Title: Committee Types and Roles - EveryCRSReport.com
Headings: Committee Types and Roles
Committee Types and Roles
Committee Types and Roles
Structure of the Committee System
Types of Committees
Subcommittees
Footnotes

Content: identify policy problems and propose solutions; select, determine, and report measures for full chamber consideration; monitor executive branch performance (oversight); and investigate allegations of wrongdoing. The 1946 Legislative Reorganization Act (60 Stat. 812) sets the framework for the modern committee system. The act organized the Senate and House committees along roughly parallel lines, but divergences have emerged over time. Within the guidelines of chamber rules, each committee adopts its own rules addressing organizational, structural, and procedural issues. As a consequence, there is considerable variation among panels and across chambers. In the 115 th Congress (2017-2018), there are 20 standing committees in the House, with 97 subcommittees 1 and one select committee.