laws help people who can no longer pay their creditors get a fresh start by liquidating their assets to pay their debts, or by creating a repayment plan. Bankruptcy laws also protect troubled businesses and provide for orderly distributions to business creditors through reorganization or liquidation. These procedures are covered under Title 11 of the United States Code (the Bankruptcy Code). The vast majority of cases are filed under the three main chapters of the Bankruptcy Code, which are Chapter 7, Chapter 11, and Chapter 13.
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