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The United States House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper house. The Legislative Branch, which includes the House of Representatives, is established by Article I of the Constitution. The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, with each state being represented based on its population and having at least one representative. To be elected to the House of Representatives, a person must be at least 25 years old, a citizen of the United States for seven years or more, and a resident of the state they represent.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Number of members | 435 |
| Election cycle | Every two years |
| Minimum age | 25 years old |
| Citizenship requirement | U.S. citizen for at least seven years |
| Residency requirement | Inhabitant of the state they represent |
| Apportionment | Based on state population, with each state entitled to at least one representative |
| Maximum size | One representative for every 30,000 people |
| Exclusive powers | Initiating revenue bills, impeaching federal officials, electing the president in case of an Electoral College tie |
| Role in legislation | Passes or defeats federal legislation (bills) with the Senate; bills passed by both houses go to the President for signature or veto |
| Gerrymandering | Allowed by federal courts, but gerrymandered districts can be struck down based on the Equal Protection Clause |
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What You'll Learn
House of Reps member requirements
The House of Representatives, together with the Senate, forms the United States Congress, which is the legislative branch of the federal government. The House of Representatives is the lower house, with the Senate being the upper house.
The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. Each state is entitled to at least one representative, and the number of representatives per state is determined by a census conducted every ten years.
To be eligible to serve as a member of the House of Representatives, an individual must meet the following requirements, as outlined in Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution:
- Be at least 25 years old
- Be a United States citizen for at least seven years
- Be an inhabitant of the state they represent, but not necessarily the district
Members of the House of Representatives are elected every two years and serve a fixed term of two years. Special elections may occur if a seat is vacated early. The presiding officer of the House is the Speaker of the House, who is elected by the Representatives. The Speaker is third in the line of succession to the Presidency.
In addition to the 435 voting members, there are also 6 non-voting members, representing the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and four other US territories. These delegates possess the same powers as other members of the House, except that they may not vote when the House is meeting as the House of Representatives.
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State representation
The House of Representatives is the lower house of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper house. Together, they form the legislative branch of the federal government, which is one of the three coequal branches of government. Congress has significant powers, including the sole authority to enact legislation, declare war, and confirm or reject many presidential appointments.
The House of Representatives is currently composed of 435 elected members, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. In addition, there are six non-voting members, including five delegates representing the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Puerto Rico is also represented by a resident commissioner, who has the same powers as the delegates.
To be elected to the House of Representatives, a person must be at least 25 years old, a citizen of the United States for at least seven years, and a resident of the state they represent. Members of the House serve two-year terms, and elections are held before the start of each new Congress.
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District of Columbia and territories
The District of Columbia and the territories of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands are each represented by one non-voting delegate. Puerto Rico elects a resident commissioner, but apart from having a four-year term, the resident commissioner's role is identical to the delegates from the other territories. The five delegates and resident commissioner may participate in debates; before 2011, they were also allowed to vote in committees and the Committee of the Whole when their votes would not be decisive.
The District of Columbia (DC) is the nation's capital district. Although DC has a larger population than some states, the District is not one of the fifty states and so has no senators, and its representative in the House of Representatives is a delegate with limited voting privileges. Delegates have a marginalized role in Congress, and their constituents are not represented in Congress in the same manner as most citizens.
The District of Columbia's one representative, called an "at-large" representative because they represent the entire area, has limited voting privileges. The District of Columbia's representative cannot vote when the House is meeting as the House of Representatives.
The fight for local autonomy in the District of Columbia has been a gradual process. In 1948, the Senate passed a bill providing some form of home rule, but it died in the House District of Columbia Committee. In 1963, District residents won the right to vote for the President and Vice-President of the United States with the ratification of the 23rd Amendment to the Constitution. In 1970, the District gained a non-voting delegate to the House of Representatives. In 1973, the Home Rule Act passed in Congress, and District residents approved it in a special referendum the next year. In 1974, District citizens elected a Mayor and Council. In 1978, Congress passed the Voting Rights Amendment, giving the District voting representation in Congress, but the Amendment died in 1985 after failing to be ratified by 38 states. In 1990, District voters elected two Statehood senators and one representative to lobby Congress.
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House of Reps powers
The United States House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper house. The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, with each state being represented based on its population and having at least one representative. The Constitution grants Congress significant powers, including the sole authority to enact legislation and declare war, the right to confirm or reject many presidential appointments, and substantial investigative powers.
The House of Representatives has several powers exclusive to it, including the power to initiate revenue bills, impeach federal officials, and elect the president in the case of an electoral college tie. The House also has the power to pass or defeat federal legislation, known as bills, and any bills that are also passed by the Senate are sent to the president for signature or veto.
The presiding officer of the House is the Speaker of the House, who is elected by the Representatives and is third in the line of succession to the Presidency. The Speaker acts as the leader of the House and combines several institutional and administrative roles. The House also has a majority leader and a minority leader, who represent their respective parties on the House floor, as well as whips, who assist leadership in managing their party's legislative program.
The House of Representatives also has several committees, including the Committee on Ethics, which has jurisdiction over the rules and statutes governing the conduct of members, officers, and employees while performing their official duties. The Rules Committee controls what bills go to the House Floor and the terms of debate, and the Committee of the Whole House, on which all representatives serve and which meets for the consideration of measures from the Union calendar. The House may also form special or select committees for a short time and a specific purpose, such as an investigation.
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Legislative process
The Legislative Branch, established by Article I of the US Constitution, consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate, which together form the United States Congress. The Constitution grants Congress the sole authority to enact legislation and declare war, confirm or reject Presidential appointments, and substantial investigative powers.
The legislative process begins with a bill being introduced. Bills can originate from many different sources, and once introduced, they are referred to the appropriate committee for review. There are 17 Senate committees with 70 subcommittees, and 23 House committees with 104 subcommittees. These committees are flexible and can change with each new Congress to efficiently consider legislation. Each committee oversees a specific policy area, and the subcommittees take on more specialised policy areas. The bill is first considered in a subcommittee, where it may be accepted, amended, or rejected. If the subcommittee agrees to move the bill forward, it is reported to the full committee, where the process is repeated.
Once a bill has passed through the committee stage, it must pass both houses of Congress before going to the President for consideration. The Constitution requires that the two bills have the exact same wording, but this rarely happens in practice. A Conference Committee is usually convened to bring the bills into alignment, and a conference report is produced, which is intended to be the final version of the bill. Each chamber then votes again to approve the report. Depending on where the bill originated, the final text is then enrolled by either the Clerk of the House or the Secretary of the Senate and presented for signatures. The bill is then sent to the President.
The President has several options when receiving a bill from Congress. They may sign it into law, or they can take no action. If Congress is in session and the President takes no action within 10 days, the bill becomes law. However, if Congress adjourns before 10 days are up and the President takes no action, the bill dies, and Congress may not vote to override—this is called a pocket veto. The President may also veto the bill, but Congress can override this by a two-thirds vote in both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
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Frequently asked questions
According to Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution, a person must be at least 25 years old, a citizen of the United States for seven years or more, and a resident of the state they represent.
There are 435 elected members in the House of Representatives, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. In addition, there are 6 non-voting members representing the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and four other US territories.
Members of the House of Representatives are elected every two years.
