In The News
Congress needs to take disaster planning seriously, Modernization panel says
by Chris Cioffi
Lawmakers tasked with “fixing Congress” approved their latest set of recommendations Tuesday, including one that calls for a better game plan in the case of a major disaster. “It’s not a problem until it is, but if it is a problem it’s a big problem,” said Rep. William R. Timmons IV, vice chairman of the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress. They explored the topic in an April hearing that looked at how the legislative branch … Continue Reading
July 19, 2022
House Panel to Consider Office Space Upgrade as Staffers Return
by Emily Wilkins
The Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress plans to consider upgrades to Capitol and district offices in a meeting Tuesday, as more staffers return to in-person work. Those make up the bulk of the package of 29 recommendations the panel will vote on, including expanding meeting spaces, updating office furniture, and installing WiFi in all district offices. Others call for more resources for oversight panels, and for automating the process of lawmakers collecting and registering … Continue Reading
June 23, 2022
Can Congress be a little more like a tech company? Maybe
by Chris Cioffi
Congress isn’t Google — but it should start acting more like a tech giant. That was the message members of the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress got from a trio of witnesses Thursday who discussed ways the nearly 250-year-old institution could get with the tech-centric times. “Like we did with C-SPAN in the ’80s, websites in the ’90s and social media in the early 21st century, we need to adopt modern digital tools to improve … Continue Reading
June 23, 2022
House Pressed to Do More on Modernizing Congress
by Jordan Smith
The Office of Majority Leader of the House of Representatives Steny Hoyer, D-Md., is pushing for Congress to better prioritize digital technologies and keep pace with the evolving world. Speaking during today’s House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress hearing on modernizing the innovation cycle, senior advisor to Rep. Hoyer, Stephen Dwyer pushed for Congress to do more on innovation. “I commend the Modernization Committee for your efforts on Congressional … Continue Reading
June 08, 2022
Hill staffers just got raises. These lawmakers say it’s their turn
by Chris Cioffi
Being a member of Congress definitely has its perks, but after a decade of being on the job with no raise, former Rep. Gregg Harper said enough was enough. Harper, a Mississippi Republican who served in the House from 2009 to 2019, said stagnant pay, restrictions on outside income and family pressures ultimately influenced his decision to retire. Harper’s son Livingston lives with Fragile X syndrome, a genetic condition linked to various developmental problems including … Continue Reading
June 03, 2022
Office Hours: Rep. Kilmer on How Social Media Influences Politics
by Spencer Rascoff
U.S. House Rep. Derek Kilmer spoke with Office Hours host Spencer Rascoff to discuss the select committee on the modernization of Congress and how social media has changed the political landscape. A former businessman, Kilmer has held the seat of Washington's sixth congressional district since 2013. He previously served as a member of the Washington House of Representatives and the Washington State Senate. Kilmer also chairs the select committee on the modernization of Congress, which … Continue Reading
May 25, 2022
Modernizing Congress is select committee’s improbable mission
by Mike De Felice
Many Americans are fed up with politicians in Washington D.C., and feel lawmakers spend too much time tweeting shots at each other rather than working on legislation to help the country. The national polls bear that out: Congress’s approval rating was pegged at a dismal 18 percent in a recent Gallup poll. A wisecrack making the rounds captures how many folks feel about the legislators on Capitol Hill: “Did you hear about the hurricane that went through Washington, D.C. today? It … Continue Reading
January 29, 2022
The promise of the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress
by Jerry Hartz, Muftiah Mccartin, Kyle Nevins, and Thomas J. Wickham Jr.
