GOV REVIEW 27 CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES Everything You Need

GOV REVIEW #27: CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES Everything You Need To Know About Congressional Committees To Succeed in Gov.

Committees: An Introduction • What are they? • Made up of members of Congress • Allows members to become specialized in policy areas • Membership on the right committee helps members represent their constituents more effectively (credit claiming) • How is membership determined? • “Wish list” by members; members from both parties, although the chair and majority of members are made up by majority party • Each party has a Steering Committee that assigns members to committees Foreign Policy Agriculture Finance Judiciary Veterans’ Affairs

Committees: An Introduction • Committee Chairs: • Influence the agenda of the committee • Schedule hearings, manage bills in committees • Committee chairs are voted on, although typically given to senior members • Committee chairs are limited to 3 consecutive 2 -year terms • 4 types of committees: 1. Standing 2. Joint Committees 3. Conference Committees 4. Select Committees Standing = PERMANENT!

Standing Committees • Permanent committees in each house • 16 in Senate • 19 in the House • Most members serve on two committees and two subcommittees • Often recommend funding for government agencies and programs $$$$$$

Joint Committees • Membership is made Congress Joint Committee on the Library up of the House AND the Senate • Not as common as other committees • Focus on issues such as the economy and taxation

Conference Did. Committees someone say Compromise? • Established to reconcile differences in bills passed in each house • Usually made up of senior members of each party • Hope to reach a compromise on the bill

Did someone say Missouri? I • May be permanent, or helped with that compromise. temporary Select Committees • Often have a narrow focus • Examples: • House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence • Select Committee on the Various Propositions for the Admission of Missouri into the Union

Subcommittees • Smaller parts of a larger committee • Members report to larger committee on specific issues • Members of Congress are limited to 4 subcommittees

Test Tips • Multiple-Choice Questions: • Benefits of being on committees (credit claiming) • Free Response Questions: • Purpose of committees

See You Back Here For Video #28: Congress and Other Major Political Institutions! • Thanks for watching • Best of luck in May!