The United States House Committee on Appropriations is a
committee
A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...
of the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...
that is responsible for passing
appropriation bills
An appropriation, also known as supply bill or spending bill, is a proposed law that authorizes the expenditure of government funds. It is a bill that sets money aside for specific spending. In some democracies, approval of the legislature is ne ...
along with its
Senate counterpart. The bills passed by the Appropriations Committee regulate expenditures of money by the government of the United States. As such, it is one of the most powerful committees, and its members are seen as influential.
History
The
constitutional
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these princip ...
basis for the Appropriations Committee comes from
Article one, Section nine, Clause seven of the U.S. Constitution, which says:
:No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law; and a regular statement and account of receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published from time to time.
This clearly delegated the power of appropriating money to Congress, but was vague beyond that. Originally, the power of appropriating was taken by the
Committee on Ways and Means
The Committee on Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee has jurisdiction over all taxation, tariffs, and other revenue-raising measures, as well as a number of other program ...
, but the
United States Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
placed a large burden on the Congress, and at the end of that conflict, a reorganization occurred.
Early years
The Committee on Appropriations was created on December 11, 1865, when the U.S. House of Representatives separated the tasks of the Committee on Ways and Means into three parts.
[ The passage of legislation affecting taxes remained with Ways and Means. The power to regulate banking was transferred to the Committee on Banking and Commerce. The power to appropriate money—to control the federal purse strings—was given to the newly created Appropriations Committee.
At the time of creation the membership of the committee stood at nine; it currently has 53 members.][ The power of the committee has only grown since its founding; many of its members and chairmen have gone on to even higher posts. Four of them— Samuel Randall ( D- PA), Joseph Cannon ( R- IL), ]Joseph Byrns
Joseph Wellington "Jo" Byrns Sr. (July 20, 1869 – June 4, 1936) was a U.S. politician. He served as a 14-term Democratic congressman from Tennessee, and as the 41st speaker of the United States House of Representatives.
Early life
Byrns was ...
(D- TN) and Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Patricia Pelosi (; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who has served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives since 2019 and previously from 2007 to 2011. She has represented in the United States House of ...
(D- CA)—have gone on to become the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
The speaker of the United States House of Representatives, commonly known as the speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives. The office was established in 1789 by Article I, Section 2 of the U. ...
; one, James Garfield, has gone on to become President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
.
The root of the Appropriations Committee's power is its ability to disburse funds, and thus as the United States federal budget
The United States budget comprises the spending and revenues of the U.S. federal government. The budget is the financial representation of the priorities of the government, reflecting historical debates and competing economic philosophies. Th ...
has risen, so has the power of the Appropriations Committee. The first federal budget of the United States, in 1789, was for $639,000—a hefty sum for the time, but a much smaller amount relative to the economy than the federal budget would later become. By the time the Appropriations committee was founded, the Civil War and inflation
In economics, inflation is an increase in the general price level of goods and services in an economy. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reductio ...
had raised expenditures to roughly $1.3 billion, increasing the clout of Appropriations. Expenditures continued to follow this pattern—rising sharply during wars before settling down—for over 100 years.
Another important development for Appropriations occurred in the presidency of Warren G. Harding
Warren G. Harding's tenure as the 29th president of the United States lasted from March 4, 1921 until his death on August 2, 1923. Harding presided over the country in the aftermath of World War I. A Republican from Ohio, Harding held office du ...
. Harding was the first president of the United States to deliver a budget proposal to Congress.
Recent times
In May 1945, when U.S. Representative Albert J. Engel queried extra funds for the Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...
, the administration approved a visit to the Clinton Engineer Works
The Clinton Engineer Works (CEW) was the production installation of the Manhattan Project that during World War II produced the enriched uranium used in the 1945 bombing of Hiroshima, as well as the first examples of reactor-produced pluton ...
at Oak Ridge (CEW) (and one to HEW if desired) by selected legislators, including Engel, Mahon, Snyder, John Taber and Clarence Cannon
Clarence Andrew Cannon (April 11, 1879 – May 12, 1964) was a Democratic Congressman from Missouri serving from 1923 until his death in Washington, D.C. in 1964. He was a notable parliamentarian and chaired the U.S. House Committee on Appropri ...
(the committee chairman). About a month earlier Taber and Cannon had nearly come to blows over the expenditure but, after visiting CEW, Taber asked General Groves and Colonel Nichols Nichols may refer to:
People
*Nichols (surname)
*Nichol, a surname
Places Canada
* Nichols Islands, Nunavut
United States
* Nichols, California, an unincorporated community
* Nichols Canyon, Los Angeles, California
* Nichols, Connecticut
* Nich ...
"Are you sure you're asking for enough money?'' Cannon commented "Well, I never expected to hear that from you, John."[
]
In the early 1970s, the Appropriations Committee faced a crisis. President Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
began "impounding" funds, not allowing them to be spent, even when Congress had specifically appropriated money for a cause. This was essentially a line-item veto
The line-item veto, also called the partial veto, is a special form of veto power that authorizes a chief executive to reject particular provisions of a bill enacted by a legislature without vetoing the entire bill. Many countries have different ...
