The House Explained

Constitution of the United States

We the People of the United States…

As per the Constitution, the U.S. House of Representatives makes and passes federal laws. The House is one of Congress’s two chambers (the other is the U.S. Senate), and part of the federal government’s legislative branch. The number of voting representatives in the House is fixed by law at no more than 435, proportionally representing the population of the 50 states.

Learn About:

What is a representative.

Also referred to as a congressman or congresswoman, each representative is elected to a two-year term serving the people of a specific congressional district. Among other duties, representatives introduce bills and resolutions, offer amendments and serve on committees. The number of representatives with full voting rights is 435, a number set by Public Law 62-5 on August 8, 1911, and in effect since 1913. The number of representatives per state is proportionate to population.

Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution provides for both the minimum and maximum sizes for the House of Representatives. Currently, there are five delegates representing the District of Columbia, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. A resident commissioner represents Puerto Rico. The delegates and resident commissioner possess the same powers as other members of the House, except that they may not vote when the House is meeting as the House of Representatives.

To be elected, a representative must be at least 25 years old, a United States citizen for at least seven years and an inhabitant of the state he or she represents.

Go to the Clerk’s site for more information about representatives.

View the list of House members.

Find Your Representative

Enter your ZIP code in the banner of this page to find the representative for your congressional district.

Did You Know?

After extensive debate, the framers of the Constitution agreed to create the House with representation based on population and the Senate with equal representation. This agreement was part of what is referred to as The Great Compromise .

House leadership includes the speaker, majority and minority leaders, assistant leaders, whips and a party caucus or conference. The speaker acts as leader of the House and combines several institutional and administrative roles. Majority and minority leaders represent their respective parties on the House floor. Whips assist leadership in managing their party's legislative program on the House floor. A party caucus or conference is the name given to a meeting of or organization of all party members in the House. During these meetings, party members discuss matters of concern.

The majority party members and the minority party members meet in separate caucuses to select their leader. Third parties rarely have had enough members to elect their own leadership, and independents will generally join one of the larger party organizations to receive committee assignments.

Learn more about the history of the majority and minority leaders from the Office of the Clerk .

Leadership List

View the list of leadership offices and links to the websites.

Past Leadership

Curious about who else has been Speaker of the House or Majority Leader?  Read more about  past house leadership .

Do You Know?

How many people have served as Speaker of the House? Has the Speaker ever become President? Find out more about the history of the Speakership!

The House’s standing committees have different legislative jurisdictions. Each considers bills and issues and recommends measures for consideration by the House. Committees also have oversight responsibilities to monitor agencies, programs, and activities within their jurisdictions, and in some cases in areas that cut across committee jurisdictions.

The Committee of the Whole House is a committee of the House on which all representatives serve and which meets in the House Chamber for the consideration of measures from the Union calendar.

Before members are assigned to committees, each committee’s size and the proportion of Republicans to Democrats must be decided by the party leaders. The total number of committee slots allotted to each party is approximately the same as the ratio between majority party and minority party members in the full chamber.

Get answers to frequently asked questions about committees from the Clerk of the House.

Committee Websites

All committees have websites where they post information about the legislation they are drafting.

What's a Select Committee?

The House will sometimes form a special or select committee for a short time period and specific purpose, frequently an investigation.

Each committee has a chair and a ranking member. The chair heads the full committee. The ranking member leads the minority members of the committee.

Congress has created a wide variety of temporary and permanent commissions to serve as advisory bodies for investigative or policy-related issues, or to carry out administrative, interparliamentary, or commemorative tasks. Such commissions are typically created by either law or House resolution, and may be composed of House members, private citizens, or a mix of both. In some cases, the commissions are entities of the House or Congress itself; in other cases, they are crafted as independent entities within the legislative branch.

Examples of commissions

  • Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission: a temporary, independent investigative body created by law and made up of private citizens.
  • Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (also known as the Helsinki Commission): an independent U.S. government agency composed of nine members of the United States Senate, nine from the House of Representatives, and one member each from the Departments of State, Defense and Commerce.
  • House Page Board: a permanent, Congressional advisory group created by law and made up of House members, Officers, and private citizens.

House Commissions

  • Congressional Executive Commission on China
  • Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission)
  • House Democracy Partnership Commission
  • Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission
  • U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission

Whether working on Capitol Hill or in his / her congressional district, a representative’s schedule is extremely busy. Often beginning early in the morning with topical briefings, most representatives move quickly among caucus and committee meetings and hearings. They vote on bills, speak with constituents and other groups, and review constituent mail, press clips and various reports. Work can continue into the evening with receptions or fundraising events.

Key Concept

Representatives carry out a broad scope of work in order to best represent their constituents.

Contact Your Representative

Share your thoughts with your representative. Use the Find Your Representative box in the banner of this site to identify your representative, then use the contact form to share your thoughts.

Representatives’ schedules are sometimes planned out in increments as short as five minutes.

House Rules

The Rules of the House of Representatives for the 118th Congress were established by the House with the adoption of H. Res. 5 (PDF) on January 9, 2023. A section by section analysis is also available.

Rules of Conduct

The Committee on Ethics has jurisdiction over the rules and statutes governing the conduct of members, officers and employees while performing their official duties.

The Rules Committee controls what bills go to the House Floor and the terms of debate.

Majority Rules

The makeup of the Rules Committee has traditionally been weighted in favor of the majority party, and has been in its current configuration of 9 majority and 4 minority members since the late 1970s.

The Rules Committee has an online Parliamentary Bootcamp that gives an overview of House Floor procedures, process and precedents.

As outlined in the Constitution , the House represents citizens based on district populations, while the Senate represents citizens on an equal state basis. This agreement was part of what is called The Great Compromise which, in turn, led to the Permanent Seat of Government Act establishing the nation’s federal capital in Washington, DC. In 1789, the House assembled for the first time in New York. It moved to Philadelphia in 1790 and then to Washington, DC, in 1800.

Each member of the House represents a set number of constituents.

More House History

Learn more about the History of the House from the Clerk’s website.

The House of Representatives moved into the House wing on the south side of the Capitol in 1807, four years before the wing was fully completed.

Committees and Caucuses

  • My District
  • Votes and Legislation
  • U.S. House of Representatives
  • Help With Your Concerns
  • Appropriations Requests
  • Funding Disclosures
  • Tours and Tickets
  • Grant Applicants
  • Service Academy Nominations
  • Internships
  • Congressional Messages & Certificates
  • Presidential Greetings
  • Congressional Art Competition
  • Congressional App Challenge
  • Small Business Resources
  • Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL)
  • Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)
  • Government Reform
  • Energy and Environment
  • Fiscal Accountability
  • Foreign Relations
  • Health Care
  • National Security
  • Native Hawaiians
  • Press Releases
  • Speeches and Testimony
  • E-Newsletters
  • Newsletters
  • Red Hill Updates
  • E-Newsletter Sign Up
  • Request a Meeting
  • facebook-page
  • instagram-page
  • youtube-page
  • White House
  • Energy/Environment
  • Health Care
  • Transportation
  • Heard on the Hill
  • Fintech Beat
  • Political Theater
  • Newsletters
  • Capitol Ink
  • Roll Call e-Edition
  • Classifieds

Guide to House committee chairs for 118th Congress

Glenn Thompson , a Pennsylvania Republican in his eighth term, assumes the top Agriculture Committee post as the panel prepares to write a 2023 farm bill to set multiyear policy for agriculture, nutrition, conservation and other programs. The current five-year bill expires Sept. 30.  

The Agriculture Committee is likely to debate the agriculture industry’s role in climate change policy. Thompson has expressed skepticism about the Biden administration incorporating climate policies in existing farm bill conservation programs and advancing new climate pilot programs.

However, Thompson successfully tacked on to the fiscal 2023 omnibus spending packag the text of his bill to allow the Agriculture Department to accept private contributions for private-public partnership accounts that could be used for climate and other projects under the Natural Resource Conservation Service. 

David Scott , D-Ga., the panel’s former chairman, will continue in his party’s top slot as ranking member.

Appropriations

Texas Republican Kay Granger takes the helm at Appropriations during a tumultuous time for her party, driven by a near-universal desire to cut federal spending, but less agreement on exactly what to cut. 

First elected in 1996, Granger became the first woman to lead her party on the powerful spending panel in 2019. Her Fort Worth-area district is home to military installations and defense contractors like Lockheed Martin Corp. She has repeatedly made clear that defense won’t bear the burden of any spending cuts that Speaker Kevin McCarthy , R-Calif., agreed to in exchange for conservatives’ support.

Other Republicans quickly came out with similar statements, making it clear that domestic programs are likely to shoulder the brunt of any budget cuts. But it’s unclear that such austere fiscal 2024 appropriations bills can even pass the House, let alone the Democratic-controlled Senate.

Rosa DeLauro , D-Conn., will continue as the top Appropriations Democrat in this Congress.

Armed Services

Mike D. Rogers , R-Ala., will chair the Armed Services Committee.

