A profile of each board and commission provides information on its organizational structure, membership as of the end of the 111 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. As just noted, however, positions on most boards and commissions are not covered by this act. Characterization of Regulatory and Other Collegial Bodies

The boards and commissions discussed in this report share, among other characteristics, the following: (1) with the exception of one agency—the United States Sentencing Commission—they are executive branch bodies; (2) they are located, with four exceptions, outside executive departments; (3) several members head each entity, and at least one member serves full time; (4) the members are appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate; and (5) the members serve fixed terms of office, and, except in a few bodies, the President's power to remove them is restricted. Appointments During the 111th Congress

During the 111 th Congress, President Barack Obama submitted nominations to the Senate for 77 of the 148 full-time positions on 33 regulatory and other boards and commissions. (Most of the remaining positions were not vacant during that time.) A total of 99 nominations were submitted for these positions, of which 76 were confirmed, 4 were withdrawn, and 19 were returned to the President. The number of nominations exceeded the number of positions being filled 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). Table 1 summarizes the appointment activity for the 111 th Congress. At the end of the Congress, 24 incumbents were serving past the expiration of their terms. In addition, there were 10 vacancies among the 148 positions. 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. The chair is also appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. Summary of All Nominations and Appointments to Collegial Boards and Commissions
Appendix B. Board/Commission Abbreviations
The President makes appointments, with the advice and consent of the Senate, to some 148 full-time leadership positions on 33 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 111th Congress, President Barack Obama submitted nominations to the Senate for 77 of these 148 positions. (Most of the remaining positions on these boards and commissions were not vacant during that time.) A total of 99 nominations were submitted, of which 76 were confirmed, 4 were withdrawn, and 19 were returned to the President. The number of nominations exceeded the number of positions being filled 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. President Obama made seven recess appointments to boards covered by this report during the 111th Congress, and he submitted an "extra" nomination of those individuals in order to comply with a law affecting the payment of recess appointees. At the end of the 111th Congress, 24 incumbents were serving past the expiration of their terms. In addition, there were 10 vacancies among the 148 positions.
This report specifies, for the 111th Congress, all nominations to full-time positions on 33 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 111th 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 33 bodies.
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.