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==Structure== {{Main|Structure of the United States Congress}} Congress is split into two chambers{{snd}}House and Senate{{snd}}and manages the task of writing national legislation by dividing work into separate committees which specialize in different areas. Some members of Congress are elected by their peers to be officers of these committees. Further, Congress has ancillary organizations such as the [[Government Accountability Office]] and the [[Library of Congress]] to help provide it with information, and members of Congress have staff and offices to assist them as well. In addition, a vast industry of lobbyists helps members write legislation on behalf of diverse corporate and labor interests. ===Committees=== {{Main|United States congressional committee}} [[File:Congress Hall committee room 2.jpg|thumb|alt=Photo of a table with chairs.|The second committee room at [[Congress Hall]] in [[Philadelphia]]]] [[File:The United States Legislative Process - Committee Consideration (3) - Library of Congress.webm|thumb|A [[Library of Congress]] video explaining the committees of the United States Congress]] ====Specializations==== The committee structure permits members of Congress to study a particular subject intensely. It is neither expected nor possible that a member be an expert on all subject areas before Congress.<ref>English (2003), pp. 46–47.</ref> As time goes by, members develop expertise in particular subjects and their legal aspects. [[United States congressional committee|Committees]] investigate specialized subjects and advise the entire Congress about choices and trade-offs. The choice of specialty may be influenced by the member's constituency, important regional issues, prior background and experience.<ref>English, p. 46.</ref> Senators often choose a different specialty from that of the other senator from their state to prevent overlap.<ref>{{cite book |author=Schiller, Wendy J. |title=Partners and Rivals: Representation in U.S. Senate Delegations |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=2000 |isbn=0-691-04887-8}}</ref> Some committees specialize in running the business of other committees and exert a powerful influence over all legislation; for example, the [[House Ways and Means Committee]] has considerable influence over House affairs.<ref>{{cite news |title= Committees |publisher= U.S. Senate |year= 2010 |url= https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/committees/d_three_sections_with_teasers/committees_home.htm |access-date= September 12, 2010 |archive-date= January 14, 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214410/https://www.senate.gov/committees/index.htm |url-status= live }}</ref> ====Power==== Committees write legislation. While procedures, such as the House [[discharge petition]] process, can introduce bills to the House floor and effectively bypass committee input, they are exceedingly difficult to implement without committee action. Committees have power and have been called ''independent fiefdoms''. Legislative, oversight, and internal administrative tasks are divided among about two hundred committees and [[United States congressional subcommittee|subcommittees]] which gather information, evaluate alternatives, and identify problems.<ref name="House_Rules"/> They propose solutions for consideration by the full chamber.<ref name="House_Rules"/> In addition, they perform the function of ''oversight'' by monitoring the executive branch and investigating wrongdoing.<ref name="House_Rules">[https://web.archive.org/web/20100423162313/http://www.rules.house.gov/archives/98-241.pdf Committee Types and Roles], [[Congressional Research Service]], April 1, 2003.</ref> ====Officer==== At the start of each two-year session, the House elects a [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|speaker]] who does not normally preside over debates but serves as the majority party's leader. In the Senate, the vice president is the ''[[ex officio]]'' president of the Senate. In addition, the Senate elects an officer called the [[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|president pro tempore]]. ''Pro tempore'' means ''for the time being'' and this office is usually held by the most senior member of the Senate's majority party and customarily keeps this position until there is a change in party control. Accordingly, the Senate does not necessarily elect a new president pro tempore at the beginning of a new Congress. In the House and Senate, the actual presiding officer is generally a junior member of the majority party who is appointed so that new members become acquainted with the rules of the chamber. ===Support services=== ====Library of Congress==== {{Main|Library of Congress}} [[File:Thomas Jefferson Building Aerial by Carol M. Highsmith.jpg|thumb|Library of Congress Jefferson Building]] The Library of Congress was established by an act of Congress in 1800. It is primarily housed in three buildings on [[Capitol Hill]], but also includes several other sites: the [[National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped]] in Washington, D.C.; the [[National Audio-Visual Conservation Center]] in [[Culpeper, Virginia]]; a large [[book storage]] facility located in [[Fort Meade, Maryland]]; and multiple overseas offices. The Library had mostly law books when it [[Burning of Washington|was burnt]] by [[British Empire|British]] forces in 1814 during the [[War of 1812]], but the library's collections were restored and expanded when Congress authorized the purchase of [[Thomas Jefferson]]'s private library. One of the library's missions is to serve Congress and its staff as well as the American public. It is the largest library in the world with nearly 150 million items including books, films, maps, photographs, music, manuscripts, graphics, and materials in 470 languages.