The Context of Effectiveness: Evaluating Changes in Committee Governance

• In Event: Poster Session: Legislative Studies

Abstract

Legislative effectiveness scores measure the extent to which members of Congress can move their legislative agenda the lawmaking process. The canonical measure, however, fails to account for the contextual effects that condition a legislators effectiveness. Using data from Volden and Wiseman (2014, 2018), we examine the political context in which legislators operate. Specifically, we test the influence of committee and subcommittee structure and leadership over time. We find that the effectiveness of committee leadership increases tremendously after the Republican Revolution of 1994, while subcommittee leadership effectiveness is decimated. After the Republican Revolution, there is sharp decline in substantive and significant bills under consideration by Congress driven by Gingrich-era committee reforms. Our results suggest that we need to take into account the dynamic nature of committee power.

Authors

• Patrick Donald Rickert, Washington University in St. Louis

• Nicholas Waterbury, Washington University in St.Louis

• Bryant James Moy, Washington University in St. Louis