The 81st United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from January 3, 1949, to January 3, 1951, during the fifth and sixth years of Harry S. Truman's presidency.
The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the 1940 United States census.
The Democrats won back the majority in both chambers, and with the election of President Harry S. Truman to his own full term in office, this gave the Democrats an overall federal government trifecta.
Major events
January 20, 1949: President Harry S. Truman began his second (only full) term. August 16, 1949: Office of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff created January 21, 1950: Accused communist spy Alger Hiss was convicted of perjury January 31, 1950: President Truman ordered the development of the hydrogen bomb, in response to the detonation of the Soviet Union's first atomic bomb in 1949 June 27, 1950: Korean War: President Truman ordered American military forces to aid in the defense of South Korea
Major legislation
June 20, 1949: Central Intelligence Agency Act, ch. 227, , October 25, 1949: Hospital Survey and Construction Amendments of 1949, ch. 722, , October 26, 1949: Fair Labor Standards Amendment, ch. 736, , , October 31, 1949: Agricultural Act of 1949, ch. 792, May 5, 1950: Uniform Code of Military Justice, ch. 169, May 10, 1950: National Science Foundation Act, ch. 171, , , August 15, 1950: Omnibus Medical Research Act, , (including Public Health Services Act Amendments, which established the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Blindness) September 8, 1950: Defense Production Act of 1950, , September 12, 1950: Budget and Accounting Procedures Act of 1950, ch. 946, September 23, 1950: McCarran Internal Security Act (including Subversive Activities Control Act of 1950), ch. 1024, , September 30, 1950: Performance Rating Act, ch. 1123, December 29, 1950: Celler–Kefauver Act (Anti-Merger Act), ch. 1184, January 12, 1951: Federal Civil Defense Act of 1950, ch. 1228, (codified in 50 U.S.C. App., here )
Treaties
July 21, 1949: North Atlantic Treaty ratified, establishing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Hearings
May 11, 1950: Kefauver Committee hearings into U.S. organized crime began
Party summary
Senate
House of Representatives
Leadership
Senate
President: Vacant until January 20, 1949
Alben W. Barkley (D), from January 20, 1949
President pro tempore: Kenneth McKellar (D)
Majority (Democratic) leadership
Majority Leader: Scott W. Lucas
Majority Whip: Francis J. Myers
Democratic Caucus Secretary: Brien McMahon
Policy Committee Chairman: Scott W. Lucas
Minority (Republican) leadership
Minority Leader: Kenneth S. Wherry
Minority Whip: Leverett Saltonstall
Republican Conference Chairman: Eugene Millikin
Republican Conference Secretary: Milton Young
National Senatorial Committee Chair: Styles Bridges
Policy Committee Chairman: Robert A. Taft
House of Representatives
Speaker: Sam Rayburn (D)
Majority (Democratic) leadership
Majority Leader: John W. McCormack
Majority Whip: Percy Priest
Democratic Caucus Chairman: Francis E. Walter
Democratic Caucus Secretary: Chase G. Woodhouse
Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman: Michael J. Kirwan
Minority (Republican) leadership
Minority Leader: Joseph W. Martin Jr. Minority Whip: Leslie C. Arends Republican Conference Chairman: Roy O. Woodruff Policy Committee Chairman: Joseph W. Martin Jr. Republican Campaign Committee Chairman: Leonard W. Hall
Caucuses
House Democratic Caucus
Senate Democratic Caucus
Members
Senate
Senators are popularly elected statewide every two years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. Senators are ordered first by state, and then by seniority. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election, In this Congress, Class 3 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1950; Class 1 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1952; and Class 2 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1954.
Alabama
2. John Sparkman (D) 3. J. Lister Hill (D)
Arizona
1. Ernest McFarland (D) 3. Carl Hayden (D)
Arkansas
2. John L. McClellan (D) 3. J. William Fulbright (D)
