Lower house

Common attributes

In comparison with the upper house, lower houses frequently display certain characteristics (though they vary by jurisdiction).

Powers

In a parliamentary system, the lower house:

• In the modern era, usually has much more power, usually due to restrictions on the upper house.
  • Exceptions to this are Australia, Italy, and Romania, where the upper and lower houses have similar power.
• Is usually able to override the upper house in a variety of ways, for example the House of Representatives of Japan can override the House of councillors by a 2/3rds vote on ordinary legislation.
• Can vote a motion of no confidence against the government, and depending on the country vote for or against any proposed candidate for head of government at the beginning of the parliamentary term.

In a presidential system, the lower house generally tends to have:

• Sole power to impeach the executive; the upper house then tries the impeachment.

Status

The lower house:

• Can, in a parliamentary system, be dissolved by the executive although there are exceptions such as Norway and Hungary
• Has total or initial control over budget, supply, and monetary laws.
• Generally tends to have lower age of candidacy than the upper house (for countries with different ages of candidacy for their parliamentary chambers).
• Is more numerous than the upper house.
  • The Parliament of the United Kingdom furnishes a notable exception.

Members of the lower house:

• Are elected directly, while those of the upper house may hold their positions through direct or indirect election, appointment, or inheritance.
• tend to be elected more frequently, and all at once, not by staggered terms
• Are usually numbered in proportion to the population of their administrative divisions, unlike in the upper house although this is not a requirement

The government of the day is usually required to present its budget to the lower house, which must approve the budget. It is a widespread practice for revenue (appropriation) bills to originate in the lower house. A notable exception to this is the West Virginia House of Delegates in the United States, which allows revenue bills to originate from either house.