Discuss the roles nd importance of committees in the US Congress
DISCUSS THE ROLES AND IMPORTACE OF COMMITTEES IN THE US CONGRESS. Congress is the overall name for both houses – the House of Representatives and the Senate. Congress is the legislative branch in the US political system. The Constitution of the US makes no mention of congressional or political committees. ... There are a number of different types of committees used in the US Congress for example select and joint committees and also a number of different committees for each area or legislation, one the most important in both houses being the Appropriations Committee. There are four main committees systems employed within Congress. They are Standing Committees, Select Committees, Joint Committees and Conference Committees. Standing Committees are present appear in both Houses of Congress and they are permanent and expert bodies. The principal role of such committees is to consider and amend legislation but they also constantly scrutinise the government in the area of work that they deal with. Most standing committees also have sub-committees each of which cover a small percent of the overall policy area that the committee deals with. For example, within the Appropriations Committee in the House, there are 13 sub-committees whereas in the Budget Committee in the Senate there are no sub-committees. In 1995, with a new Republican agenda, the Contract with America, the number of staffers and sub-committees was dramatically decreased on the basis that sub-committees were becoming far to powerful.