Joint committee

In bicameral legislatures, joint committees, containing members of both houses, can be convened in order to coordinate activities, avoid duplicating work, or to discuss matters of common interest.

In the US Congress joint committees play an important legislative role. The two houses often pass substantially different versions of the same bill, in which case a joint committee, usually consisting of three members from each house, is convened. The joint committee seeks to find a compromise between the different versions of the bill, a procedure that often involves substantial redrafting. Joint committees are also convened to carry out congressional investigations, or to discuss business the two houses have in common, such as the running of common facilities, or arranging celebrations or memorials. There are also a number of permanent joint committees.

Consisting of both senators and representatives, joint committees avoid the duplication of House and Senate committee hearings on the same subject. During the Civil War, Congress created a Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War. Later, it created a Joint Committee of Fifteen to oversee the reconstruction of the Southern states. The greatest effort to establish joint committees came from the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, which promoted joint committees as a means of streamlining and modernizing Congress. Several joint committees were established as a result of this act. At first, senators always chaired such joint committees, but the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy developed the practice of alternating the chairmanship and vice chairmanship of the committee between senators and representatives, a practice that other joint committees also adopted. By the time of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970, however, members of both houses had found no indication that joint committees speeded up their work and recommended against continuing them. With the exception of the Joint Economic Committee and the Joint Committees on Taxation and on the Library, the use of joint committees was abandoned. During the Iran-Contra investigation of 1987 a joint committee was appointed, but its large membership made it unwieldy and reduced its effectiveness.

See also Committees, congressional; Legislative Reorganization Acts (1946 and 1970)

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Main article: Committee

A Joint Committee is a term used in politics to refer to a committee made up of members of both chambers of a bicameral parliament.

Contents 1 Republic of Ireland 2 United Kingdom 3 United States 4 See also

Republic of Ireland

A Joint Committee of the Irish Oireachtas (parliament) comprises members of both Dáil Éireann (the lower house) and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).

United Kingdom

A Joint Committee of the Parliament of the United Kingdom is a Select Committee consisting of members of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

United States

A joint committee of the United States Congress is a Congressional committee consisting of Members of both Houses and having jurisdiction over matters of joint interest. Most joint committees are standing committees (for example, the Joint Committee on the Library) but special joint committees have been created to address specific issues (such as the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War).

See also

• List of United States Joint congressional committees
• Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation

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