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.loc.gov/about/generalinfo.html|title=General Information – Library of Congress|website=[[Library of Congress]]|access-date=December 30, 2017|archive-date=February 24, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140224004300/http://www.loc.gov/about/generalinfo.html|url-status=live}}</ref> ====Congressional Research Service==== {{Main|Congressional Research Service}} [[File:Congressional Research Service.svg|alt=|thumb|The [[Congressional Research Service]]]] The Congressional Research Service, part of the Library of Congress, provides detailed, up-to-date and non-partisan research for senators, representatives, and their staff to help them carry out their official duties. It provides ideas for legislation, helps members analyze a bill, facilitates public hearings, makes reports, consults on matters such as parliamentary procedure, and helps the two chambers resolve disagreements. It has been called the "House's think tank" and has a staff of about 900 employees.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL33471.pdf|title=The Congressional Research Service and the American Legislative Process|year=2008|publisher=Congressional Research Service|access-date=July 25, 2009|archive-date=July 18, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090718113918/http://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL33471.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> ====Congressional Budget Office==== {{Main|Congressional Budget Office}} The [[Congressional Budget Office]] (CBO) is a [[List of United States federal agencies|federal agency]] which provides [[economics|economic data]] to Congress.<ref>{{cite book |last1 = O'Sullivan |first1 = Arthur |author-link = Arthur O'Sullivan (economist) |first2 = Steven M. |last2 = Sheffrin |title = Economics: Principles in Action |url = https://archive.org/details/economicsprincip00osul |url-access = limited |publisher = Pearson Prentice Hall | year = 2003 |location = Upper Saddle River, New Jersey |page = [https://archive.org/details/economicsprincip00osul/page/n404 388] |isbn = 0-13-063085-3}}</ref> It was created as an independent non-partisan agency by the [[Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974]]. It helps Congress estimate revenue inflows from taxes and helps the budgeting process. It makes projections about such matters as the [[national debt]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbo.gov/aboutcbo/ |title=Congressional Budget Office – About CBO |publisher=Cbo.gov |access-date=December 20, 2010 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101205015731/http://www.cbo.gov/aboutcbo/ |archive-date=December 5, 2010 }}</ref> as well as likely costs of legislation. It prepares an annual ''Economic and Budget Outlook'' with a mid-year update and writes ''An Analysis of the President's Budgetary Proposals'' for the [[Senate Committee on Appropriations|Senate's Appropriations Committee]]. The speaker of the House and the Senate's president pro tempore jointly appoint the CBO director for a four-year term. ====Lobbying==== {{Main|Lobbying in the United States}} Lobbyists represent diverse interests and often seek to influence congressional decisions to reflect their clients' needs. [[Advocacy group|Lobby groups]] and their members sometimes write legislation and [[Whip (politics)|whip]] bills. In 2007, there were approximately 17,000 federal lobbyists in Washington, D.C.<ref>{{cite book |title=Washington Representatives|edition=32|date=November 2007|publisher=Columbia Books|location=Bethesda, MD|isbn=978-1-880873-55-7|page=949}}</ref> They explain to legislators the goals of their organizations. Some lobbyists represent non-profit organizations and work [[pro bono]] for issues in which they are personally interested. ====Police==== {{Main|United States Capitol Police}} ===Partisanship versus bipartisanship=== Congress has alternated between periods of constructive cooperation and compromise between parties, known as [[bipartisanship]], and periods of deep political [[Polarization (politics)|polarization]] and fierce infighting, known as [[partisanship]]. The period after the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] was marked by partisanship, as is the case today. It is generally easier for committees to reach accord on issues when compromise is possible. Some [[Political science|political scientists]] speculate that a prolonged period marked by narrow majorities in both chambers of Congress has intensified partisanship in the last few decades, but that an alternation of control of Congress between Democrats and Republicans may lead to greater flexibility in policies, as well as pragmatism and civility within the institution.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Steven S. Smith |author2=Jason M. Roberts |author3=Ryan J. Vander Wielen |title=The American Congress |publisher=Cambridge University Press |pages=17–18 |year=2006 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fWpE_HxuxVEC&q=Smith,+Steven+S.,+Jason+M.+Roberts,+and+Ryan+Vander+Wielen+%282007%29.+The+American+Congress |access-date=September 11, 2010 |isbn=9781139446990 |edition=Fourth |archive-date=January 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114214414/https://books.google.com/books?id=fWpE_HxuxVEC&q=Smith%2C+Steven+S.%2C+Jason+M.+Roberts%2C+and+Ryan+Vander+Wielen+%282007%29.+The+American+Congress |url-status=live }}</ref>
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