The United States Congress is a bicameral legislature consisting of 435 members of the House of Representatives and 100 members of the Senate. Members of the House of Representatives are elected to two-year terms, and represent a specific geographical district. Seats in the House are apportioned among the various states according to population.

American Samoa, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the United States Virgin Islands each send one non-voting delegate to the House of Representatives. Puerto Rico sends a non-voting Resident Commissioner who serves a four-year term. The Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands does not have representation.

Members of the Senate are elected to six-year terms, although one-third of its members are elected every two years so that the election of Senators remains staggered. Each state has two senators.

Constitutional powers of the House of Representatives

• Shared authority with the Senate to conduct all legislation granted to Congress in the Constitution; and all subsequent necessary and proper clauses.
• To draw up charges of impeachment.
• All bills for raising revenue must originate in the House of Representatives.
• Shared authority with the Senate in being able to overturn a presidential veto with a 2/3 majority vote in each house.

Constitutional powers of the Senate

• Shared authority with the House of Representatives to conduct all legislation granted to Congress in the Constitution; and all subsequent necessary and proper clauses.
• To try all charges of impeachment.
• May propose and make amendments to bills for raising revenue which originate in the House of Representatives.

Constitutional powers of Congress (Article I, Section 8)

• The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
• To borrow money on the credit of the United States;
• To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states, and with the Indian tribes;
• To establish a uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States;
• To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures;
• To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States;
• To establish post offices and post roads;
• To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries;
• To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court;
• To define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and offenses against the law of nations;
• To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water;
• To raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years;
• To provide and maintain a navy;
• To make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces;
• To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the union, suppress insurrections and repel invasions;
• To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the militia, and for governing such part of them as may be employed in the service of the United States, reserving to the states respectively, the appointment of the officers, and the authority of training the militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
• To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States, and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the consent of the legislature of the state in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards, and other needful buildings;--And
• To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof.