Discharging Congress : government by commission / Colton C. Campbell.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Campbell, Colton C., 1965-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Governmental investigations--United States.

Governmental investigations.

Parliamentary practice--United States.

Parliamentary practice.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (202 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Westport, Conn. : Praeger, 2002.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The creation of temporary, independent advisory bodies that give advice to Congress, is an important yet under-investigated area of congressional delegation. With variations to fit the circumstances, lawmakers entrust commissions to accomplish diverse goals, such as coping with increases in the scope and complexity of legislation, forging consensus, drafting legislation, finessing institutional obstacles, coordinating strategy, and promoting party unity. Campbell investigates why and when Congress formulates policy by commissions rather than by the normal legislative process. He shows that many variables go into the decision to entrust those bodies to render non-partisan recommendations. According to lawmakers and their staff, the three primary justifications for choosing to delegate to commission include expertise, workload, and avoidance. Which of these three dominates depends in large part on the politics surrounding a particular issue and the nature of the policy problem. The logic of delegation to each of the three commission types is different. Which reason dominates depends in large part on the politics surrounding the issue and the nature of the legislative policy problem. Scholars, students, and other researchers involved with Congress, American government, and public policy will find the study of particular interest.

Contents:

Intro

Tables and Figure

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter 1 The Development and Use of Ad Hoc Commissions in Legislative Policymaking

Chapter 2 The Path to Delegation

Chapter 3 The Politics of Congressional Delegation

Chapter 4 A Case of Expertise: The National Commission on AIDS

Chapter 5 A Case of Workload Management: The National Commission on the Thrift Industry

Chapter 6 A Case of Blame Avoidance: The Base Closure and Realignment Commission

Chapter 7 The Significance of Commissions in Understanding Legislative Behavior

Appendix 1: Method and Scope of Research

Appendix 2: Congressional Language to Propose a Commission

Appendix 3: Proposed Commissions: 93rd-107th Congresses

Selected Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references (p. [179]-181) and index.

ISBN:

9780313073748

0313073740

OCLC:

70763583