Federal Government
Executive Branch
Executive Office of the President
The president is the head of the executive branch of the government, which includes many departments and agencies.
Executive Departments
- Department of Agriculture (USDA)
- Department of Commerce (DOC)
- Department of Defense (DOD)
- Department of Education (ED)
- Department of Energy (DOE)
- Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
- Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
- Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
- Department of Justice (DOJ)
- Department of Labor (DOL)
- Department of State (DOS)
- Department of the Interior (DOI)
- Department of the Treasury
- Department of Transportation (DOT)
- Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Legislative Branch
U.S. Senate
The legislative branch is the law making branch of government made up of the Senate, the House of Representatives, and agencies that support Congress.
Judicial Branch
The judicial branch interprets the meaning of laws, applies laws to individual cases, and decides if laws violate the Constitution. It is comprised of the Supreme Court and other federal courts.
The Supreme Court
The Supreme Court is the highest court in the United States. The Justices of the Supreme Court are nominated by the president and must be approved by the Senate.
Federal Courts & Judicial Agencies
The Constitution gives Congress the authority to establish other federal courts to handle cases that involve federal laws including tax and bankruptcy, lawsuits involving U.S. and state governments or the Constitution, and more. Other federal judicial agencies and programs support the courts and research judicial policy.
- Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts
- Bankruptcy Courts
- Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces
- Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- Court of Federal Claims
- Court of International Trade
- Federal Court Interpreters
- Federal Judicial Center
- Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation
- Supreme Court of the United States
- Tax Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
- U.S. Courts of Appeal
- U.S. Sentencing Commission