A release from the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress (“Modernization Committee”), on passing its second set of recommendations in the 117th Congress. The slate of recommendations focuses on enhancing civility and collaboration among members of Congress, bolstering the effectiveness of the congressional support agencies, and promoting the collection and use of impartial data and analysis in the policymaking process.
Below is a list of key recommendations. A full list of recommendations can be found HERE.
Enhancing Civility and Collaboration:
1. Promoting collaboration and leadership at member orientation: New Member Orientation (NMO) should strive to promote civility, collaboration, and leadership skills and sessions should be held separately from and at times that do not conflict with party leadership events.
2. Promoting collaboration and civility through voluntary training opportunities: The proposed Congressional Leadership Academy (CLA) and Congressional Staff Academy (CSA) should offer voluntary training to members and staff to promote civility, leadership, and collaboration skills.
3. Bipartisan committee events: Committees should have flexibility to host occasional events to foster collaboration and further develop working relationships among committee members.
4. Ongoing institutional support to facilitate collaboration: The House should include within the portfolio of an institutional office responsibilities to provide best practices to members and staff seeking advice, support and workshops that encourage bipartisan collaboration in the House.
5. Task force on the legislative process: A bicameral group of members, including majority and minority members of the House and Senate Rules Committees, should convene to discuss joint rules changes in each chamber that would require widely supported, bipartisan legislation passed in one chamber to receive expedited consideration in the other chamber.
Strengthening Congressional Support Agencies:
1. Bolster legislative support agencies’ access to federal data and experts: CRS, GAO, and CBO should each report to committees of jurisdiction on access to federal data, including any challenges to accessing that data, and identify whether Congress can take any actions to ensure agencies have continuous and real-time access to high-quality federal data and the staff who maintain and can provide insight into that information.
2. GAO annual report on unimplemented recommendations. The Comptroller General of the GAO should provide an annual report to committees on unimplemented GAO recommendations and the estimated cost savings, by agency.
3. GAO report to congressional committees on legislative options. GAO should provide an annual report of legislative options to Congress to address open priority recommendations, as well as related work from the “High Risk List.”
4. Modernize the congressional support agencies. The committees of jurisdiction should examine the support agencies’ authorities and determine if they are sufficient or need to be updated so that the agencies can better serve an evolving Congress.
5. Authorize STAA and make it a permanent part of GAO. The Science, Technology Assessment, and Analytics team (STAA) should be authorized by Congress and made a permanent part of GAO.
Improving Evidence-Based Policymaking:1. Congressional Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking: Congress should establish a bipartisan, bicameral Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking to encourage and facilitate better use of data in the legislative process.
The Modernization Committee passed 20 recommendations in July, 2021 to strengthen staff capacity and to make Congress more accessible to the American people. Today’s vote brings the total number of recommendations advanced by the Committee up to 45 in the 117th Congress.
The Modernization Committee released a report in October, 2021 detailing the full implementation of 33 recommendations and meaningful progress made on 30 additional recommendations.