	Introduction

This report provides an overview of the process for filling positions to which the President makes appointments with the advice and consent of the Senate (PAS positions). It also specifies, for the 110 th Congress (January 2007-January 2009), all nominations to full-time positions on 34 regulatory and other collegial boards and commissions that have such positions (e.g., the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Federal Reserve Board, and the Election Assistance Commission). Profiles of each board and commission provide information on their organizational structures, membership as of the end of the 110 th Congress, and appointment activity during that Congress. Three distinct stages mark the appointment process: selection, clearance, and nomination by the President; consideration by the Senate; and appointment by the President. Positions on most boards and commissions, however, are not covered by this act. Appointments During the 110th Congress

During the 110 th Congress, President George W. Bush submitted nominations to the Senate for 74 of the 152 full-time positions on 34 regulatory and other boards and commissions. (Most of the remaining positions were not vacant during that time.) A total of 88 nominations were submitted for these positions, of which 46 were confirmed, 15 were withdrawn, and 27 were returned to the President. The number of nominations exceeded the number of positions because the President submitted multiple nominations for some positions. In some cases, for example, the President submitted one nomination for the end of a term in progress and a second nomination of the same person to the same position for the succeeding term. In other cases, the President submitted a second nomination after his first choice failed to be confirmed. The President also submitted an "extra" nomination of the one individual to whom he had given a recess appointment in order to comply with a law affecting the payment of that appointee (see " Recess Appointments ," above). At the end of the Congress, 15 incumbents were serving past the expiration of their terms. In addition, there were 22 vacancies among the 152 positions. These changes may reduce the comparability of statistics provided in this report with those provided in earlier reports. More information on this change in methodology is available in Appendix D .

		Organization of the Report

			Board and Commission Profiles

Each of the 34 board or commission profiles following the narrative portion of this report is organized into three parts: a paragraph discussing the body's organizational structure, a table identifying its membership as of the end of the 110 th Congress, and a table listing nominations and appointments to its positions during the 110 th Congress. The organizational sections discuss the statutory requirements for the appointed positions, including the number of members on each board or commission, their terms of office, whether or not they may continue in their positions after their terms expire, whether or not political balance is required, and the method for selection of the chair. All five members are appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate, and serve four-year terms. Appendix B. Senate Recesses and Presidential Recess Appointments
Appendix C. Board/Commission Abbreviations
Appendix D. Change in Methodology from Previous Tracking Reports
The calculations of nomination-to-confirmation intervals provided in this report counted all the days within the interval, including those during summer recesses and between sessions of the Senate. The inclusion of all days differs from the methodology used in similar CRS reports for previous Congresses.
The President makes appointments, with the advice and consent of the Senate, to some 152 full-time leadership positions on 34 federal regulatory and other collegial boards and commissions. This appointment process consists of three distinct stages: selection, clearance, and nomination by the President; consideration by the Senate; and appointment by the President. These advice and consent positions can also temporarily be filled by the President alone through a recess appointment. Membership positions on this set of collegial bodies often have fixed terms, and incumbents are often protected from arbitrary removal by the President. The enabling statutes for most of these boards and commissions require political party balance in their membership.
During the 110th Congress, President George W. Bush submitted nominations to the Senate for 74 of these 152 positions. (Most of the remaining positions on these boards and commissions were not vacant during that time.) A total of 88 nominations were submitted, of which 46 were confirmed, 15 were withdrawn, and 27 were returned to the President. The number of nominations exceeded the number of positions because the President submitted multiple nominations for some positions. In some cases the President submitted one nomination for the end of a term in progress and a second nomination of the same person to the same position for the succeeding term. In other cases, the President submitted a second nomination after his first choice failed to be confirmed. President Bush made one recess appointment to a board covered by this report during the 110th Congress, and he submitted an "extra" nomination of that individual in order to comply with a law affecting the payment of that appointee. At the end of the 110th Congress, 15 incumbents were serving past the expiration of their terms. In addition, there were 22 vacancies among the 152 positions.
This report specifies, for the 110th Congress, all nominations to full-time positions on 34 regulatory and other collegial boards and commissions. Profiles of each board and commission provide information on their organizational structures, membership as of the end of the 110th Congress, and appointment activity during that Congress. The organizational section discusses the statutory requirements for the appointed positions, including the number of members on each board or commission, their terms of office, whether or not they may continue in their positions after their terms expire, whether or not political balance is required, and the method for selection of the chair. Membership and appointment activity are provided in tabular form. The report also includes tables summarizing the collective appointment activity for all 34 bodies, and identifying Senate recesses during the 110th Congress.
The calculations of nomination-to-confirmation intervals provided in this report counted all the days within the interval, including those during summer recesses and between sessions of the Senate. The inclusion of all days differs from the methodology used in similar CRS reports for previous Congresses. The new methodology takes into consideration changes in Senate adjournment practices and is consistent with published research in this area. This change may reduce the comparability of statistics in this report with those of the earlier research.
Information for this report was compiled from data from the Senate nominations database of the Legislative Information System at http://www.congress.gov/nomis/, telephone discussions with agency officials, agency websites, the United States Code, and the 2008 edition of United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions (more commonly known as the "Plum Book").
This report will not be updated.