Committee Meeting Room
Committees are groups of Members appointed to investigate, debate, and report on legislation. While they are not mentioned in the Constitution, committees have become an important part of the legislative process since their introduction during the first Congress in 1789. Created to help Members organize their work, committees were temporary in those early Congresses. Over time, the amount of legislation considered by the U.S. House of Representatives increased and committees became a permanent way for Members to divide their work.
There are five different types of committees—standing committees, subcommittees, select committees, joint committees, and the Committee of the Whole.
Standing Committees
The most common type of committee, standing committees consider bills and other legislation that is before the U.S. House of Representatives. When a bill is introduced on the House floor, it is assigned a bill number and sent to a standing committee by the Speaker of the House. There are currently 20 standing committees, each covering a different area of public policy. A complete list of committees is available on the Office of the Clerk website.
While in committee, a bill is reviewed, researched, and revised. Committee members may hold a committee hearing to receive testimony and view evidence to gather as much information as possible about the bill. Once the committee members are satisfied with the bill, they vote on whether or not to report it to the House floor for consideration by the full U.S. House of Representatives.
Each Member, Delegate, and Resident Commissioner in the U.S. House of Representatives serves on two standing committees. Committee assignments are given at the start of each new Congress. Members can request to serve on specific committees. Returning Members usually keep their committee assignments from the previous Congress because they have expertise and seniority.
A special “committee on committees” matches the Members’ requests with the available committee positions. These assignments are approved by the majority and minority parties before being brought before the full Chamber for approval. Once assigned to a committee, Members must develop expertise in the committee’s content area, vote on motions, prepare and vote on amendments, decide whether or not to report bills to the House floor, and write committee reports and studies.
Subcommittees
Many committees, usually standing committees, have smaller subcommittees within them. The members of these subcommittees have expertise in a specific part of a committee’s area of public policy. Like standing committees, subcommittees hold hearings, conduct research, and revise bills. Subcommittees report bills back to the full committee rather than the House floor.
Select Committees
Select committees are temporary committees created with a timeline to complete a specific task, like investigating government activity. Rather than researching and reporting bills to the House floor, they research specific issues or oversee government agencies. These guidelines don’t apply to all select committees, however.
The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence was established on July 14, 1977 to oversee the CIA, National Security Agency, Department of Defense, Department of Justice, FBI, and Treasury—and it still exists today. Also unlike other select committees, it considers bills and reports them back to the House floor.
Joint Committees
Joint committees include Members from both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. Joint committees debate and report on matters concerning the Congress rather than issues of public policy. Because they consider only matters affecting the Congress, such as organizing the Presidential Inauguration ceremonies, they do not consider legislation or report on legislation to either the U.S. House of Representatives or the U.S. Senate.
Committee of the Whole
The Committee is a way to move legislation through to the House floor for a vote quickly. The Committee of the Whole is able to debate bills more efficiently than the full U.S. House of Representatives because it requires a smaller quorum—only 100 members versus the 218 required of the full House.
The U.S. House of Representatives resolves to the Committee of the Whole when the Speaker of the House passes a resolution setting the guidelines for considering the bill before it. The Committee of the Whole debates the bill, then rises and reports its activities to the U.S. House of Representatives, which then votes on the legislation.
FAQs
Summary. "The Kids in the House website is a public service provided by the Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives. Our mission is to provide educational and entertaining information about the legislative branch of the United States Government to students of all ages.
How does a bill become a law in 7th grade? ›
Bills: There are two types of bills, public and private. Public bills affect the general public while private bills affect a specific individual or group. In order to become law, bills must be approved by both Chambers and the President.
How a bill becomes a law reading middle school? ›
The Bill Is a Law
If a bill has passed in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and has been approved by the President, or if a presidential veto has been overridden, the bill becomes a law and is enforced by the government.
How long is the term of office for a member of the House for kids? ›
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives are elected by their constituents to represent their districts in Congress. Representatives, the title given to Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, are elected to serve a two year term. There is no limit to the number of terms a Representative can serve.
How are House committee members chosen? ›
Standing, Select, and Joint Committees Distinguished House committees are of three distinct types: (1) standing committees, whose members are elected by the House, (2) select committees (also called special committees), whose members are appointed by the Speaker, and (3) joint committees, whose members are chosen ...
What is the role of children in the House? ›
Younger children can help make the bed, pick up toys, and put dirty laundry in the hamper. Older teens can also oversee dusting the furniture and vacuuming the carpet.
What does House in Congress mean? ›
As per the Constitution, the U.S. House of Representatives makes and passes federal laws. The House is one of Congress's two chambers (the other is the U.S. Senate), and part of the federal government's legislative branch.
How are laws made for kids in the House? ›
After the bill has passed in the House, it is sent to the U.S. Senate. The Members of the Senate debate and vote on the bill. If the bill passes, it is sent to the President of the United States for approval. Once the President signs the bill, it is a law.
What type of reading is in law school? ›
You'll be reading casebooks instead of traditional textbooks. They're collections of legal cases and decisions. You'll probably be expected to read several cases in preparation for each class. You can't skip the reading.
What is the main job of Congress kids? ›
The executive branch, led by the President and the Vice President, enforces our laws. The judicial branch, led by the Supreme Court, interprets our laws. The legislative branch, which makes our laws, is the Congress.
No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, and been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen. The Federalist No.
What are the powers of Congress for kids? ›
Powers of Congress. The Constitution gives Congress the power to collect taxes, borrow money on the credit of the United States, coin money, regulate commerce, declare war, raise and support armies, and make all laws necessary for the execution of its powers.
What makes the House Rules Committee so powerful? ›
The committee is often considered one of the most powerful committees as it influences the introduction and process of legislation through the House.
What is the benefit of joint committees? ›
The four joint committees, made up of senators and representatives, provide administrative coordination between the House and Senate and conduct studies for the benefit of both houses.
Who makes up a joint committee? ›
Joint Committees include membership from both houses of Congress. Joint committees are usually established with narrow jurisdictions and normally lack authority to report legislation. The position of chair usually alternates each Congress between members from the House and Senate.
Who gets to choose who serves on a house committee? ›
Generally, members are assigned to committees by their party based on their particular interests and the committee requirements.
Who decides who is on a committee? ›
Senators are formally elected to standing committees by the entire membership of the Senate, but in practice each party conference is largely responsible for determining which of its members will sit on each committee.
Who controls the committee assignments? ›
Committee assignment procedure
The appointment of Senate committee members is formally made by the whole Senate, and the whole House formally appoints House committee members, but the choice of members is actually made by the political parties.
What are the House seats in Congress? ›
The number of voting representatives in the House is fixed by law at no more than 435, proportionally representing the population of the 50 states. Currently, there are five delegates representing the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
How many Congress members are in House? ›
The House has 435 members, the number representing each state is determined by population.
The legislative branch makes the laws of the United States, controls all of the money, and has the power to declare war. The executive branch enforces the laws of the United States, spends money as allowed by Congress, declares states of emergency, appoints Judges to the Supreme Court, and grants pardons for crimes.
What is Congress in high school? ›
Congressional Debate is a simulation of the U.S. Congress. In this event, students generate a series of bills and resolutions for debate in advance and alternate delivering speeches for and against the topic in a group setting.
