98th Congress (1983 - 1985)
House of Representatives
House Majority: Democrat
House Majority Seats: 269 out of 435
House Speaker: Rep. Thomas P. 'Tip' O'Neill (D-MA)
Senate
Senate Majority: Republican
Senate Majority Seats: 55 out of 100
Senate Majority Leader: Sen. Howard H. Baker, Jr. (R-TN)
Executive
President: Ronald Reagan (R-CA)
Vice President: George H.W. Bush (R-TX)
Member Spotlight
Featured: Sen. Edwin Jacob 'Jake' Garn (R-UT) was a longtime senator and a distinctive figure in U.S. politics, known for his straightforward style. Serving from 1974 to 1993, he focused on fiscal responsibility, aviation, and space policy, even becoming the first sitting senator to fly in space as a payload specialist aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery. Reflecting on the socioeconomic diversity of the Senate, Garn once quipped, “We have two classes of senators here. Those who are not rich, those who do not have a rich father who left them a few million dollars in a trust fund, or stock, or a rich wife—some of us married for love.” His combination of wit, dedication, and firsthand experience in both government and space made him a memorable and influential voice in Congress.
Enactments
- Emergency Jobs Act of 1983
- Social Security Amendments of 1983
- Department of Housing and Urban Development Ap
- Energy and Water Development Appropriation Act, 1984
- Congressional Operations Appropriation Act, 1984
- Supplemental Appropriations, Fiscal 1983
- Interest Withholding Requirement Repeal
- Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1984
- Department of Defense Authorization Act, 1984
- Further Continuing Appropriations Act FY 1984, Part 1
- Military Construction Appropriations Act, 1984
- Multinational Force in Lebanon Resolution
- District of Columbia Appropriation Act, 1984
- Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Appropriations, Fiscal 1084
- Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
- Interior Appropriations, Fiscal 1984
- Further Continuing Appropriations for FY 1984, Part 2
- Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies Appropriation Act, 1984
- Dairy Production Stabilization
- Supplemental Appropriations, Fiscal 1984
- Department of Defense Appropriation Act
- Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1984
- Highway Trust Fund Appropriations Release
- Shipping Act of 1984
- Department of Health and Human Services Supplemental Appropriations Act FY 1984
- Agricultural Programs Adjustment Act
- District of Columbia Appropriations Increase
- Supplemental FY84 Appropriations
- Bankruptcy Amendments and Federal Judgeship Act of 1984
- Energy and Water Development Supplemental Appropriations Act FY 1985
- Initial Funding for Manned Space Station
- Surface Transportation Assistance Act of 1982 Amendments
- Legislative Branch Appropriation Act, 1985
- Deficit Reduction Act of 1984
- Department of Housing and Urban Development-Independent Agencies Appropriation Act, 1985
- Equal Access Act
- Child Support Enforcement Amendments of 1984
- Second Supplemental Appropriations Act
- Retirement Equity Act of 1984
- Reclamation Dam Safety
- Commerce-State-Justice appropriations bill for FY 1985
- Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984
- Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act
- Continuing Appropriations Act FY 1985
- Further Continuing Appropriations Act FY 1985, Part 1
- Further Continuing Appropriations Act FY 1985, Part 2
- Child Abuse Amendments of 1984
- Social Security Disability Benefits Reform Act of 1984
- Further Continuing Appropriations Act FY 1985, Part 3
- Omnibus Continuing Appropriations Act FY 1985
- Comprehensive Smoking Education Act
- National Organ Transplant Act
- Education Amendments of 1984
- Department of Defense Authorization Act, 1985
- Veterans' Health Care Act of 1984
- Veterans' Dioxin and Radiation Exposure Compensation Standards Act
- Motor Vehicle Theft Law Enforcement Act
- Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984
- Cigarette Safety Act of 1984
- Omnibus Tariff and Trade Act of 1984
- Small Business and Federal Procurement Competition Enhancement Act Amendments
- Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education and Related Agencies Appropriation Act, 1985
- Semiconductor Chip Protection
- Coal Pipeline Act
- Prohibition on Covert Action in Nicaragua
- Universal Telephone Service
- Export Administration Act
- Foreign Assistance Authorization
- Superfund Expansion
- Equal Rights Amendment
- Nuclear Freeze
- First Budget Resolution, FY 1984
- First Budget Resolution, FY 1985
- Immigration Reform and Control Act
- Human Life Federalism Amendment
- Constitutional Amendment on School Prayer