How Congress Works More than two centuries ago, the United States Constitution created a revolutionary form of popular government. Although the world has gone through significant changes since this document was originally crafted, the fundamental structure and principles of that form of government have not been altered. One of the most striking aspects of the American system of government is that it divides power among a central government having authority over the nation, and various state and local governments with authority over limited geographic portions of the nation. This "federal" system of government also provides that the national government shall consist of three separate and distinct branches: legislative, executive, and judicial.
HOW CONGRESS WORKS provides a general overview of Congress -- the legislative branch of government -- and explains how it makes policy decisions. The purpose of this handbook is to enhance your basic knowledge of the legislative process. Armed with this understanding, you will be better able to follow the progress of an issue from the time it surfaces as a gleam in the eye of a legislator, to the day it is introduced as legislation, and to the day it becomes (or fails to become) a law.
However, no single publication can possibly expose readers to the highly dynamic intricacies of the American legislative process. Only on-the-job training will give you a taste of those intricacies. Some may use the information in this manual to stay abreast of legislative developments. Others will use it to influence those developments more effectively. Hopefully, all will find that HOW CONGRESS WORKS demystifies the legislative process. Download PDF
