Title: What are the most powerful committees in the House & Senate and what do they do? - Quora
Headings: What are the most powerful committees in the House & Senate and what do they do?
What are the most powerful committees in the House & Senate and what do they do?
Content: Both of these are prestigious committee assignments, and afford their Members a lot of influence. The downside to tax legislating, though, is that it's not done hugely frequently - while Congress almost always has a package of "extenders," or temporary tax provisions that they're renewing, major changes don't happen too often. But when they do, these Members are in the catbird seat. Health care policy changes are a bit distributed. In the Senate, the Finance Committee oversees Medicare and Medicaid, while the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee oversees public health issues (such as FDA topics). In the House, the Ways and Means Committee shares jurisdiction over Medicare with the Energy and Commerce Committee, and the latter also has sole jurisdiction over Medicaid. Other Committees have their moments in the sun - the Senate Judiciary Committee, for example, is a plum assignment for assisting or thwarting judicial appointments. The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is a legendarily powerful investigative arm, and under the supervision of an aggressive Chairman, affords its Members plenty of opportunities to criticize or defend the Administration. I think most Members would agree that Appropriations Committees are the most powerful. Quora User
, lives in The United States of America
Updated 1 year ago · Author has 182 answers and 343.3K answer views
In the House, at least, the Rules Committee is arguably the most powerful.