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House of Representatives and Senate Ethics Committees

House of Representatives and Senate Ethics Committees. Evan Dean Emily Overfelt. History of Committees. A congressional committee is a legislative sub-organization in the United States Congress that handles a specific duty

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House of Representatives and Senate Ethics Committees

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  1. House of Representatives and Senate Ethics Committees

    Evan Dean Emily Overfelt
  2. History of Committees A congressional committee is a legislative sub-organization in the United States Congress that handles a specific duty Committee membership enables members to develop specialized knowledge of the matters under their jurisdiction. As "little legislatures," committees monitor on-going governmental operations, identify issues suitable for legislative review, gather and evaluate information, and recommend courses of action to their parent body.
  3. Characteristics of the Senate Ethics Committee Bipartisan- to keep the rules and regulations implemented on the senators, there are equal numbers of committee members from each party There are currently 3 members for each party There are 6 members of the Senate Ethics Committee
  4. Senate: Ethics Committee Duties The ethics committee mandates rules for the senators behavior and conduct while in office. This ties closely with the Senate Rules Committee The issues that the committee deals with are primarily related to financial responsibility of the senators. i.e.- travel, campaign, personal expenses
  5. The Ethics Manual The Senate Ethics Committee publishes a manual of all of the different rules and regulations regarding ethics called the ethics manual Occasionally, if there is activity in the senate or in the government that seems suspicious, the Ethics Committee has the right to review the circumstances according to the Ethics MAnual
  6. Chairman & Vice-chairman The committee chairman is always a member of the majority party The chairman is currently Democrat Barbara Boxer The committee vice-chairman is always a member of the minority party The vice-chairman is currently Republican Johnny Isakson
  7. Barbara Boxer Born in Brooklyn, NY, November 11, 1940 Democrat who has the record of the most popular votes in a state election Also is the chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee The only senator who presides over two committees Chief Deputy Whip of the Democratic Majority Running for re-election this year in California against Carly Fiorina
  8. Senate Committee Ranking Member:Johnny Isakson Born in Atlanta, Georgia Served in the Georgia Air National Guard from 1966 to 1972, leaving service as a staff sergeant Graduated from the University of Georgia Opened the first Cobb County office of Northside Realty, a prominent Atlanta-area real estate firm became company president in 1979, a post he held for 22 years, during which Northside became the biggest independent real estate company in Georgia. Served seven terms in the House, the last two as Minority leader Currently running for re-election in 2010. He is unopposed for the Republican nomination and is heavily favored in November
  9. Recent Ethics Committee Inquiries Senator John Ensign Did the Senator break the law when helping his mistress’s husband find a job? Governor Rod Blagojevich Solicited President Obama’s senate seat for personal gain
  10. House of Representatives: Ethics Committee Duties Agrees on a set of rules that regulate what behavior is considered ethical for members (rules relating to gifts, travel, campaign activities, treatment of staff, conflicts of interest, etc. are typical) Conducts investigations into whether members have violated these standards Makes recommendations to the whole House on what action, if any, should be taken as a result of the investigations (e.g. censure, expulsion from the House, or nothing if the member is found not to be violating a rule) Provides advice to members before they (the members) take action, so as to avoid uncertainty over ethical culpability
  11. House Committee Chairperson:Zoe Lofgren A lifelong Bay Area resident, Lofgren attended Gunn High School in Palo Alto, California. earned her B.A. at Stanford University and a J.D. at Santa Clara University Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1995, representing the 16th district of California, based in San Jose. served as a staff assistant to Congressman Don Edwards, in whose office she worked on, among other projects, the attempted impeachment of Richard Nixon spent three years teaching classes on immigration law at her former law school at Santa Clara University. currently the chair of the 34-member California Democratic Congressional Delegation. She serves on the Judiciary Committee and is the chair of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law invited comedian Stephen Colbert to testify before Congress on September 24, 2010 dealing with the issue of immigrant workers
  12. House Committee Ranking Member:Josiah (Jo) Robins Bonner, Jr. U.S. Representative for Alabama's 1st congressional district, serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party. educated at the University of Alabama, graduating in 1982 earned a consistent voting record and has made few waves as a party loyalist
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