. Numerous court cases were filed by outraged interest groups and members of Congress. Eventually, the sense that Congress needed to regain control of the budget process led to the adoption of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974
The Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (, , ) is a United States federal law that governs the role of the Congress in the United States budget process.
The Congressional budget process
Titles I through IX of the law are als ...
, which finalized the budget process in its current form.
Role
The Appropriations committee is widely recognized by political scientists as one of the "power committees", since it holds the power of the purse
The power of the purse is the ability of one group to manipulate and control the actions of another group by withholding funding, or putting stipulations on the use of funds. The power of the purse can be used positively (e.g. awarding extra fun ...
. Openings on the Appropriations committee are often hotly demanded, and are doled out as rewards. It is one of the "exclusive" committees of the House, meaning its members typically sit on no other committee. Under House Rules, an exception to this is that five Members of the Appropriations Committee must serve on the House Budget Committee
The United States House Committee on the Budget, commonly known as the House Budget Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. Its responsibilities include legislative oversight of the federal budget process, ...
—three for the majority and two for the minority. Much of the power of the committee comes from the inherent utility of controlling spending. Its subcommittee chairs are often called "Cardinals", likening them to the most senior members of the Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, because of the power they wield over the budget.
Since the House is elected from single-member districts, securing financing for projects in the district can help a member to be reelected as the funds can create jobs and raise economic performance. This type of spending is derided by critics as pork barrel spending
''Pork barrel'', or simply ''pork'', is a metaphor for the appropriation of government spending for localized projects secured solely or primarily to bring money to a representative's district.
The usage originated in American English, and i ...
, while those who engage in it generally defend it as necessary and appropriate expenditure of government funds. The members of the Appropriations committee can do this better than most, and better direct funding towards another member's district, increasing the stature of committee members in the House and helping them gain support for their priorities, including seeking leadership positions or other honors.
The committee tends to be less partisan than other committees or the House overall. While the minority party will offer amendments during committee consideration, appropriations bills often get significant bipartisan support, both in committee and on the House floor. This atmosphere can be attributed to the fact that all committee members have a compelling interest in ensuring legislation will contain money for their own districts. Conversely, because members of this committee can easily steer money to their home districts, it is considered very difficult to unseat a member of this committee at an election—especially if he or she is a "Cardinal".
In addition, the ability to appropriate money is useful to lobbyist
In politics, lobbying, persuasion or interest representation is the act of lawfully attempting to influence the actions, policies, or decisions of government officials, most often legislators or members of regulatory agencies. Lobbying, which ...
s and interest groups; as such, being on Appropriations makes it easier to collect campaign contributions (see campaign finance
Campaign finance, also known as election finance or political donations, refers to the funds raised to promote candidates, political parties, or policy initiatives and referendums. Political parties, charitable organizations, and political a ...
).
Jurisdiction
The Appropriations Committee has one of the largest jurisdictions of any federal committee. Under Rule 10 of the House rules, the committee's jurisdiction is defined as:
# Appropriation of the revenue for the support of the Government
# Rescissions of appropriations contained in appropriations Acts
# Transfers of unexpected balances
# Bills and joint resolutions reported by other committees that provide new entitlement authority as defined in section 3(9) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and referred to the committee under clause 4(a)(2)
Members, 117th Congress
Resolutions electing members: (Chair), (Ranking Member), (D), (R), (D)
Subcommittees
Reorganization in 2007
In 2007, the number of subcommittees was increased to 12 at the start of the 110th Congress. This reorganization, developed by Chairman David Obey and his Senate counterpart, Robert Byrd, for the first time provided for common subcommittee structures between both houses, a move that both chairmen hoped will allow Congress to "complete action on each of the government funding on time for the first time since 1994".[
The new structure added the Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, and transferred jurisdiction over Legislative Branch appropriations from the full committee to a newly reinstated Legislative Branch Subcommittee, which had not existed since the 108th Congress.
]
List of subcommittees
Historical rosters
116th Congress
Resolutions electing members: (Chair), (Ranking Member), (D), (R)
;Subcommittees
115th Congress
114th Congress
113th Congress
List of Chairs
See also
* 2015 United States federal appropriations
References
External links
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. House of Representatives
Archive
A Concise History of the House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations
(December 2010)
Appropriations Subcommittee Structure: History of Changes from 1920 to 2021
by Congressional Research Service
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is a public policy research institute of the United States Congress. Operating within the Library of Congress, it works primarily and directly for members of Congress and their committees and staff on a c ...
.
House Appropriations Committee
Legislation activity and reports, Congress.gov.
House Appropriations Committee Hearings and Meetings Video
Congress.gov.
{{DEFAULTSORT:United States House Committee On Appropriations
House Committee on Appropriations
The United States House Committee on Appropriations is a List of current United States House of Representatives committees, committee of the United States House of Representatives that is responsible for passing Appropriations bill (United State ...
Appropriations
:
1865 establishments in the United States
Organizations established in 1865