Rogers backs growth in the U.S. defense budget to deter Russia, China and other potential foes. He will also oversee an assault this year on what Republicans term the Pentagon’s “woke” social agenda, and the committee will help lead a House GOP probe of the problematic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.  

Rogers has represented his eastern Alabama district for two decades. He was the Armed Services Committee’s ranking member in the 117th Congress, and once chaired its Strategic Forces panel. Eastern Alabama is home to several major Army and Air Force installations, and the aerospace and aviation hub of Huntsville is not far to the north.

Adam Smith of Washington remains the panel’s top Democrat.

Jodey C. Arrington , a Texas Republican now in his fourth term, won the Budget gavel after winning a three-way competition that played out before the steering committee on Monday.

Arrington’s already well acquainted with fiscal issues from his time serving on the Ways and Means Committee, which oversees tax policy and swaths of federal spending. He’ll have his hands full trying to unify the fractious GOP Conference around a budget resolution that can be adopted on a party-line vote, with just four votes to spare. But he’s also touted his work across the aisle to try to impose some fiscal discipline.

After winning the Budget slot late Monday, Arrington in a statement invoked James Madison’s admonition that “public debt is a public curse,” and at $31 trillion and counting, is exponentially greater than any of the Founding Fathers could have envisioned. “It will take a team effort across the GOP Conference and across the aisle to restore fiscal responsibility and reverse the curse,” Arrington said.

Brendan F. Boyle , D-Pa., will be the panel’s ranking member after the retirement of former Chairman John Yarmuth , D-Ky.

Education and the Workforce

The GOP Conference backed  Virginia Foxx of North Carolina to chair the Committee on Education and the Workforce, returning her to a position she held from 2017 to 2019.

“To officials in the Biden administration: think about investing in a parking space on Capitol Hill — you will be here often,” she said Monday in a statement after winning the Republican Steering Committee’s nomination, fighting off a challenge by Tim Walberg of Michigan. 

Scrutiny of President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness program, currently tied up in the courts, will be a top priority, Foxx said. 

Robert C. Scott of Virginia is the panel’s top Democrat.

Energy and Commerce

Republican Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington will chair the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee after two years serving as ranking member. 

She’s expected to focus first on energy policy, as Republicans seek to lower gas prices and counter Biden’s energy and economic agenda.

But the health care list is also long. Rodgers has pledged to drill down on the nation’s fentanyl crisis — an issue that also doubles as fodder for Republicans’ promise to secure the southern border and hold Big Tech companies’ feet to the fire.

Republicans also hope to boost their ongoing COVID-19 investigations with the additional power that comes with committee gavels. Ending the public health emergency, reversing worker mandates related to testing and vaccination, finding the origins of the virus, investigating fraud in pandemic aid programs and conducting oversight of the Biden administration’s pandemic-related decisions are all on the agenda.

Former Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. , D-N.J., will be ranking member.

Michael Guest , R-Miss., has the been the acting ranking member on Ethics, though McCarthy hasn’t made any announcements yet regarding his picks for the panel.

Democrats named Susan Wild of Pennsylvania as the new ranking member on Ethics, which could have its hands full right out of the gate investigating the circumstances around the election of Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., among other topics.

Financial Services

The GOP Conference backed Patrick T. McHenry of North Carolina, a key negotiator behind the deal to secure the speakership for McCarthy, to lead the House Financial Services Committee.

“I’m excited to get back to my policy bag,” McHenry said toward the end of speaker negotiations. “I mean, that’s what this whole week has been about, is getting on with the business.”

McHenry, who will take over the panel after four years as ranking member, has vowed to ramp up oversight of banking and market regulators, pursue legislation to protect consumer financial data protections, make it easier to raise capital and establish a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.

Maxine Waters , D-Calif., stays on as ranking member.

Foreign Affairs 

Michael McCaul , R-Texas, has been selected as the next chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

McCaul was outspoken during last week’s speaker election floor drama about wanting to get started with committee work, including a planned investigation of the Biden administration’s chaotic exit from Afghanistan, as well as issues related to Russia and China as panel priorities in the 118th Congress.

The panel also is expected to debate U.S. aid to Ukraine, a top target of conservatives.

Gregory W. Meeks , D-N.Y., is ranking member.

Homeland Security

Tennessee Republican  Mark E. Green will lead the House Homeland Security Committee, which oversees the third-largest government agency, after winning a contested race Monday at the steering panel. He cited priorities of countering weapons of mass destruction and issues related to the U.S.-Mexico border.

