Branches of government

- [Instructor] The United States constitution organizes the Federal Government into three distinct branches, each with different powers and responsibilities. Each of these three branches plays a different role in the world of information privacy. The legislative branch, also known as the US Congress, is responsible for creating new laws and revising existing ones. Congress is organized into two bodies, the largest is the House of Representative which consists of 435 members elected to serve a specific congressional district. Each state has a different number of representatives determined by that state's relative population in the most recent US Census. For example, California is the state with the largest population, and it has 53 members in the House. North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Alaska, Delaware and Vermont each only have a single representative due to their small size The Senate is the smaller body of the US Congress. Each state is represented equally in the Senate with two senators. So the Senate has a total of 100 voting members. Either body of Congress can propose a new law, but any proposals must pass both the House and the Senate by a majority vote. Once a bill passes both the House and the Senate, it is sent to the president for signature. The president may sign the bill, in which case it becomes law. If the president does not sign the bill, he or she is executing the president's veto authority. In that case, the bill does not become law but is sent back to Congress. Congress may override the president's veto and make the bill law by holding another vote where the bill must receive a two thirds majority in both the House and the Senate. The executive branch of the government is led by the president, and is responsible for carrying out and enforcing the laws created by the legislative branch. The executive branch includes a number of departments and agencies responsible for enforcing privacy laws, including the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Federal Communications Commission. The departments of the executive branch often writes specific rules that provide the details on how the executive branch will enforce the laws passed by Congress. These rules are embodied in the Code of Federal Regulations and they're also known as administrative law. The third branch of government is the judicial branch which consists of the Federal court system. Courts interpret the meaning of laws, resolve disputes over Federal law, and determine whether laws passed by the legislative branch are consistent with the US Constitution. When privacy disputes occur, the judicial branch is responsible for settling them and resolving ambiguities in the law. The US government is set up as a series of checks and balances, allowing each branch to execute oversight over the other two branches. The executive branch checks the power of the legislative branch when the president vetoes a bill. The legislative branch has the power of the purse over the executive branch. The legislative branch is responsible for allocating funds and can exert control over the executive branch by refusing to allocate funding to certain areas. The legislative branch also has the power of impeachment over the executive branch, giving it the authority to remove executive branch officials from office due to misconduct. The judicial branch checks the power of the executive by issuing orders that interpret the law. The executive branch checks the power of the judiciary by appointing judges to Federal courts. The judicial branch executes authority over the legislative branch when it declares a law unconstitutional. And the legislative branch checks the power of the judiciary by confirming the president's appointments to judgeships and holding the power of impeachment over judges.