Origins, organization, and functions of the U.S. Senate

¶ … Senate Functions from Senate.Gov

Senate and House of Representatives serve the people of the United States in unique ways. Many consider the U.S. Senate the balancing force in the government, providing equal representation among all fifty states in matters of legislation. The U.S. Senate serves many functions including representation in Congress. Created by the Constitution of the United States, unlike its counterpart the House of Representatives, each state is represented by an equal number of Senators totaling 100. Generally the Senate is considered organized much simpler than the House of Representatives. The Senate origins, responsibilities and functions are described in greater detail below.

Origins/Organization

The Senate originated from the United States constitution in the late 1700s. James Madison stated that the Senate derives its powers from the States whereas the House of Representatives from the people of the nation (Senate.gov, 2004). Despite this both groups in Congress legislate laws and other matters with the best interests of the people of the United States in mind. The goal of Congress is to provide balance as well as legislative representation for the people of the United States. The number of seats allocated to each state is fixed whereas the House states are allocated according to population. Thus no matter the population size each state may have two Senators.

Because so few Senators represent the large population they represent it is important that Senators keep in mind the "heterogeneous' populations they are representing (Senate.gov, 2004). The vote of a Senator in Congress is equal, though Senators do face many pressures from lawmakers to represent their diverse needs.

The number of Senators compared with representatives in the house is rather limited. Because the Senate is so small the leadership within this branch is often quite strong; rule within the Senate are also informal when compared with the more stringent and complex rules presented in the House of Representatives (Senate.gov, 2004).

The original thought behind the Senate was to create a branch that would be "less subject to popular passions and impulses" (Senate.gov, 2004). Senators may serve up to six years though Congress is only 2 years (Senate.gov, 2004). Senators must also be 30 years of age to hold office and must have at least nine years of citizenship (Senate.gov, 2004).

The Senate has special authorities in Congress including the ability to ratify treaties and is given provisions for presidential appointments including federal judgeships and Cabinet offices (Senate.gov, 2004).

The Senate also has the power to impeach and to decide whether or not to convict an impeached official (Senate.gov, 2004).

Current Projects/Initiatives

Recent initiatives received in the Senate include H.R. 4661, a bill introduced to amend title 18 to discourage spy ware; H.R. 5061, introduced to provide assistance for current crisis in the Darfur region of Sudan, and H.R. 5213 to expand research information for multi-disciplinary research projects (Congress.gov from Senate.gov, 2004).

Daily Operations

The daily operations of the Senate vary but take on a similar structure. Generally the day opens with the Secretary of the Senate introducing the guest chaplain or Chaplain to the desk, who will officiate the daily meetings (Senate.gov, 2004). The Senate day consists of the time it takes from adjournment to adjournment rather than a typical day. One day in the Senate may actually represent many days or even weeks, depending on when adjournment occurs.

When the Constitution was first written it contained a provision that stated that Congress needed to assemble at least once per year and that those meetings would be held on the first Monday in December generally. However this would mean that the second or potentially third session of Congress would take place after elections were held and may include what were referred to as "lame duck members" which means members that would not be re-elected (Senate.gov, 2004). This changed when the 20th Amendment was passed stating that Congress would instead open on the third of January thus reducing lame duck sessions (Senate.gov, 2004).

Many consider the Senate to be the grounding force in Congress, less prone to the whimsies or fancies of the public, and holding greater responsibility and pressure because of the large number of people represented in the Senate. The Senate and the House work together to assure the best interests of the people are addressed in the U.S. To as great an extent as possible.