[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 39 (Wednesday, April 13, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: April 13, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                          CONGRESSIONAL REFORM

                                 ______


                          HON. LEE H. HAMILTON

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 13, 1994

  Mr. HAMILTON. Mr. Speaker, I would like to insert my Washington 
Report for Wednesday, March 30, 1994 into the Congressional Record:

                          Congressional Reform

       Hoosiers often speak to me about the need to make Congress 
     work better and cost less. I agree with them and I support 
     comprehensive reform of the internal operations of Congress. 
     From applying laws to Congress to streamlining committees and 
     staff, many private citizens and Members of this institution 
     believe that Congress is inefficient and insulated from the 
     day-to-day concerns of ordinary people.
       Reform Committee. As a result, the Joint Committee on the 
     Organization of Congress was created to conduct a 
     comprehensive evaluation of the House and Senate and provide 
     recommendations for reform by the end of 1993. Last year the 
     Joint Committee, which I co-chaired, conducted an exhaustive 
     set of hearings during which testimony was received from over 
     240 witnesses. This testimony dealt with topics such as: 
     congressional ethics; applying laws to Congress; the budget 
     process; the congressional committee system; House and Senate 
     floor procedure; relations between the branches; and public 
     understanding and involvement in the legislative process.
       The Joint Committee reported in November separate packages 
     to reform the House and the Senate, and went out of business 
     at the end of the year. These recommendations were introduced 
     as legislation in January and are now being considered by the 
     committees of jurisdiction. Action on the House and Senate 
     floor is expected later this year.
       The process of congressional reform is difficult. Everybody 
     favors reform in general, but when specifics are addressed it 
     becomes extremely difficult to build consensus around a 
     single package. Still, the Joint Committee has made an 
     important contribution to the reform effort. The panel's 
     recommendations are meaningful and would reform both the 
     House and Senate in parallel ways. Every single proposal in 
     the package is bipartisan. And the recommendations in the 
     package are politically realistic; passage by Congress this 
     year should be feasible.
       Reform Recommendations. There are dozens of worthwhile 
     proposals in the House and Senate reform packages. The House 
     plan, for example, would make Congress subject to laws 
     applied to the executive branch and private sector, and 
     create a new office to ensure that these laws are effectively 
     enforced. In addition, for the first time private citizens 
     would play a key role in the process through which ethics 
     complaints against House Members are investigated. The reform 
     package also calls for reducing congressional staffing levels 
     by 12%, the same level recommended for the executive branch 
     by the Clinton Administration's reinventing government 
     proposal. The House reform plan would open Congress to 
     greater public scrutiny by publicizing special interest 
     proposals in committee reports, which should help curb 
     wasteful ``pork-barrel'' spending.
       The proposals to reform the ethics process, apply laws to 
     Congress, cut staff, and open up the spending process deal 
     with reform issues that are highly salient to the public. 
     Certain other proposals are less well-known, but still 
     critical for improving congressional efficiency.
       For example, Members often complain that an excessive 
     number of committee and subcommittee responsibilities 
     undermines the quality of deliberation, and thus the quality 
     of legislation. As a result, the House reform plan would 
     impose tough limits on committee assignments and reduce the 
     number of subcommittees. If the number of subcommittees cut 
     by the package is added to the cuts made last year, roughly 
     one-third of House subcommittees will have been abolished. 
     Also, if a standing committee falls below 50% of its 103rd 
     Congress membership level, a resolution would be considered 
     to abolish the committee and transfer its jurisdiction. 
     Another, relatively technical, reform proposal would 
     fundamentally alter the federal budget process by placing it 
     on a two-year cycle--a profound change that would simplify 
     the budget process, promote more long-term thinking, and 
     strengthen oversight. The House reform plan would establish 
     targets for entitlement spending and address situations when 
     the targets are exceeded. The House plan also would guarantee 
     that the minority party be able to offer a full policy 
     alternative on all legislation considered by the full House, 
     enhancing the minority's ability to participate fully in the 
     legislative process.
       Improvements. My sense is that, if accepted, the 
     recommendations of the Joint Committee would constitute the 
     most sweeping reform of Congress in decades. But these 
     proposals are not the last word on reform. No single reform 
     plan can resolve all the problems that confront Congress, nor 
     can any single plan please everyone. Congressional reform is 
     an ongoing process. The mandate of the Joint Committee was 
     daunting in its breadth, and it was only authorized to exist 
     for one year. Many reform issues merit further attention, and 
     the Joint Committee's recommendations should be viewed as an 
     important base upon which to build comprehensive reform. 
     These proposals should be strengthened, not weakened, as they 
     move through the legislative process.
       For example, the reform plans fail to address fully the 
     problem of Senate floor procedure--the major source of delay 
     in Congress. One proposal would end filibusters on the motion 
     to take up a bill. But even if this proposal is accepted--and 
     that now is in doubt--five distinct points would remain where 
     any bill could be filibustered. The House plan also might be 
     strengthened in various ways, such as reducing the 
     opportunity for Members to offer ``surprise'' amendments 
     without adequate notice.
       It is critical that the reform effort continue to proceed 
     in a timely fashion. Members should not walk away from the 
     recommendations of the Joint Committee on the Organization of 
     Congress. Failing to pass a comprehensive reform bill this 
     year would be a major blow to the prestige of Congress.
       We must change the way Congress works. Our goal must be to 
     make Congress both less expensive and more efficient. The 
     effort to reform Congress is an important part of the effort 
     to redesign, reinvent, and reinvigorate the entire national 
     government.

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