Why do states have bicameral legislatures

For instance, while only the House can introduce appropriations bills and draft articles of impeachment, the Senate is key in approving most presidential appointments and holding a trial if a president is impeached.

At a state level, the substantive differences between a state House and Senate are limited and can easily be carried out by a single legislature. Simply put, having two houses of a lawmaking body is nonessential representation, an unneeded layer of government. Nebraska got it right when it held a referendum to unify its bicameral legislature.

The people who would be responsible for this change are the same lawmakers who would be out of a job if they moved to unify their legislatures. This type of restructuring could be carried out by posing the question to voters, as was the case with Nebraska, or even at a federal level. Zach Bright is a Medill sophomore. He can be contacted at [email protected].

If you would like to respond publicly to this op-ed, send a Letter to the Editor to [email protected]. The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the views of all staff members of The Daily Northwestern. Evanston nightlife heads into winter stronger than last year.

View Results. RSS Feed. Submit Search. The Daily Northwestern. Search this site Submit Search. Bright: States should not have bicameral legislatures. Latest Stories. Within the legislative body, bicameralism has historically functioned to balance the power of different social classes or groups within a society. The bicameral system arose in medieval Europe.

Sharp class distinctions between the nobility, the clergy, and the commoners meant that these classes were represented by separate groups of representatives, which were charged with advising the king on matters related to and representing the interests of their respective social spheres. In the modern U. The U. The bicameral system in the U.

Article 1, Section 1 of the U. Constitution establishes that the U. Congress consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives. In an agreement known as the Great Compromise, the founders decided to incorporate both elements: the bicameral system was established.

Like the two houses of the English Parliament, the two chambers within the U. The Senate was designed to represent the interests of the States Senators were originally appointed by the state legislatures, not elected , and the House of Representatives was intended to be elected by and represent the interests of the common people. This is also reflected in the powers delegated to each house by the Constitution, with the Senate given a more deliberative, advisory, and oversight role, while the House of Representatives was given primary authority over the taxation of their constituents.

Members of the U. House of Representatives serve two-year terms. This system is called proportional representation. Alabama, for example, has seven representatives, while California has The first instance of British bicameralism occurred in When the Commons met separately from the nobility and clergy for the first time, an Upper Chamber and a Lower Chamber were effectively created.

Each state also has two Senators a system called equal representation who are directly elected by voters and serve six-year terms. Before the Seventeenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified in , the state legislatures got to choose Senators. These positions tended to be held by the elites. Each house has different requirements to serve. Senator, you must be at least 30 years old, a U.

Each house also has unique powers. Only members of the House of Representatives can criminally indict impeach the President and other federal officials; the Senate then reviews the case. The House also decides presidential elections if no candidate wins a majority of electoral college votes. And any bill that increases taxes originates in the House, which is why the House of Representatives is said to have the "power of the purse. The size, term of office, and method of election directly elected, indirectly elected, appointed, or other for each chamber of a bicameral system will vary by country.

Unicameral systems became more popular during the 20th century, and some countries, including Greece, New Zealand, and Peru, switched systems from bicameral to unicameral. Bicameral literally means "two chambers," and in practice refers to a government structure involving two houses, or two legislative bodies, that are separate in deliberation from one another. The Founders of the U. At the constitutional convention, larger states mostly in the South and smaller states in the North began to quarrel over which should wield more power at the federal level.

As a compromise called "The Great Compromise," Roger Sherman, a delegate from the colony of Connecticut, proposed bicameralism. This way, smaller states got equal representation with larger states with each having two senators. At the same time, the house of representatives assigns members of congress proportional to the population. All states in the U.

The one exception is Nebraska, which has just a one-chamber legislature. Fiscal Policy. Federal Reserve. Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for Investopedia. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page. These choices will be signaled globally to our partners and will not affect browsing data. We and our partners process data to: Actively scan device characteristics for identification.

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