American Politics |

	House	Senate
Constitutional Powers	Initiates all revenue bills (Art. I, sec. 7) Initiates (and passes or defeats) articles of impeachment (Art. I, sec. 2)	Gives "advice and consent" to treaties (Art. II, sec. 2) and to major presidential appointments (Art. II, sec. 2) Tries impeached officials (Art. I, sec. 3)
Structure	435 members with two-year terms More hierarchically organized (more centralized, more formal, stronger leadership) Power distributed less evenly Members are highly specialized Emphasizes tax and revenue policy More committees and subcommittees	100 members with six-year terms Less hierarchically organized (less centralized, less formal, weaker leadership) Power distributed more evenly Members are generalists Emphasizes foreign policy Fewer committees and subcommittees
Legislative/Committee Procedures	Bills introduced into "the hopper" and referred to committee by the Speaker Speaker may create ad hoc committees Committee action more influential than floor action for final decision Scheduling generally controlled by majority party leadership and Rules Committee Rigid floor debate rules favor majority (debate limits set by Rules Committee)	Bills introduced (may be introduced directly on the floor) and normally referred to committee by majority leader No ad hoc committees may be created Floor action as important as committee action for final decision Scheduling generally mutually agreed by majority and minority leaders Flexible floor debate rules protect minority (debate limits rare, set by full Senate via unanimous consent or cloture)
Changes in the Institution (1990s-2000s)	Power centralized in the Speaker's inner circle of advisors House procedures are becoming more efficient Those seeking reelection almost always win	Senate workload increasing and informally breaking down, threat of filibusters more frequent than in the past Becoming more difficult to pass legislation Turnover is moderate

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Key Differences Between the House and the Senate