WorksheetsLegislative Branch
Total questions: 48
Worksheet time: 2hrs 19mins
Name
Class
Date
1.
If a bill dies in a committee, the bill has a chance to be reevaluated through what process?
a)
Cloture
b)
Discharge Petition
c)
Quorum
d)
Censure
2.
The tactic of using endless speeches on the Senate floor to delay or prevent passage of legislation is:
a)
Cloture
b)
Hold
c)
Logrolling
d)
Filibuster
3.
Which house of Congress has Unlimited Debate?
a)
House of Representatives
b)
Senate
4.
Where is a bill introduced?
a)
House of Representatives
b)
Senate
c)
House and Senate
d)
None of the above
5.
Overriding a veto is an example of what?
a)
Checks and Balances
b)
Popular Sovereignty
c)
Gerrymandering
d)
Limited Government
6.
Who is the President of the Senate?
a)
Secretary of State
b)
Vice President
c)
First Lady
d)
President
7.
Who controls the agenda (structure of committees and processes) in Congress?
a)
Majority Party
b)
Minority Party
c)
President
d)
Minority Whip
8.
How old must a person be to serve in the House of Representatives?
a)
25
b)
35
c)
30
d)
40
9.
How old must a person be to serve in the U.S. Senate?
a)
25
b)
35
c)
30
d)
40
10.
What does Bicameral mean?
a)
3 houses of legislature
b)
4 houses of legislature
c)
2 houses of legislature
d)
1 house of legislature
11.
the drawing of electoral district lines
to the advantage of a party is called?
to the advantage of a party is called?
a)
stevenmander
b)
special session
c)
term
d)
gerrymander
12.
Which pairing is best?
a)
Senate- based on population
b)
Senate- lower house
c)
House of Reps- 6 year terms
d)
House of Reps- 435 members
13.
Which of the following is an enumerated power?
a)
The power to build highways
b)
The power to build schools
c)
The power to declare war
d)
The power to declare laws unconstitutional
14.
Which of the following candidates qualifies to become a US Senator from Florida?
a)
Mike a 27 year old, born and raised in Miami
b)
Cindy a 36 year old woman from Orlando who has been a citizen for 7 years
c)
Diego a 42 year old New Yorker who has lived there his whole life
d)
Carla a 39 year old Tampa resident who become a US citizen 15 years ago
15.
The “Necessary & Proper clause", aka the Elastic Clause, leads to the following types of powers:
a)
Implied Powers
b)
Enumerated Powers
c)
Necessary Powers
d)
Reserved Powers
16.
In addition to “confirming” presidential appointments, what must the Senate approve for the executive branch?
a)
Laws
b)
Taxes
c)
Treaties
d)
Declarations of War
17.
Which of the following is NOT an enumerated power?
a)
Creating post offices
b)
Declaring war
c)
Raising and supporting the Army and Navy
d)
Creating national parks
18.
Congress’ power to remove an official from office is known as?
a)
A declaration
b)
Treaty
c)
impeachment
d)
trial by jury
19.
What does Congress rely on to stretch its powers?
a)
Enumerated powers
b)
Elastic Clause
c)
Bills of Attainder
d)
Ex post facto laws
20.
Which “principal of the Constitution” can be found in the following quote:
“In order to control the legislative authority, you must divide it.”
-James Madison
“In order to control the legislative authority, you must divide it.”
-James Madison
a)
Separation of Powers
b)
Federalism
c)
Popular Sovereignty
d)
Republicanism
21.
Senators are elected to serve ___ year terms.
a)
2
b)
4
c)
6
d)
life
22.
Under the Constitution, Congress has the sole power to
a)
act as commander in chief.
b)
meet with foreign leaders.
c)
declare war.
d)
All answers are true.
23.
The people who live in a congressman’s district that they represent are known as?
a)
Party voters
b)
Party officials
c)
Constituents
d)
Lobbyists
24.
How many representatives does each state have?
a)
2
b)
4
c)
It is based upon their population
d)
435
25.
What is the meaning of the Necessary and Proper Clause?
a)
Congress's ability to make laws is severely limited by the Constitution
b)
Congress is given limited authority to interpret reserved powers.
c)
Congress must follow the Constitution exactly as worded.
d)
Congress can make any law that it deems appropriate to carry out its expressed powers
26.
