January 28, 1977
Page 2615
COMMITTEE REORGANIZATION TELEGRAPH
Issue 9
January 12, 1977.
Rules Committee hearings continued throughout January 11. Four Senators and a number of public witnesses appeared.
MUSKIE
The committee system, said Senator Muskie, is in need of overhaul. By way of general observation, he suggested that the Rules Committee should build reform on the following foundations: (1) the workload of committees that are already overburdened should not be increased; (2) careful attention should be paid to the need for balance in newly created committees; (3) the committees with legislative responsibility should also have oversight responsibility (He said S. Res. 4 does not conform to those principles in certain cases); (4) the arbitrary limitation on the number of subcommittees allowed should be closely examined; (5) other factors besides the proliferation of committees and subcommittees should be examined with regard to the strain placed on Senators' schedules (The increase in roll call votes, for example, has resulted in an inefficient use of committee meeting time); (6) the recommendations of the Hughes Commission on the Operation of the Senate as they related to the committee system.
Senator Muskie also offered a number of specific recommendations concerning the three committees on which he serves. Since the Budget Committee and the Joint Economic Committee already share a substantial amount of ,jurisdiction, it would be appropriate to transfer most of the JEC's jurisdiction to the Budget Committee if the Joint Economic Committee is not retained.
Senator Muskie also said the Rules Committee should give to the Budget Committee jurisdiction to consider laws under which the President's budget is formulated. This jurisdiction. presently resides in the Committee on Government Operations. If jurisdiction over budget and accounting measures other than appropriations and accounting measures were consolidated in the Budget Committee, he said, the work of the committee would be less "seasonal." Speaking as a member of both the Budget and Government Operations Committee, Senator Muskie stated that it was an oversight that jurisdiction over budget and accounting matters was not transferred when the Budget Act was drafted. This oversight, he concluded, should be corrected. Such a change would equalize workloads and further enhance congressional control of the budget.
With regard to the Committee on Environment and Public Works, Senator Muskie said that S. Res. 4 did not take account of the need for balance concerning the issues of development, on the one hand, and the issues of environment on the other. As established under the reorganization plan, this committee would be dominated by issues dealing with environmental protection. To achieve a greater balance, Muskie suggested that the new committee should be assigned issues dealing with development, and environmental issues that are basically conservation programs should be returned to the committees traditionally assigned those issues. Specifically, land and water conservation fund, wild and scenic rivers, and the Bureau of Outdoor Recreation should be assigned to the new Energy Committee, and oceans, weather, atmosphere, outer continental shelf lands; and fisheries and wildlife should be assigned to the new Commerce Committee. But Economic Development, Regional Economic Development, land use, other environmental regulatory authority, and all aspects of the pesticides program should be assigned to the new Environment Committee.
Concerning the new Governmental Affairs Committee, Senator Muskie suggested that jurisdiction over general revenue sharing should be transferred to this Committee from the Finance Committee. Furthermore, the Governmental Affairs Committee should be given responsibility for Senate oversight activities.
In a colloquy with members of the Rules Committee, Muskie said that S. Res. 4 did not, in his opinion substantially reduce jurisdictional fragmentation as it presently exists; and felt that the issue of jurisdiction could be rationalized further. At the same time he expressed general support for the reorganization plan, even if his recommendations were rejected.. He also added that overall authority with respect to pension plans should be in the appropriate legislative committees dealing with such, and not in the Budget Committee. Muskie also assured Senator Griffin that he would "promote" the principle of adequate minority staffing on the committees whenever possible.