Argentine National Congress
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Congress of the Argentine Nation ( es, Congreso de la Nación Argentina) is the
legislative branch A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known as ...
of the government of
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
. Its composition is bicameral, constituted by a 72-seat
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
and a 257-seat Chamber of Deputies. The Senate, whose members are elected to six-year terms renewable by thirds each two years, consists of three representatives from each province and the federal capital. The Chamber of Deputies, whose members are elected to four-year terms, is apportioned according to population, and renews their members by a half each two years. The
Congressional Palace The State Kremlin Palace (russian: Государственный Кремлёвский Дворец), formerly and unofficially still better known as the Kremlin Palace of Congresses (Кремлёвский Дворец съездов), is a ...
is located in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
, at the western end of
Avenida de Mayo May Avenue ( es, Avenida de Mayo) is an avenue in Buenos Aires, capital of Argentina. It connects the Plaza de Mayo with Congressional Plaza, and extends in a west–east direction before merging into Rivadavia Avenue. History and overview B ...
(at the other end of which is located the
Casa Rosada The ''Casa Rosada'' (, eng, Pink House) is the office of the president of Argentina. The palatial mansion is known officially as ''Casa de Gobierno'' ("House of Government" or "Government House"). Normally, the president lives at the Quinta de ...
). The '' Kilometre Zero'' for all Argentine National Highways is marked on a milestone at the
Congressional Plaza Congressional Plaza (Spanish: ''Plaza del Congreso'') is a public park facing the Argentine Congress in Buenos Aires. The plaza is part of a 3 hectare (7.5 acre) open space comprising three adjoining plazas to the east of the Congress building. ...
, next to the building.


Attributes

The Argentine National Congress is bicameral, composed of the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
and the Chamber of Deputies. The ordinary sessions span is from March 1 to November 30; the President of Argentina is entitled to convene extraordinary sessions during the recess, if needed. Senators and deputies enjoy parliamentary immunity during their mandates, which may be revoked by their peers if a senator or deputy is caught ''in flagrante'', in the midst of committing a crime. The Congress rules the Central Bank of Argentina, manages internal and external debt payment, and the value of national currency (currently the
Argentine peso The peso (established as the ''peso convertible'') is the currency of Argentina, identified by the symbol $ preceding the amount in the same way as many countries using peso or dollar currencies. It is subdivided into 100 ''centavos''. Its ISO 4 ...
). It rules the legal codes on Civil, Commercial, Penal, Minery, Work and Social Welfare affairs, all of which cannot be in contradiction with the respective provincial codes. Any changes on national or provincial limits, or the creation of new provinces, ought to be allowed by the Congress. The Congress is entitled to approve or reject every international treaty that Argentina signs with other states or international organizations. When approved, the treaties acquire priority over ordinary legislation. Declarations of war and the signing of peace, as well as the mobilization of the national troops, within or outside of the Argentine territoryArgentine Constitution, art. 75, i.28 must be allowed by the Congress. The Chamber of Deputies is the lower House of the National Congress. It holds exclusive rights to set taxes and customs; to draft troops; and to accuse the President, Ministers, and members of the Supreme Court before the Senate. Additionally, the Chamber of Deputies receives for consideration bills presented by popular initiative. The Senate is the upper House of the National Congress. It must obtain quorum to deliberate, this being an absolute majority. It has the power to approve bills passed by the Chamber of Deputies, call for joint sessions with the Lower House or special sessions with experts and interested parties, and submit bills for the president's signature; bills introduced in the Senate must, in turn, be approved by the Lower House for their submittal to the president. The Senate must introduce any changes to federal revenue sharing policies, ratify international treaties, approve changes to constitutional or federal criminal laws, as well as confirm or impeach presidential nominees to the cabinet, the judiciary, the armed forces, and the diplomatic corps, among other federal posts.


History

From 1976 to 1983, the Congressional Palace of Argentina housed the CAL (Legislative Advisory Commission), a group of officers from the three Armed Forces. Commissioned to review and discuss laws before they were issued by the Executive Branch, they served a succession of ''de facto'' military presidents during the National Reorganization Process. In practice, this became a mechanism to detect and discuss the differences between the three commanders-in-chief of the Army, Navy, and Air Force regarding a specific project. The CAL was established by the ''Acta del Proceso de Reorganización Nacional'' (National Reorganization Process Act), the guiding document for the military government established after the coup d'état of March 24, 1976. Following a 1994 reform of the Constitution, the
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
was expanded from 48 members (two per province or district) to 72 members, whereby the party garnering second place in elections for Senator would be assured the third seat for the corresponding province.


Representation

Each province elects 3 Senators to the Senate, whereas every 161,000 Argentine citizens elect a Deputy. Currently, there are 72 Senators and 257 National Deputies in the Congress.


See also

* Opening of regular sessions of the National Congress of Argentina *
Argentine National Congress Palace The Palace of the Argentine National Congress ( es, Palacio del Congreso de la Nación Argentina, often referred locally as ''Palacio del Congreso'') is a monumental building, seat of the Argentine National Congress, located in the city of Buenos ...
*
List of current Argentine Senators A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby uni ...
*
List of current Argentine Deputies A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
*
Politics of Argentina The politics of Argentina take place in the framework of what the Constitution defines as a federal presidential representative democratic republic, where the President of Argentina is both Head of State and Head of Government. Legislative pow ...
*
List of legislatures by country This is a list of legislatures by country. A "legislature" is the generic name for the national parliaments and congresses that act as a plenary general assembly of representatives and that have the power to legislate. All entities included i ...


Bibliography

*


References


External links


The official website of CongressSatellite picture by Google Maps
{{Authority control
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
Parliaments by country
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...