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United States House of Representatives: Difference between revisions
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{{wikipedia}}
The '''United States House of Representatives''', often referred to as the '''House of Representatives''', the '''U.S. House''', or simply '''the House''', is the [[Lower house|lower chamber]] of the [[United States Congress]], with the [[United States Senate|Senate]] being the [[Upper house|upper chamber]]. Together they comprise the national [[Bicameralism|bicameral legislature]] of the [[United States]].
The House's composition was established by [[Article One of the United States Constitution]]. The House is composed of representatives who, pursuant to the [[Uniform Congressional District Act]], sit in single member [[List of United States congressional districts|congressional districts]] allocated to each [[U.S. state|state]] on a basis of population as measured by the [[United States Census]], with each district having one representative, provided that each state is entitled to at least one. Since its inception in 1789, all representatives have been directly elected, although universal suffrage did not come to effect until after the passage of the [[Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|19th Amendment]] and the [[Civil rights movement|Civil Rights Movement]]. Since 1913, the [[United States congressional apportionment|number of voting representatives]] has been at 435 pursuant to the [[Apportionment Act of 1911]].<ref name="USPL 62-5">See [[Public Law 62-5]] of 1911, though Congress has the authority to change that number.</ref> The [[Reapportionment Act of 1929]] capped the size of the House at 435. However, the number was temporarily increased in 1959 until 1963 to 437 when [[Alaska]] and [[Hawaii]] were admitted to the Union.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2021/04/20/988865415/stuck-at-435-representatives-why-the-u-s-house-hasnt-grown-with-census-counts |title=Explainer: Why Does The U.S. House Have 435 Members? |publisher=NPR |date=April 20, 2021 |accessdate=April 1, 2022 |archive-date=March 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220329204402/https://www.npr.org/2021/04/20/988865415/stuck-at-435-representatives-why-the-u-s-house-hasnt-grown-with-census-counts |url-status=live }}</ref>
In addition, five non-voting Delegates represent the District of Columbia and the U.S. territories of Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa. A non-voting Resident Commissioner, serving a four-year term, represents the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. As of the [[2010 United States Census|2010 Census]], the largest delegation was [[List of United States representatives from California|California]], with 53 representatives (to be reduced to 52 in 2023). Seven states have [[At-large|only one representative]]: [[Alaska]], [[Delaware]], [[Montana]], [[North Dakota]], [[South Dakota]], [[Vermont]], and [[Wyoming]].<ref>[https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_House_of_Representatives United States House of Representatives] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180624161504/https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_House_of_Representatives |date=June 24, 2018 }}, [[Ballotpedia]]. Accessed November 23, 2016. "There are six states with only one representative: [[Alaska]], [[Delaware]], [[North Dakota]], [[South Dakota]], [[Vermont]] and [[Wyoming]]."</ref>.
The House is charged with the passage of federal [[legislation]], known as [[Bill (United States Congress)|bills]]; those of which that are also passed by the Senate are sent to the [[President of the United States|president]] for consideration. The House also has exclusive powers: it initiates all revenue bills, [[Impeachment in the United States|impeaches]] federal officers, and [[Contingent election|elects the president]] if no candidate receives a majority of votes in the [[United States Electoral College|Electoral College]].<ref>Section 7 of Article 1 of the Constitution</ref><ref>Article 1, Section 2, and in the [[12th Amendment to the United States Constitution|12th Amendment]]</ref>
The House meets in the south wing of the [[United States Capitol]]. The presiding officer is the [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]], who is elected by the members thereof. [[Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives|Other floor leaders]] are chosen by the [[House Democratic Caucus|Democratic Caucus]] or the [[House Republican Conference|Republican Conference]], depending on whichever [[Party caucuses and conferences in the United States Congress|party]] has more voting members.
[[Category:Federal government of the United States]]
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