A member of the Freedom Caucus and a veteran and physician, Green emphasized his “breadth of experience,” including in health care, as making him uniquely qualified to lead the panel. Green is a former Army physician who later founded an emergency medical staffing company.

Green will lead efforts to oversee the sprawling department’s myriad duties, including border security, cybersecurity, counterterrorism and emergency response preparedness.

Bennie Thompson of Mississippi remains the panel’s top Democrat.

House Administration

Leadership of the committee that manages the House’s daily operations, various ancillary agencies like the Library of Congress, Capitol security and the U.S. Capitol Police as well as federal election law is up to McCarthy himself, rather than the steering panel. 

Since former Rep. Rodney Davis , R-Ill., lost his primary last year, there remains a vacuum at the top that’s expected to filled by one of two candidates: Wisconsin’s Bryan Steil  or Georgia’s Barry Loudermilk .

Steil has been viewed by some as the favorite since McCarthy tapped him to lead his “Restoring the People’s House” transition team for the 118th Congress, which focused on making the chamber more accessible to the public. But McCarthy, just coming off a weeklong battle to be elected speaker, hasn’t yet publicly signaled his intentions.

Joseph D. Morelle of New York will be the panel’s top Democrat, succeeding California’s Zoe Lofgren .

Intelligence

Another speaker-appointed role, the Intelligence chair slot hasn’t been made official yet. But it doesn’t appear that Rep. Michael R. Turner , R-Ohio, who’s been ranking member for the past year, has any competition for it.

First elected in 2002, Turner is the third-most senior Republican on the Armed Services Committee and has served on the Intelligence panel since 2015. He represents Ohio’s 10th District, an Air Force-heavy area that is home to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

As ranking member of the Intelligence panel, Turner touted the expansion of intelligence operations at Wright-Patterson under his watch. He is also a staunch China hawk.

It’s not yet clear who’ll be ranking member on the committee; McCarthy has pledged to boot Rep. Adam B. Schiff , D-Calif., the former chairman, off the panel altogether.

Ohio Republican  Jim Jordan will lead the Judiciary Committee, which oversees the Justice Department and a wide array of issues related to crime, policing, internet and tech companies, immigration, border policy and more.

The former college wrestling coach has taken a lead role in his party on oversight of the Biden administration and said the committee’s work would be vigorous and aggressive. He has remained one of Trump’s fiercest allies, who has widely panned Biden’s policies on the U.S.-Mexico border and the economy.

Jordan has said Republicans plan to focus on “problems which have all happened in the past two years,” including migrant crossings at the southern border and what he calls the weaponization of the government and the Justice Department against citizens. 

The panel’s former chair, Jerrold Nadler of New York, will be ranking member in this Congress.

Natural Resources

House Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman , R-Ark., said that under his leadership the committee will focus on “responsible stewardship of the incredible natural resources we’ve been given.”

Westerman will lead the committee after one term as its ranking member, having taken over the top Republican spot in 2021.

A licensed forester and engineer prior to entering politics, he has leaned on his experience and pointed to forestry as a possible area for bipartisan consensus. A frequent critic of both the administration and the current federal permitting process, he has called for the government to support greater development of oil, gas and mineral resources on public lands.

Arizona Democrat Raúl M. Grijalva will continue to lead his party on Natural Resources as ranking member.

Oversight and Accountability

Kentucky GOP Rep. James R. Comer ‘s quick rise up the House Republican ranks has landed him the chairmanship of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee in the new Congress.

A McCarthy ally, Comer is vowing to investigate a list of issues related to Biden, his family and his administration.

“I mean, when you hear more stories about outrageous activities that the Biden family’s engaged in, you have to ask yourself, where is Joe Biden on this? Why doesn’t he have the decency to rein the family in?” he told Fox News on Dec. 9. “Their business is influence peddling.” No Biden has been charged with criminal wrongdoing. 

Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin is the top Democrat on the committee.

Sometimes referred to as the “speaker’s committee,” each of its majority members, including its chair, is hand-picked by McCarthy.

The speaker hasn’t yet named the panel’s full GOP roster — which conservatives expect to populate in part with Freedom Caucus members — but on Tuesday he officially tapped  Tom Cole , R-Okla., to move over from the ranking member slot to the chair.

Rules derives its power from its key role in setting the terms of floor debate, deciding which amendments can be offered, how long debate will last, which points of order can be waived and so forth. Any bill with any controversy attached to it has to go through Rules, which can modify legislation with all manner of last-minute fixes to win votes.

The panel’s top Democrat remains Jim McGovern of Massachusetts.

