25 Sep 2018 We Need a New Committee Dedicated to Broad Congressional Reform in Government Reform
As members of the House begin the process of considering and debating a new Rules package for the 116th Congress, BPC Action urges members to join the effort to create a Joint Committee on the Organization on Congress.
The Joint Select Committee on Budget and Appropriations Process Reform will conclude this fall and we look forward to their issuance of a set of recommendations to revitalize the congressional budget process. However, it is essential that Congress continue this good work and take a broader look at committee processes, authorizations, congressional oversight, and relations between the chambers of Congress and the Executive and Legislative branches.
The Joint Committee on the Organization of Congress would help rebuild public confidence in Congress and restore individual members’ roles in the legislative-making process. It would examine Congress’s rules and procedures and propose comprehensive reforms to make the institution more efficient, effective, and accountable to the American people. Composed of an equal number from each party and chamber, the committee would:
- Evaluate the legislative rules and procedures that control how Congress functions;
- Empower members to participate in the legislative process, debate issues, compromise, introduce amendments, and get laws enacted; and
- Restore vital relationships between members of Congress and constituents, the House and the Senate, and the Legislative and Executive Branches.
Representatives Darrin LaHood (R-IL) and Dan Lipinski (D-IL) called on the House Rules Committee to include the creation of a Joint Committee on the Organization of Congress in a new rules package.
