Everything about United States Senate Committee On Appropriations totally explained
The
U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations is a
standing committee of the
United States Senate. It has jurisdiction over all
discretionary spending legislation in the Senate.
The Senate Appropriations Committee is the largest committee in the U.S. Senate, consisting of 29 members. Its role is defined by the
U.S. Constitution, which requires "appropriations made by law" prior to the expenditure of any money from the Treasury, and is therefore one of the most powerful committees in the Senate. The committee was first organized on
March 6,
1867, when power over appropriations was taken out of the hands of the
Finance Committee.
The chairman of the Appropriations Committee has enormous power to bring home special projects (sometimes referred to as "
pork barrel spending") for his or her state as well as having the final say on other Senator's appropriation requests. For example, in
fiscal year 2005 per capita federal spending in Alaska, the home state of then-Chairman
Ted Stevens, is $12,000, double the national average. Alaska has 11,772 special earmarked projects for a combined cost of $15,780,623,000. This represents about 4% of the overall spending in the $388 billion Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2005 passed by Congress.
The Appropriations Process
The federal budget is divided into two main categories:
discretionary spending and mandatory spending. Each appropriations subcommittee develops a draft
appropriations bill covering each agency under its jurisdiction based on the
Congressional Budget Resolution, which is drafted by an analogous Senate
Budget committee. Each subcommittee must adhere to the spending limits set by the budget resolution and allocations set by the full Appropriations Committee, though the full Senate may vote to waive those limits if 60 senators vote to do so. The committee also reviews supplemental spending bills (covering unforeseen or emergency expenses not previously budgeted).
Each appropriations bill must be passed by both houses of
Congress and signed by the president prior to the start of the federal fiscal year,
October 1. If that target isn't met, as has been common in recent years, the committee drafts a
continuing resolution, which is then approved by Congress and signed by the President to keep the federal government operating until the individual bills are approved.
Members, 110th Congress
The Committee is currently chaired by
Democrat Robert C. Byrd of
West Virginia, and the
Ranking Minority Member is
Republican Thad Cochran, of
Mississippi.
Committee reorganization during the 110th Congress
At the outset of the 110th Congress, Chairman Robert Byrd and Chairman
Dave Obey, his counterpart on the
House Appropriations Committee, developed a committee reorganization plan that provided for common subcommittee structures between both houses, a move that the both chairmen hope will allow Congress to "complete action on each of the government funding on time for the first time since 1994." The subcommittees were last overhauled between the
107th and
108th Congresses, after the creation of the
Subcommittee on Homeland Security and again during the
109th Congress, when the number of subcommittees was reduced from 13 to 12.
A key part of the new subcommittee organization was the establishment of a new
Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, which consolidates funding for the
Treasury Department, the
United States federal judiciary, and the
District of Columbia. These functions were previously handled by two separate Senate subcommittees.
Subcommittees
| Subcommittee |
Chair |
Ranking Minority Member |
| Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies |
Herb Kohl, D-Wisconsin |
Robert Bennett, R-Utah |
| Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies |
Barbara Mikulski, D-Maryland |
Richard Shelby, R-Alabama |
| Defense |
Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii |
Ted Stevens, R-Alaska |
| Energy and Water Development |
Byron Dorgan, D-North Dakota |
Pete Domenici, R-New Mexico |
| Financial Services and General Government |
Dick Durbin, D-Illinois |
Sam Brownback, R-Kansas |
| Homeland Security |
Robert Byrd, D-West Virginia |
Thad Cochran, R-Mississippi |
| Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies |
Dianne Feinstein, D-California |
vacant |
| Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies |
Tom Harkin, D-Iowa |
Arlen Specter, R-Pennsylvania |
| Legislative Branch |
Mary Landrieu, D-Louisiana |
Wayne Allard, R-Colorado |
| Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies |
Tim Johnson, D-South Dakota |
Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas |
| State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs |
Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont |
Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky |
| Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies |
Patty Murray, D-Washington |
Kit Bond, R-Missouri |
Chairmen of the Appropriations Committee, 1867-present
Further Information
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