Senate Committee Party Ratios: 98th-118th Congresses (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised April 11, 2023 |
| Report Number |
RL34752 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Matthew Eric Glassman, Analyst on the Congress; Sarah J. Eckman, Analyst in American National Government |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
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Summary:
The party ratio in the Senate standing committees is the proportional number of members of each party caucus assigned to each committee. Determining committee sizes, ratios, and assignments are among the first actions taken after a general election and at the beginning of a Congress.
The standing rules of the Senate are silent on the subject of committee party ratios. The apportionment of committee seats results from discussions between majority and minority party leadership. In general, it has been the practice of the Senate to apportion committee seats to the majority and minority parties in a manner that corresponds closely to the party strength in the full chamber. Findings from this study indicate that the majority party ratios on committees roughly approximate the majority party strength in the Senate chamber, regardless of which party has been in control.
This report shows Senate committee party ratios for 17 Congresses, covering the period of the 98th Congress (1983-1985) through the 114th Congress (2015-2017).
Table 1 shows a comparison of majority party strength in the Senate chamber with total majority committee seats for the 98th Congress through the 114th Congress. Unfilled seats on committees (if so noted in the Secretary of the Senate's lists or the Congressional Directory) are counted in individual and overall committee totals for consistency.
Tables 2-18 show the following for each of the 17 Congresses examined, by majority, minority, and Independents (where present):
Senate party breakdown and majority margin;
Total committee seats, majority and minority committee seats, and majority margin;
The standing and select committees (with legislative jurisdiction) as established and named in each Congress;
Committee seats allocated to the majority and minority parties, including Independents (where present), for each committee;
Majority-minority seat margin for each committee.
The committee ratios data for the 99th through 114th Congresses are taken from the official committee lists for each Congress issued by the Secretary of the Senate; the Congressional Directory is the source for the 98th Congress. The earliest editions of these primary documents are the sources for the data, although anomalies in some Congresses, such as a delay in seating a Senator due to a contested election, sometimes necessitated using later versions of the publications. Party strength in each Congress reflects numbers found in the Secretary's lists and the Congressional Directory. Different versions of the Secretary's list and the Congressional Directory, or the use of alternate sources or methodologies, could yield different results.
This report will be updated to reflect Senate committee party ratios in the 115th Congress.