Science, Space and Technology

Frank D. Lucas , R-Okla., is taking over the Science, Space, and Technology Committee, which oversees science agencies and federal research.

Lucas describes the panel, which has jurisdiction over NASA, the National Science Foundation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, as well as digital technology like artificial intelligence, as a committee of the future due to its focus on emerging issues.

“America has long been the global leader because of our commitment to innovative, fundamental research and our ability to leverage public-private partnerships,” Lucas said. “It will be our job on the Committee to ensure the U.S. stays at the cutting edge of science and technology by supporting and protecting American research.”

Lofgren is the panel’s new top Democrat, replacing former Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas, who retired after the 117th Congress.

Small Business

New Small Business Chairman Roger Williams says he will draw on his decades as a car dealer “to be the voice of Main Street America” as the panel digs into regulations issued by the Biden administration. 

Williams, R-Texas, said he plans to take on rules he considers costly and burdensome. He seems unlikely to use the committee to scrutinize the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program, a lending program to help businesses retain workers during COVID-19 shutdowns. 

Government watchdogs say there is evidence of fraud and lax lending standards. Williams received at least $1 million in 2020 for his auto business, money that he said helped to save many jobs.

Nydia M. Velázquez of New York will continue in her role as the panel’s top Democrat.

Transportation and Infrastructure

Sam Graves , R-Mo., will lead the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in the 118th Congress. Graves, who has led Republicans on the panel as ranking member since 2018, ran uncontested and secured the Steering Committee’s favor soon after the November midterms when Republicans won control.

He’s set to focus on oversight of the Biden administration’s implementation of the 2021 infrastructure law, as well as Federal Aviation Administration and Pipeline Safety and Hazardous Materials Administration reauthorization bills.

Graves replaces former Rep. Peter A. DeFazio , D-Ore., who retired, as chairman. The Democratic Caucus elected Rep. Rick Larsen , D-Wash., as ranking member of the infrastructure panel in December.

Veterans’ Affairs

Mike Bost , R-Ill., will continue to serve as top Republican on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. Bost, a veteran himself who has also held jobs as a firefighter and a truck driver, has served on the committee since coming to Congress in 2015.

Bost says he’s “committed to ensuring full transparency for veterans and taxpayers so that [veterans] have access to the care, support, and services they have earned and to lead fulfilling lives as civilians.” 

He initially opposed 2022 legislation to establish a costly new benefit program for veterans suffering illnesses due to toxic exposure, such as open burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan. But he came around and ultimately backed the final version negotiated with the Senate.

The previous chairman, Mark Takano , D-Calif., will move over to Bost’s old ranking member slot.

Ways and Means

Jason Smith , R-Mo., won a three-way race on Monday to become the next chairman of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, with jurisdiction over tax and trade policy, Medicare, Social Security and other entitlement programs and the statutory debt ceiling that the Treasury is set to hit later this year.

Smith is pledging more of a working-class tone at Ways and Means and a populist-tinged trade policy in line with Trump’s approach to China, for instance. He’s also gearing up for the coming battle over federal spending, while at the same time seeking extensions of Trump’s signature tax cuts.

Smith, who was the top Republican on the Budget panel in the last Congress, will be the youngest-ever Ways and Means chairman.

His Democratic counterpart is Richard E. Neal of Massachusetts, who’d been Ways and Means chairman since 2019. 

Peter Cohn, Ellyn Ferguson, Aidan Quigley, John M. Donnelly, Paul M. Krawzak, Lindsey McPherson, Caitlin Reilly, Lauren Clason, Herb Jackson, Benjamin J. Hulac, David Jordan, Valerie Yurk, John T. Bennett, Suzanne Monyak, Mark Satter, Laura Weiss and Michael Macagnone contributed to this report.

Recent Stories

house of representatives committee assignments

At the Races: Run the World (Older Women)

Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers is running for Michigan's open Senate seat.

As younger members of Congress leave, veteran members are trying to get back in

house of representatives committee assignments

Technology Can Be the Real Game Changer in Corrections

Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., speaks at a news conference on abortion rights on Nov. 1, 2023.

Democrats ask insurers to meet contraceptive coverage mandate

Wreaths and flowers are seen during National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day at the World War II Memorial on Dec. 7, 2021.

Greatest Generation Coin will help preserve World War II Memorial for future generations

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., leads his chamber's Financial Services Appropriations Subcommittee.

