The chief job of the House of
Representatives is to represent the interests of the people.
Compare this to the role of the
Senate: to represent the interests of each state.
The U.S. House of Representatives makes up one half of Congress.
The other half is made up by the Senate.
Together they are also known as the legislative branch of
government—the part that
introduces and handles laws and amendments to laws.
At any one time the House has a
variable number of
representatives. Unlike the Senate,
which has 2 senators from each
state, the number of representatives per state depends on its population, but all must have at least one. The more populous the state—like Florida or California—the greater the number of representatives.
Article I of the U.S. Constitution,
defines the unique powers of both the Senate and the House. Despite the fact that there is some overlap in responsibility, there are key differences in powers.
House Powers According to the Constitution the U.S. House of Representatives has the following key powers:
* Power to set in motion
impeachment proceedings (it is up to the Senate to bring those
proceedings into a trial setting).
For example, had Richard Nixon
not resigned his position as
president for his role in
Watergate, the House would likely have voted (a majority) to
impeach him, at which point any
formal proceedings would have
moved to the Senate.
*Power to elect the President of
the United States. This would only
happen if electoral votes were
tied. The Senate has the power to do the same with the office of Vice President. Of course it cannot choose randomly, but must select from candidates with the most electoral votes.
*Power to introduce laws and
legislation that specifically deal
with revenue and taxes. Because revenue and taxes are issues closely related to their
constituents or the people that
voted for them, the House is
granted the power to introduce
these.
* Power to introduce laws and
legislation other than revenue-
related, but this is also a power
shared with the Senate.
* Power to participate in Joint
Committees alongside senate
members, such as the Joint
Committee on Taxation or Joint
Economic Committee.
(Collected)
Representatives is to represent the interests of the people.
Compare this to the role of the
Senate: to represent the interests of each state.
The U.S. House of Representatives makes up one half of Congress.
The other half is made up by the Senate.
Together they are also known as the legislative branch of
government—the part that
introduces and handles laws and amendments to laws.
At any one time the House has a
variable number of
representatives. Unlike the Senate,
which has 2 senators from each
state, the number of representatives per state depends on its population, but all must have at least one. The more populous the state—like Florida or California—the greater the number of representatives.
Article I of the U.S. Constitution,
defines the unique powers of both the Senate and the House. Despite the fact that there is some overlap in responsibility, there are key differences in powers.
House Powers According to the Constitution the U.S. House of Representatives has the following key powers:
* Power to set in motion
impeachment proceedings (it is up to the Senate to bring those
proceedings into a trial setting).
For example, had Richard Nixon
not resigned his position as
president for his role in
Watergate, the House would likely have voted (a majority) to
impeach him, at which point any
formal proceedings would have
moved to the Senate.
*Power to elect the President of
the United States. This would only
happen if electoral votes were
tied. The Senate has the power to do the same with the office of Vice President. Of course it cannot choose randomly, but must select from candidates with the most electoral votes.
*Power to introduce laws and
legislation that specifically deal
with revenue and taxes. Because revenue and taxes are issues closely related to their
constituents or the people that
voted for them, the House is
granted the power to introduce
these.
* Power to introduce laws and
legislation other than revenue-
related, but this is also a power
shared with the Senate.
* Power to participate in Joint
Committees alongside senate
members, such as the Joint
Committee on Taxation or Joint
Economic Committee.
(Collected)
