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Unit#4 APGOPO
KeyTerms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Appropriation | money that Congress has allocated to be spent. |
| Appropriations Committee | congressional committee that deals with federal speding. |
| Appellate Jurisdiction | authority of a court to hear an appeal from lower court. |
| Bureaucracy | deparments, agencies, bureaus, and commisions in the executive branch of government. |
| Casework | personal work done by amember of Congress for his constituents. |
| Civil law | concerns noncriminal disputes between private parties |
| Class action lawsuit | lawsuit brought on behalf of a class of people against a defendant |
| Closed rule | rules committee that bans amendments to a bill. |
| Cloture | senate motion to end a fillibuster that requires a 3/5 vote. |
| Concurring opinion | written by a Supreme Court Justice who voted with the majority, but for different reasons. |
| Conference committee | works out a compromise between differing House-Senate versions of a bill |
| Constituents | the people who are representated by elected officials |
| Discharge petition | a motion to force a bill to the House floor that has been bottled up in committee. |
| Dissenting opinion | written by a Supreme Court Justice (or Justices) who express a minority viewpoint in a case. |
| Executive agreement | an agreement between the President and another head of state that, unlike a treaty, does not require Senate consent. |
| Executive order | presidental rule or regulation that has force of law. |
| Executive privilege | the privilege of a President and his staff to withhold their "privileged" conservations from Congress or the courts. |
| Filibuster | nonstop Senate debate that prevents a bill from coming to a vote. |
| Finance Committee | Senate committe that handles tax bills. |
| Franking Privilige | allows members of Congress to send mail postage free. |
| Gerrymandering | redrawing distric lines to favor one party at the expense of the other. |
| Hold | Senate maneuver that allows a Senate to stop or delay consideration of a bill or presential appointment |
| Impeachment | houe action that formally changes an official with wrongdoing. Conviction requires 2/3 vote from the Senate. |
| Impoundment | refusal of Preseident to spend money that has been appropriated by Congress. |
| Injunction | court order that forbids a party from performing a certian action |
| Judicial activism | philosophy that the courts should take an active role in solving problems. |
| Judicial restraint | philoshophy that the courts should defer to elected lawmakers in setting policy, and should instead focus on interpreting law rather than making law. |
| Judicial review | power of the courts to review the constitutionality of laws or goverment actions. |
| Legislative oversight | ongoing process of congressional monitoring of the executive branch to ensure that the latter complies with the law |
| Legislative veto | process in which Congress overturned rules and regulations proposed by executive branch agencies. Struck down in 1983 |
| Line item veto | power of most governors to delete or reduce funding in a bill on a line by line basis |
| Logrolling | when 2 members of Congress agree to vote for each other's bill |
| Majority opinion | written to express the majority viewpoint in a Supreme Court case |
| Mark up | committee action to amend a proposed bill |
| Merit system | system of hiring federal workers based upon competitive exams |
| Open rule | House Rules Committee rule that allows amendments to a bill |
| Original jurisdiction | authority of a court to first hear a case |
| Patronage | power to appoint loyal party members to federal positions |
| Pocket veto | presidential killing of a bill by inaction after Congress adjourns |
| Political appointees | those who have received presidential appointments to office. Contrast with Civil Service employees, who receive federal jobs by competitive exams. |
| Pork barrel | wasteful congressional spending |
| Quorum | min number of members needed for the House or Senate to meet |
| Reapportionment | reallocation of House seats to the states on the basis of changes in state populations, as determined by the census |
| Redistricting | redrawing of congressional district boundaries by the party in power of the state legislature |
| Red tape | complex rules and procedures required by bureaucratic agencies |
| Remand | the Supreme Court's sending of a case back to the original court in which it was heard |
| Rider | amendment to a bill that has little to do with it |
| Rule of four | the Supreme Court will hear a case if 4 Justices agree to do so |
| Rules committee | the "traffic cop" of the House that sets legislative calendar and issues rules for debate on a bill |
| Senatorial courtesy | tradition in which the President consults with the senators within a state in which an appointment is to be made |
| Seniority | tradition in which the Senator from the majority party with the most years of service on a committee becomes the chairman of that committee |
| Spoils system | patronage |
| Standing committee | the permanent congressional committees that handle legislation |
| Stare decisis | latin for "let the decision stand" Supreme Court policy of following precedent in deciding cases |
| Sunset laws | laws that automatically expire after a given time |
| Ways & Means Committee | House committee that handles tax bills |
| Whistleblower | an employee who exposes unethical or illegal conduct within the federal government or one of its contractors |
| Writ of certiorari | issued by Supreme Court to a lower court to send up the records of a case so that it can be reviewed by the high court |
| Writ of habeas corpus | court order that the authorities show cause for why they are holding a prisoner in custody. Deters unlawful imprisonment |
| Writ of mandamus | court order directing a party to perform a certain action. |
Created by:
F.Rod
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