In December, the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress released its most recent recommendations to the U.S. House of Representatives. These recommendations add to the Select Committee’s recommendations from last Congress, two thirds of which have already been or are nearly implemented. The latest recommendations address staff recruitment, diversity, retention, and compensation; civility and collaboration; congressional support agencies; and evidenced-based policymaking. … Continue Reading
January 20, 2022
‘Fix Congress’ panel enters final year with ‘dry topics,’ vows not to rest
by Chris Cioffi
The House Clerk’s office is tired of playing legislative telephone. Clerk Cheryl Johnson, who oversees many record-keeping-related tasks in the House, said her staff is working toward a simpler future. Right now, Congress has four different formats for writing and viewing legislation, which must be translated or reformatted several times during the lawmaking process. The goal is to get to one. “A critical but often dry topic to discuss is standard-setting,” she said … Continue Reading
December 08, 2021
Modernization panel OKs latest recommendations, sprinkles Congress with its ‘secret sauce’
by Chris Cioffi
A drab room in the Capitol complex once again felt like an oasis Wednesday morning, as the “fix Congress” panel approved its latest set of recommendations. Elsewhere on the Hill, tempers flared and lawmakers traded blame over how much legislating was left to do before the end of the year. But for the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress, the word of the day was “civility.” “Congress was designed to be a deliberative body, where members not … Continue Reading
October 28, 2021
Modernization Committee tracks its own progress as clock keeps ticking
by Chris Cioffi
The House Modernization of Congress Committee wants to make sure its recommendations don’t end up like some of its predecessors’ did — collecting dust on a shelf. The panel released its latest progress report Thursday, tracking the 97 recommendations it made last Congress and whether they’ve gone anywhere. More than 60 percent of them have, the report says. From the very beginning, the panel has tried to do things differently as it tries to cure what ails the … Continue Reading
September 23, 2021
Civility in Congress has turned into a joke. This panel is taking it seriously
by Chris Cioffi
The “Fix Congress” committee got so much out of its first two hearings this year on the elusive goal of civility, it agreed to hold a third. “In my first year in Congress, and when there was minimal back and forth, it was nasty,” said Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress Vice Chairman William R. Timmons IV. “We need to have legitimate conversations on the challenges facing the American public, and we can’t do that in the current … Continue Reading
September 23, 2021
Lawmakers Pitch Civility as Big Spending Spats Take Center Stage
Allowing lawmakers of differing parties to be chief sponsors on legislation and requiring committees to adopt civility standards are two of the proposals being floated for lowering the temperature on Capitol Hill. The Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress held a hearing on the topic Thursday, as the chamber is beset by partisan and intraparty tensions over raising the debt ceiling, big-spending bills, and even blueberries. "There is some value in just trying to get a better sense … Continue Reading
September 13, 2021
Kilmer roundtable: Working to modernize Congress for the 21st century
U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer, the Democrat representing the 6th Congressional District in Congress, sat down Aug. 20 for a roundtable discussion with reporters from the Kitsap Daily News on issues of local and regional importance, including his work as chairman of the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress. The select committee's mission, he said, is to make Congress more accessible to the American people and to strengthen the institution by better equipping staff members to handle … Continue Reading
September 10, 2021
Capitol Hill tries to tackle its brain drain
FLAILING? BAILING? HILL TALKS RETENTION ISSUES - Lawmakers want to reverse the brain drain caused by top aides leaving, but it's not clear whether the promise of future pay bumps and proposals for expanded benefits can counteract the strain of working long hours in an environment where they've experienced an insurrection, a bomb threat and a vehicle attack in less than a year. (And for entry- and mid-level aides, those pay bumps and benefits aren't just around the corner.) A former House aide … Continue Reading
September 10, 2021
Congress wakes up to its staff retention problems after Covid, bomb threats and riots
Congressional Democratic leaders are trying to stem a tide of staff turnover in both parties after a year that has tested the Hill's mental health and sense of safety. The efforts might not be enough. Retention problems have plagued congressional offices for years, exacerbated by lagging pay and a patchwork of benefits - and that was before the Jan. 6 riot that threatened the lives of aides as well as members. The pandemic is its own existential threat to Hill aides who, in many cases, must … Continue Reading
July 24, 2021
Can this 'marriage' be saved? How conservatives and liberals can learn to trust again
by Dr. William Doherty
Over the past few years, I've led dozens of workshops in which ordinary Americans across the ideological spectrum share their strongly held political views. It's no surprise that liberals and conservatives have deep disagreements on the core issues facing America. But they usually agree on one thing: Congress is broken. As one participant exclaimed: "Please stop fighting all the time and get things done!" As another reflected: "Neither side is going to finally vanquish the other. So we'd … Continue Reading
July 23, 2021
People often ask what the power of the committee is, and the power of this committee is consensus
On Wednesday, The Ripon Society and Franklin Center for Global Policy Exchange held a luncheon discussion with Yuri Beckelman and Derek Harley, the two Staff Directors leading The Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress. The Select Committee was created in January of 2019 and has the herculean task of finding a way to make Congress more effective, efficient, and transparent. Beckelman kicked off the event by discussing the core mission of the panel. "People often ask what the power … Continue Reading
June 11, 2021
The Hill: Making Congress more effective for the American people
We have followed the work of the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress with great interest. Since serving together in the United States Senate, both of us have been focused on the kinds of reforms that the Select Committee is charged with considering. Each of us has written a book recommending institutional changes that would help Congress better serve the American people. The Select Committee has done outstanding work. Everyday Americans are also impressed. The National … Continue Reading
June 09, 2021
Roll Call: Lawmakers seek funds to improve the workings of Congress
The leaders of a bipartisan panel tasked with modernizing Congress on Wednesday urged the House Appropriations Committee to fund several changes they say would improve the lives of members and staff as well as how the institution itself functions. Washington Democrat Derek Kilmer and South Carolina Republican William R. Timmons IV asked appropriators to help the House Modernization of Congress Committee implement several of the 97 recommendations it made during the last Congress. Kilmer, … Continue Reading