Meet to discuss laws
Meet to discuss laws
until it's members die
At the beginning of each new session of Congress, members of both parties decide how many members of each will be assigned to the committee. Members of Congress express their preferences for committee assignments and the whole body votes on the final committee makeup.
The first session in 2011 of the meeting of the 112th Congress. Congress has two session each year unless the president calls Congress into an additional special session. Every two years, new members are elected in November and a new meeting of those elected takes office the following January. Elections for the 112th Congress were held in November 2010 and the first meeting of the 112th Congress began in January 2011.
Sessions The period of time each year in which Congress meets to conduct business. Today, Congress stays in session almost year-round, so the line between one session and the next is not very dramatic. However, before World War II, each session typically only lasted four or five months, leaving long periods between each session when Congress was in recess.
A special session of Congress is called in the event of an emergency, whereas Congress would normally only have one session a year.
Term of Congress The two-year period during which each Congress meets. Each term is said to last two years because new elections (for all members of the House and one-third of the senators) are held every two years; each term is the period in between those elections. January 2009 marks the beginning of the 111th term of Congress since the ratification of the Constitution.
Congress is two years long and begins on January 3 of each odd-numbered year. A session of Congress is one year long.
Each year, the Congress has two sessions unless the president calls a special session of Congress. Every two years, a new meeting of Congress assumes office. Currently (December 2, 2010) the second session in 2010 of the meeting of the 111th Congress is conducting business. In January 2011, the first session of the <newly-elected> meeting of the 112th Congress will begin.
Congress may adjourn when the Speaker of the House and the Senate Majority Leader agree to do so, or when a majority of members in both chambers vote to adjourn. Typically, Congress adjourns at the end of each legislative session, but can also adjourn for shorter periods of time, such as for holidays or recesses. Ultimately, the timing of adjournment is determined by the legislative business and priorities of Congress.
Members of Congress have a public swearing-in ceremony at the start of each new Congress. The current oath (2014) was written in the 1860s.
Only the president can call congress into special session. Only 26 special sessions have been held,the last one was in 1948. The president can call congress or each of its houses. The senate has been called into special session 46 occasions last was 1933.