What article and section of the US Constitution states the powers of the legislative branch?
a)
Article 1, section 5
b)
Article 2, section 9
c)
Article 1, section 8
d)
Article 4, section 2
27.
Congress has the power to
a)
make laws
b)
borrow money
c)
lay and collect taxes
d)
all of the above
28.
Powers not explicitly granted to Congress by the Constitution are called
a)
expressed powers
b)
inherent powers
c)
delegated powers
d)
implied powers
29.
Re-apportionment is
a)
The process of redistributing the 435 seats in the House of Representatives every 10 years based on the results of the census; done by Congress
b)
The re-drawing of Congressional districts to favor a particular party, incumbent, or group
c)
Deciding who is going to represent a certain congressional district
d)
The replacement of a Congressman due to sudden death or impeachment.
30.
Every two years, _____ of the Senate must stand for reelection
a)
one-half
b)
three-quarters
c)
two-thirds
d)
one-third
31.
Congressional committees and subcommittees exist
a)
to acquire the information needed to pass meaningful and comprehensive legislation
b)
to offer important political posts to influential representatives and senators
c)
to consolidate power in the majority party
d)
to streamline the ever-growing legislative process
32.
Bills concerning taxation, spending, borrowing and gov't counterfeiting must begin in the ---
a)
House of Representative
b)
Supreme Court
c)
Senate
d)
White House
33.
Congress may overturn any presidential veto by a super-majority vote of --- in ---.
a)
2/3, the House of Representatives
b)
2/3, the Senate
c)
2/3, each House of Congress
d)
3/5, Compromise
34.
The leader of the House of Representatives is the:
a)
President
b)
Vice President
c)
Speaker of the House
d)
President pro tempore
35.
Every --- there is a new House of Representatives and --- of the Senate is elected or re-elected.
a)
2 years, 1/3
b)
2 years, 2/3
c)
4 years, 1/5
d)
4 years, 3/5
36.
A bill can die in (select the BEST answer)
a)
the rules committee
b)
the armed services committee
c)
the judiciary committee
d)
any committee
37.
Which house of Congress is known as the "upper house"?
a)
Senate
b)
House of Representatives
38.
Which describes a standing committee of Congress?
a)
Committees on which both senators and representatives serve.
b)
Congressional committees appointed for a specific purpose, such as the Watergate investigation.
c)
Permanent committees found in both houses of Congress that are responsible for legislation and oversight within a specific policy area
d)
Small committees within another committee of Congress designed to specialize in a sub-category
39.
How many House of Representative members are there in the U.S. Congress?
a)
100
b)
270
c)
435
d)
50
40.
Which committee in the House of Representatives is an instrument of the majority party to control debate on the floor?
a)
Rules Committee
b)
Conference Committee
c)
Steering Committee
d)
Ways and Means Committee
41.
A vote on a bill in the Senate results in a tie. What would likely be the official outcome of the vote on the bill?
a)
The bill would be killed
b)
The Senate would reconvene until another vote could be obtained
c)
The president's party would prevail
d)
The parties would reach a compromise in the conference committee
42.
When the Senate votes to invoke cloture, it
a)
sends a bill back to its originating committee for amendment
b)
ends the debate on the floor
c)
forwards a bill to a conference committee so that differences between the House and Senate versions may be worked out
d)
will result in the failure of a bill
43.
Until 1913, U.S. senators were selected by
a)
the people
b)
the House of Representatives
c)
state legislatures
d)
the Electoral College
44.
If the president neither signs nor vetoes a bill within 10 days while Congress is in session, the bill
a)
is pocket vetoed
b)
becomes law
c)
is killed
d)
is sent back to Congress
45.
President Pro-Tempore serves in absence of the VP in which house?
a)
Senate
b)
House
46.
According to the Constitution, the President of the Senate is the
a)
President of the USA
b)
Vice-President of the USA
c)
Secretary of State
d)
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
47.
A chairperson of a standing committee makes key decisions about the work of his or her committee. A Congressional chairperson is the person responsible for all of the following EXCEPT
a)
Decides when hearings will be held
b)
Controlling what bills the committee will hear
c)
Approving when the committee meets and who may present their views
d)
managing debate on the floor for bills that come from their committee
48.
The process of introducing a bill in the House is
a)
Reading of the bill, discussion, and voting
b)
Placing the bill in the Hopper
c)
Moving in a full House session to bring the bill to the Hopper
d)
Handing the bill over to a clerk who in tern will hand the bill to the Speaker
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