House of Representatives and Senate Ethics

CommitteesEvan Dean

Emily Overfelt

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.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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