How the US Government Works. From top to bottom!

Federal Government

The federal government is composed of 3 distinct branches: legislative, executive, and judicial

Congress (legislature)

• Responsibilities
  • Pass laws (legislation) – Passing legislation requires agreement of both House and Senate.
• Members (535 members)
  • Senate (100 senators)
    • The Senate is composed of 100 Senators, 2 for each state.
  • House of Representatives (435 representatives)
    • The House of Representatives is made up of 435 elected members, divided among the 50 states in proportion to their total population.
    • 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 Constitution gives the House of Representatives the sole power to impeach an official, and it makes the Senate the sole court for impeachment trials.
  • The Vice President of the United States serves as President of the Senate and may cast the decisive vote in the event of a tie in the Senate.
• Committees
  • There are 17 Senate committees, with 70 subcommittees, and 23 House committees, with 104 subcommittees. The committees are not set in stone, but change in number and form with each new Congress as required for the efficient consideration of legislation. Each committee oversees a specific policy area, and the subcommittees take on more specialized policy areas. For example, the House Committee on Ways and Means includes subcommittees on Social Security and Trade.
  • Committees deliberate over bills in their policy area when they are first introduced by a member of congress, and they also hold hearings with people from the general public when there are important concerns that need to be addressed.
• Terms and elections
  • Both senators and representatives are chosen through direct election, though vacancies in the Senate may be filled by a governor’s appointment.
  • Members of the House of Representatives serve two-year terms and are considered for reelection every even year. Senators however, serve six-year terms and elections to the Senate are staggered over even years so that only about 1/3 of the Senate is up for reelection during any election.
  • Elections are held every even-numbered year on Election Day. Election Day always falls on the Tuesday following the first Monday in the month of November.
• Location
  • There are chambers for both the House and the Senate in the U.S. Capitol building in Washington DC.

Executive branch

President

The president is the head of the executive branch, who also acts as the head of state and the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.

Vice President

The primary responsibility of the Vice President is to be ready at a moment’s notice to assume the Presidency if the President is unable to perform his or her duties.

Cabinet

The Cabinet is an advisory body made up of the heads of the 15 executive departments. Appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, the members of the Cabinet are often the President’s closest confidants. In addition to running major federal agencies, they play an important role in the Presidential line of succession — after the Vice President, Speaker of the House, and Senate President pro tempore, the line of succession continues with the Cabinet offices in the order in which the departments were created. All the members of the Cabinet take the title Secretary, excepting the head of the Justice Department, who is styled Attorney General.

Responsibilities

The Cabinet, cabinet departments, and independent federal agencies are responsible for the day-to-day enforcement and administration of the federal laws and policies respectively.

Executive departments

• Department of Agriculture (USDA) – Develops and executives policy on farming, agriculture, and food.
• Department of Commerce – Tasked with creating conditions for economic growth and opportunity.
• Department of Defense (DoD) – Provides the military forces needed to deter war and to protect the security of the country. Consists of the: Army, Navy, Air Force, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Pentagon, National Security Agency (NSA).
• Department of Education – Promotes student learning and preparation for college and careers.
• Department of Energy (DOE) – Advances the national, economic, and energy security of the United States.
• Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) – Protects the health of the American people.
• Department of Homeland Security – Protects the American people from a wide range of foreign and domestic threats.
• Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) – Responsible for policies and programs that address America’s housing needs.
• Department of the Interior – Protects America’s natural resources.
• Department of Justice (DOJ) – Enforces the law. Made up of 40 component organizations, including: Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), US Marshals. Headed by the Attorney General and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government
• Department of Labor – Oversees federal programs for ensuring a strong American workforce.
• Department of State – Develops and implements the President’s foreign policy
• Department of Transportation (DOT) – Ensures fast, efficient, and convenient transportation.
• Department of Treasury – Promotes inclusive economic prosperity for all Americans.
• Department of Veterans Affairs – Administers benefit programs for veterans and their families.

Judicial branch

Supreme court

• There are currently 9 justices on the Supreme Court, including one Chief Justice
• The Court’s caseload is almost entirely appellate in nature, and the Court’s decisions cannot be appealed to any authority

US district courts – try most federal cases

13 US court of appeals – review appealed district court cases

Appointments:

• The members of the Judicial Branch are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
• Congress has significant discretion to determine the shape and structure of the federal judiciary
• Even the number of Supreme Court justices is left to the congress

State Government

All State Governments are modeled after the Federal Government and consist of three branches: executive, legislative, and judicial.

Executive

In every state, the Executive Branch is headed by a governor who is directly elected by the people. In most states, other leaders in the executive branch are also directly elected, including the lieutenant governor, the attorney general, the secretary of state, and auditors and commissioners. States reserve the right to organize in any way, so they often vary greatly with regard to executive structure.

Legislative

All 50 States have legislatures made up of elected representatives, who consider matters brought forth by the governor or introduced by its members to create legislation that becomes law.

Except for one State, Nebraska, all States have a bicameral legislature made up of two chambers: a smaller upper house and a larger lower house. Together the two chambers make State laws and fulfill other governing responsibilities. (Nebraska is the lone state that has just one chamber in its legislature.) The smaller upper chamber is always called the Senate, and its members generally serve longer terms, usually four years. The larger lower chamber is most often called the House of Representatives, but some states call it the Assembly or the House of Delegates. Its members usually serve shorter terms, often two years.

Judicial

State judicial branches are usually led by the State supreme court, which hears appeals from lower-level State courts. Court structures and judicial appointments/elections are determined either by legislation or the State constitution. The supreme court focuses on correcting errors made in lower courts and therefore holds no trials. Rulings made in State supreme courts are normally binding; however, when questions are raised regarding consistency with the U.S. Constitution, matters may be appealed directly to the United States Supreme Court.

Local Governments

Local governments generally include two tiers: counties, also known as boroughs in Alaska and parishes in Louisiana, and municipalities, or cities/towns. In some States, counties are divided into townships. Municipalities can be structured in many ways, as defined by State constitutions, and are called, variously, townships, villages, boroughs, cities, or towns. Various kinds of districts also provide functions in local government outside county or municipal boundaries, such as school districts or fire protection districts.

Municipal governments—those defined as cities, towns, boroughs (except in Alaska), villages, and townships—are generally organized around a population center and in most cases correspond to the geographical designations used by the United States Census Bureau for reporting of housing and population statistics. Municipalities vary greatly in size, from the millions of residents of New York City and Los Angeles to the few hundred people who live in Jenkins, Minnesota.

Municipalities generally take responsibility for:

• Parks and recreation services
• Police and fire departments
• Housing services
• Emergency medical services
• Municipal courts
• Transportation services (including public transportation)
• Public works (streets, sewers, snow removal, signage, and so forth)

Whereas the Federal Government and State governments share power in countless ways, a local government must be granted power by the State. In general, mayors, city councils, and other governing bodies are directly elected by the people.