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The House of Representatives began work on April 1, 1789, when it achieved a quorum for the first time, [1] with 59 members elected from 11 states. In 1790, North Carolina and Rhode Island elected representatives (see: 1788 and 1789 United States House of Representatives elections ), bringing the total count of representatives to 65.
- Overview
- Constitutional framework
- Powers
- The speaker of the House of Representatives
House of Representatives, one of the two houses of the bicameral United States Congress, established in 1789 by the Constitution of the United States.
The House of Representatives shares equal responsibility for lawmaking with the U.S. Senate. As conceived by the framers of the Constitution, the House was to represent the popular will, and its members were to be directly elected by the people. In contrast, members of the Senate were appointed by the states until the ratification of the Seventeenth Amendment (1913), which mandated the direct election of senators.
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Each state is guaranteed at least one member of the House of Representatives. The allocation of seats is based on the population within the states, and membership is reapportioned every 10 years, following the decennial census. House members are elected for two-year terms from single-member districts of approximately equal population. The constitutional requirements for eligibility for membership of the House of Representatives are a minimum age of 25 years, U.S. citizenship for at least seven years, and residency of the state from which the member is elected, though he need not reside in the constituency that he represents.
The Constitution vests certain exclusive powers in the House of Representatives, including the right to initiate impeachment proceedings and to originate revenue bills. The organization and character of the House of Representatives have evolved under the influence of political parties, which provide a means of controlling proceedings and mobilizing the necessary majorities. Party leaders, such as the speaker of the House and the majority and minority leaders, play a central role in the operations of the institution. However, party discipline (i.e., the tendency of all members of a political party to vote in the same way) has not always been strong, owing to the fact that members, who must face reelection every two years, often vote the interests of their districts rather than their political party when the two diverge.
A further dominating element of House organization is the committee system, under which the membership is divided into specialized groups for purposes such as holding hearings, preparing bills for the consideration of the entire House, and regulating House procedure. Each committee is chaired by a member of the majority party. Almost all bills are first referred to a committee, and ordinarily the full House cannot act on a bill until the committee has “reported” it for floor action. There are approximately 20 standing (permanent) committees, organized mainly around major policy areas, each having staffs, budgets, and subcommittees. They may hold hearings on questions of public interest, propose legislation that has not been formally introduced as a bill or resolution, and conduct investigations. Among important standing committees are those on appropriations, on ways and means (which handles matters related to finance), and on rules. There are also select and special committees, which are usually appointed for a specific project and for a limited period.
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The committees also play an important role in the control exercised by Congress over governmental agencies. Cabinet officers and other officials are frequently summoned before the committees to explain policy. The Constitution (Article I, section 6) prohibits members of Congress from holding offices in the executive branch of government—a chief distinction between parliamentary and congressional forms of government.
After the census of 1920, Northeastern and Midwestern states held 270 House seats and the South and West held 169. Thereafter, the balance between the two regions gradually shifted: following the 2010 census, the Northeast and Midwest accounted for only 172 seats, compared with the South and West’s 263. Most notably, the number of representatives from New York declined from 45 in the 1930s to only 27 in 2012, while the number from California increased from 11 to 53.
The most significant role in the House of Representatives is that of speaker of the House. This individual, who is chosen by the majority party, presides over debate, appoints members of select and conference committees, and performs other important duties; speakers are second in the line of presidential succession (following the vice president).
The table contains a complete list of speakers of the House of Representatives.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Jun 28, 2017 · Both the House of Representatives and the Senate are based at the U.S. Capitol building, located atop Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., where they have met since 1807—except for periods during ...
The United States House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together, they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. [1][2] The House is charged with the passage of federal legislation, known as bills; those that are also passed by the Senate are ...
Oct 17, 2022 · The Congress that began in 1913 was the first to have 435 seats, representing just over 97 million people in 46 states – an average of 223,505 people per member of the House.. The number of ...
Search the biographies of the more than 11,000 people who have served in the House, as well as the many House Officers since 1789. Explore lists of House leadership, including a historical list of Speakers of the House. Find historical statistics on election results, House service and seniority, party divisions, session dates, and more.
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Oct 23, 2023 · In 1789, the United States House of Representatives began work for the first time. It was a new type of representation for the thirteen states, with representatives apportioned according to state population. As the “lower chamber” of the bicameral (two-chamber) legislature, the House had two-year terms and many more seats than the “upper ...