Lawmakers press to avoid funding pitfall for public defenders

Congressman Brad Wenstrup

My Committee Assignments

  • What I Stand For
  • Military Service
  • Doctors Caucus
  • My Legislation & Votes
  • Our District
  • How Can I Help?
  • Help with a Federal Agency
  • Flag Requests
  • Tour Requests
  • Federal Grant Assistance
  • Greeting Requests
  • Student Opportunities
  • Service Academy Nominations
  • Community Project Funding Requests
  • Surface Transportation Reauthorization Funding Request
  • Fraud Awareness
  • Agriculture
  • Budget & Spending
  • Defense & National Security
  • Foreign Policy
  • Health Care
  • Jobs & The Economy
  • Pro-Life & Family Issues
  • Second Amendment Rights
  • Social Security & Medicare
  • About the Legislative Process in Congress
  • Let Us Help
  • Sign up for my Newsletter
  • Telephone Townhall
  • Event Requests

Newsletter Signup

Add your email to get the latest updates

  • Find Your Representative
  • 118th Congress, 2nd Session

Member Profile

  • Phone Directory
  • Vacant Offices
  • Legislative Profiles
  • Historical Profiles
  • Biographical Directory
  • Membership Demographics
  • Member FAQs
  • Member Profiles

Lauren Underwood

Illinois (IL) – 14th, Democrat

Hometown: Naperville

Oath of Office: Jan. 07, 2023

Overview & Contact

  • Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
  • Homeland Security

Recent Votes

Mike Waltz Proudly Serving Florida

  • twitter-page Twitter
  • instagram-page Instagram
  • youtube-page YouTube

Congressman Larson's Committees

Congressman larson's committee assignments.

The Committee on Ways and Means

Congressman Larson is the Chairman of the Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee.

The Committee on Ways and Means is the oldest committee of the United States Congress, and is the chief tax-writing committee in the House of Representatives. The Committee derives a large share of its jurisdiction from Article I, Section VII of the U.S. Constitution which declares, "All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives."

The jurisdiction of the committee includes the critically important areas of revenue, tariffs, reciprocal trade agreements, and the bonded debt of the United States. Revenue-related aspects of the Social Security system, Medicare, and social services programs are also within the purview of the Committee.

(Learn more about the Committee on Ways and Means )

  • International
  • Submit A News Tip
  • Latest Forecast
  • Weather Cams
  • School Closings
  • Interactive Radar
  • Weather Stations
  • Local River Levels
  • Sports Coverage
  • Fish & Game
  • Video Series
  • Virtual Buck Pole
  • Original Programming
  • 9&10 News
  • Good Day Northern Michigan
  • Viewer Photos
  • Expert Tips
  • Contests & Events
  • Veterans Resource Station
  • Adopt A Pet
  • Law Help Line
  • Community Sponsorship Request
  • As Seen On The Four

MIGOP lawmaker has committee assignments, office staff revoked over racist post

house of representatives committee assignments

Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford. (Michigan House of Representatives)

A GOP state representative who promoted the racist “great replacement theory” has been stripped of his committee assignments, staff members and government-provided office expenditures.

Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford, will remain a voting member of the House of Representatives but will no longer be afforded access to assisting staff or taxpayer-funded office expenditures. He will also be removed from the House Natural Resources, Environment, Tourism, and Outdoor Recreation Committee.

The order came from House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, who denounced Schriver following his promotion of the “great replacement theory” on social media last week.

“Representative Schriver has a history of promoting debunked theories and dangerous rhetoric that jeopardizes the safety of Michigan residents and contributes to a hostile and uncomfortable environment for others,” Tate said in a statement early Monday. “The House of Representatives is the people’s house, and all Michiganders should look upon this body and take pride in how we conduct ourselves.”

Last week, Schriver reposted a graphic showing black silhouettes overtaking a global map with the caption “the great replacement”. He added to the image an emoji showing a downward trend on a graph.

The original post was made by Jack Posobiec, a far-right commentator and One America News Network host who has previously posted neo-Nazi phrases and often promotes false or misleading information.

The “great replacement theory” is a conspiracy theory that there is an organized effort to shift the demographics of Western nations to make white people a minority population. The theory has been espoused by numerous terrorists, including the perpetrators of the 2018 Pennsylvania synagogue shooting that killed 11 Jewish worshippers, the 2019 shooting in El Paso, Texas, that killed 23 Hispanic Walmart patrons, and the 2022 Buffalo, New York, shooting that killed 10 Black grocery store shoppers.

Schriver’s Democratic colleagues were quick to denounce his actions. Tate released a statement Thursday calling the post “blatantly racist” and that his actions have “deeply and personally offended the Michigan House of Representatives.

