The United States government is separated by the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial branches, with each branch responsible for carrying out their respective duties. The Executive branch is responsible for enforcing our laws and the Judicial branch is responsible for interpreting these laws. The Legislative branch, which is the focus of this website, is responsible for creating the laws in which all U.S. residents are to abide by. The Legislative branch is formed by Congress which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population. In addition, there are 6 non-voting members, representing the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and four other territories of the United States. The presiding officer of the chamber is the Speaker of the House, elected by the Representatives. He or she is third in the line of succession to the Presidency.

The Senate is composed of 100 Senators, 2 for each state. Until the ratification of the 17th Amendment in 1913, Senators were chosen by state legislatures, not by popular vote. Since then, they have been elected to six-year terms by the people of each state. Senator’s terms are staggered so that about one-third of the Senate is up for reelection every two years. Senators must be 30 years of age, U.S. citizens for at least nine years, and residents of the state they represent.

More information regarding the U.S Government can be found here.