112th United States Congress

The 112th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013. It convened in Washington, D.C., on January 3, 2011, and ended on January 3, 2013, 17 days before the end of the presidential term to which Barack Obama was elected in 2008. Senators elected to regular terms in 2006 completed those terms in this Congress. This Congress included the last House of Representatives elected from congressional districts that were apportioned based on the 2000 census.

In the 2010 midterm elections, the Republican Party won the majority in the House of Representatives. While the Democrats kept their Senate majority, it was reduced from the previous Congress.

This was the first Congress in which the House and Senate were controlled by different parties since the 107th Congress (2001Ã¢ÂÂ2003). It was also the first Congress since the 36th Congress (1859Ã¢ÂÂ1861) in which the Republican Party held the House but not the Senate. In this Congress, the House of Representatives had the largest number of Republican members, 242, since the 80th Congress (1947Ã¢ÂÂ1949). This was the only Congress between the 79th (1945Ã¢ÂÂ1947) and the 117th (2021Ã¢ÂÂ2023) that did not include a member of the Kennedy family.

As of 2022, this is the most recent Congress in which Democrats held a Senate seat in Nebraska or a House seat in Arkansas, the last in which Republicans held both Senate seats in Maine, and the last in which Democrats did not hold all seats in Connecticut.

Major events

January 6, 2011: On the second day of the 112th Congress, the House of Representatives read a modified version of the U.S. Constitution, a first.
January 8, 2011: 2011 Tucson shooting: Representative Gabby Giffords and nineteen other people were shot by a gunman in Tucson, Arizona. Six of them, including a federal judge and a congressional aide, died. Votes on the House floor were suspended for one week.
January 25, 2011: 2011 State of the Union Address
March 19, 2011: The United States initiated Operation Odyssey Dawn as part of the international military intervention in the Libyan Civil War. The intervention continued under the auspices of NATO as Operation Unified Protector until the end of military operations in October 2011.
May 2, 2011: Navy SEALs killed al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in Operation Neptune Spear.
April 9, 2011: A last-minute deal between both parties averts a partial shutdown of the federal government.
August 2, 2011: The 2011 debt-ceiling crisis ends with the Budget Control Act of 2011.
December 18, 2011: The United States completed its withdrawal of troops from Iraq, formally ending the Iraq War.
January 24, 2012: 2012 State of the Union Address
June 28, 2012: In National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius, the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act's constitutionality but found the expansion of Medicaid unconstitutionally coercive on the states.
November 6, 2012: 2012 general elections, including:
2012 United States House of Representatives elections, in which Democrats gained eight seats, but not enough to retake the majority
2012 United States Senate elections, in which Democrats gained two seats in their majority
2012 United States presidential election, in which Barack Obama was re-elected to a second term
December 14, 2012: The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting leaves 28 dead, and prompts debate on gun control in the United States.
January 1, 2013: United States fiscal cliff avoided. (See American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012)

Potential government shutdown

A failure to pass a 2011 federal budget nearly led to a shutdown of non-essential government services on April 9, 2011, with the furlough of 800,000 government employees appearing imminent. President Obama met Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and House Speaker John Boehner in the days preceding the deadline but was unable to come to an agreement to pass a budget. A one-week budget was proposed to avoid a government shutdown and allow more time for negotiations; however, proposals from both parties could not be accommodated. Obama said he would veto a proposed Republican budget over Republican social spending cuts. This was also backed by Senate Democrats who objected to such cuts as that of Planned Parenthood. However, an agreement was reached between the two parties for a one-week budget to allow for more time to negotiate after Republicans dropped their stance on the Planned Parenthood issue. The two parties ultimately agreed on a 2011 federal budget the following week.

There were many reactions to the possible shutdown with some saying the economy could be hurt during a fragile recovery and others saying the lack of an unnecessary bureaucracy would not be noticed. There was also criticism that while senators and representatives would continue to get paid others such as the police and military personnel would either not be paid for their work or have their payments deferred.

Debt limit crisis

On August 2, 2011, the United States public debt was projected to reach its statutory maximum. Without an increase in that limit the U.S. Treasury would be unable to borrow money to pay its bills. Although previous statutory increases have been routine, conservative members of the House refused to allow an increase without drastically reducing government spending. Over several weeks and months, negotiators from both parties, both houses, and the White House worked to forge a compromise. The compromise bill, the Budget Control Act of 2011, was enacted on August 2.

Major legislation

Enacted

April 15, 2011: 2011 United States federal budget (as Department of Defense and Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, 2011),
August 2, 2011: Budget Control Act of 2011,
September 16, 2011: Leahy-Smith America Invents Act,
October 21, 2011: United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act,
October 21, 2011: United States-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement Implementation Act,
October 21, 2011: United States-Panama Trade Promotion Agreement Implementation Act,
December 20, 2011: Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2012, Pub.L. 112-74
December 31, 2011: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012,
February 22, 2012: Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012,
March 8, 2012: Federal Restricted Buildings and Grounds Improvement Act of 2011,
April 4, 2012: Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012 (STOCK Act),
April 5, 2012: Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act (JOBS Act),
May 30, 2012: Export-Import Bank Reauthorization Act of 2012, Pub.L. 112-122
July 6, 2012: Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21 Act),
July 9, 2012: Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act (FDASIA),
September 28, 2012: Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2013,
November 27, 2012: Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012,
November 27, 2012: European Union Emissions Trading Scheme Prohibition Act, Pub.L. 112-200
December 14, 2012: Magnitsky Act,
January 2, 2013: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013
January 2, 2013: American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012,
January 10, 2013: Katie Sepich Enhanced DNA Collection Act of 2012 (Katie's Law), Pub.L. 111-253

Proposed

American Jobs Act,
Cut, Cap and Balance Act,
Domestic Fuels Protection Act H.R. 4345
Federal Reserve Transparency Act, ,
No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act,
PROTECT IP Act,
Protect Life Act,
Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act,
Respect for Marriage Act, ,
Stop Online Piracy Act,

See also: Active Legislation, 112th Congress, via senate.gov

Party summary

Resignations and new members are discussed in the "Changes in membership" section, below.

Senate

House of Representatives

Leadership

Senate

President: Joe Biden (D)
President pro tempore: Daniel Inouye (D), until December 17, 2012
Patrick Leahy (D), from December 17, 2012

Members

For the first time in the history of Congress, over half its members were millionaires as of 2012; Democrats had a median net worth of $1.04 million, while the Republicans median was "almost exactly" $1.00 million. In this Congress, Class 1 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 2012; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 2014; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 2016.