A given U.S. Congress normally has 2 sessions —one session for each year of its two-year term. A Congress lasts two years, and each year counts as a separate session.

Quick Scoop

  • 1 Congress = 2 sessions in the usual case.
  • The sessions are commonly called the 1st and 2nd session.
  • In some earlier periods, Congress also had special or third sessions , but the standard modern pattern is two sessions.

Plain-English version

Think of a Congress as the full two-year term, and each year inside it as one session. So if someone asks how many sessions are in a given Congress, the usual answer is two.

The exact dates can vary by Congress, but the structure stays the same: one Congress, two regular sessions.