“Perhaps most disturbing is that his post uplifts a dangerous and tortured narrative that fosters violence and instability,” Tate said. “His callous and reckless act is not within the spirit of what Michigan is, and it contributes to a hostile environment.”

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer also condemned Schriver last week, saying in a statement that Michigan is uplifted by its inclusion of individuals from a diverse set of backgrounds.

“The abhorrent rhetoric pushed by a member of the Michigan House of Representatives goes against our state and national values,” she said. “We have a moral obligation to speak out against hatred. It is a failure of leadership for this kind of action to take place unchecked by the leaders of Rep. Schriver’s caucus, and the longer there is no action taken, the more responsibility leadership bears.”

Republican Leader Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, has yet to comment on the post. A spokesman for Hall did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Schriver’s post was also condemned by several Republican lawmakers, including Sen. John Damoose, R-Harbor Springs, who called the rhetoric “filth” in a Facebook post.

“I condemn, in the harshest of terms, the words put forth this week by Representative Josh Schriver and the whole offensive idea of “The Great Replacement”,” he wrote. “It’s time [that] we as Republicans take the lead [on] this issue - as we did in the earliest days of our party under the great Abraham Lincoln, our founder.”

Schriver has yet to delete the post and has continued to promote similar rhetoric on X, formerly Twitter.

Local Trending News

Suttons Bay couple turns $80M lottery win into a nonprofit horse therapy ranch

Suttons Bay couple turns $80M lottery win into a nonprofit horse therapy ranch

State police investigating love triangle stabbing in Lake Co.

State police investigating love triangle stabbing in Lake Co.

New proposal would automatically opt drivers in for $14 annual park passport

New proposal would automatically opt drivers in for $14 annual park passport

  • Election 2024
  • Entertainment
  • Newsletters
  • Photography
  • Press Releases
  • Israel-Hamas War
  • Russia-Ukraine War
  • Latin America
  • Middle East
  • Asia Pacific
  • AP Top 25 College Football Poll
  • Movie reviews
  • Book reviews
  • Financial Markets
  • Business Highlights
  • Financial wellness
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Social Media

Republican Michigan lawmaker loses staff and committee assignment after online racist post

Rep. Josh Schriver on the floor of the Michigan House of Representatives, at the Michigan Capitol, in Lansing, Mich., on Oct. 10, 2023. The Republican lawmaker, Schriver, in Michigan lost his committee assignment and staff Monday, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, days after posting an image of a racist ideology on social media. House Speaker Joe Tate, a Democrat who is Black, said he will not allow the House to be a forum for “racist, hateful and bigoted speech.” (David Guralnick/Detroit News via AP)

Rep. Josh Schriver on the floor of the Michigan House of Representatives, at the Michigan Capitol, in Lansing, Mich., on Oct. 10, 2023. The Republican lawmaker, Schriver, in Michigan lost his committee assignment and staff Monday, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, days after posting an image of a racist ideology on social media. House Speaker Joe Tate, a Democrat who is Black, said he will not allow the House to be a forum for “racist, hateful and bigoted speech.” (David Guralnick/Detroit News via AP)

FILE - Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit, awaits the start of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s State of the State address, Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2023, at the state Capitol in Lansing, Mich. Republican lawmaker, Josh Schriver, in Michigan lost his committee assignment and staff Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, days after posting an image of a racist ideology on social media. Tate, a Democrat who is Black, said he will not allow the House to be a forum for “racist, hateful and bigoted speech.” (AP Photo/Al Goldis, File)

  • Copy Link copied

A Republican lawmaker in Michigan lost his committee assignment and staff Monday, days after posting an image of a racist ideology on social media.

House Speaker Joe Tate, a Democrat who is Black, said he will not allow the House to be a forum for “racist, hateful and bigoted speech.”

State Rep. Josh Schriver, who is white, shared a post on X — formerly known as Twitter — that showed a map of the world with Black figures greatly outnumbering white figures, along with the phrase, “The great replacement!”

The conspiracy theory says there’s a plot to diminish the influence of white people.

FILE - Kristina Karamo speaks to Michigan Republican Party delegates Feb. 18, 2023, in Lansing, Mich. The Michigan GOP, long a bastion of traditional conservatism, is in a cash crunch and power struggle within its ranks. Some are openly alienating lifetime Republicans and undermining the party's work in key swing states. Allies of Pete Hoekstra, Trump's chosen state chairman, are in court trying to force out Karamo, who was elected last year. (AP Photo/Joey Cappelletti, File)

Schriver, who represents portions of Oakland and Macomb counties, can vote on the House floor. But Tate removed him from a committee and told the House Business Office to oversee his staff members, who still can assist constituents.

“Representative Schriver has a history of promoting debunked theories and dangerous rhetoric that jeopardizes the safety of Michigan residents and contributes to a hostile and uncomfortable environment for others,” Tate said.

A message seeking comment from Schriver wasn’t immediately returned. He defended his social media post last week.

“I’m opposed to racists, race baiters and victim politics,” Schriver told The Detroit News. “What I find strange is the agenda to demoralize and reduce the white portion of our population.”

Schriver was elected to a two-year term in 2022. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, released a statement Friday calling his post “abhorrent rhetoric.”

“We will never let those who stoke racial fears divide us,” she said.

Follow Ed White on X at https://twitter.com/edwritez

house of representatives committee assignments

WLNS Lansing

House Speaker strips Michigan Rep. of committee assignments, reassigns his staff

L ANSING, Mich. (WLNS) — Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives Joe Tate (D-Detroit) has taken action against Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford) following several social media posts on the platform “X” which are being called racist and hate speech by many of their colleagues.

Rep. Schriver had re-posted a map on Feb. 6, allegedly showing where white people live in comparison with communities of color across the world. At the bottom of the map, it declares “The great replacement!”

The “Great Replacement Theory” is a popular white supremacist theory that communities of color are replacing traditionally Caucasian communities,  according  to the Anti-Defamation League. The original X post was shared by right-wing media personality Jack Posobiec.

After initial reactions condemning the post – including from Speaker Tate, who called the posts “blatantly racist” – Rep. Schriver doubled down on the “Great Replacement Theory” rhetoric with several related posts of his own.

Tate spoke out again Monday morning in a press release.

“I will not allow the Michigan House of Representatives to be a forum for the proliferation of racist, hateful and bigoted speech,” House Speaker Tate said. “Representative Schriver has a history of promoting debunked theories and dangerous rhetoric that jeopardizes the safety of Michigan residents and contributes to a hostile and uncomfortable environment for others. The House of Representatives is the people’s house, and all Michiganders should look upon this body and take pride in how we conduct ourselves. It is also a workplace, and I have a responsibility to make sure the employees of the House feel safe and secure.” 

Tate said he “will withhold the office allotment for Schriver, and the representative’s staff will be reassigned.”

Tate is also removing Schriver from assignments on the House Natural Resources, Environment, Tourism, and Outdoor Recreation Committee, and the resources typically made available to a representative will be held by the House Business Office.

According to Tate, these “resources are provided at the discretion and pleasure of the Speaker.”

Schriver will continue as a representative and will still be able to vote on legislation.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WLNS 6 News.

State Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford) (Photo: MI House of Rep.)

house of representatives committee assignments

The conspiracy theory asserts that there is a coordinated and clandestine effort to replace white populations in majority-white countries, and has been described as racist and a "paranoid narrative," by the Southern Poverty Law Center .

The post drew sharp rebukes and condemnation from leading Democratic figures in Michigan, including Tate, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II, and other Democratic lawmakers. At least two Republican lawmakers also blasted the post.

Prep for the polls: See who is running for president and compare where they stand on key issues in our Voter Guide

"The abhorrent rhetoric pushed by a member of the Michigan House of Representatives goes against our state and national values," Whitmer said in a statement released Friday. "We have a moral obligation to speak out against hatred. It is a failure of leadership for this kind of action to take place unchecked by the leaders of Rep. Schriver's caucus, and the longer there is no action taken, the more responsibility leadership bears."

On X, Schriver has continued to defend the post. He declined to return a message seeking comment Monday morning. When a reporter left a message asking for comment on Tate’s actions, Schriver replied by asking to be forwarded the announcement from Tate's office, which is publicly available on the House Democrats' website. 

The great replacement theory has been widely condemned by anti-hate groups. In 2022, law enforcement officials investigated whether the theory was the motivation behind a mass shooting in Buffalo that killed 10 people, according to the Associated Press . Most of the victims of the shooting were Black. 

In explaining his decision to take action against Schriver, Tate said Schriver has elevated ideas associated with violence, threatening the safety of Michigan residents. "I will not allow the Michigan House of Representatives to be a forum for the proliferation of racist, hateful and bigoted speech," Tate said in a statement. "The House of Representatives is the people's house, and all Michiganders should look upon this body and take pride in how we conduct ourselves. It is also a workplace, and I have a responsibility to make sure the employees of the House feel safe and secure."

Despite the widespread admonitions from Democratic figures and groups, House Republican leadership has not issued any statements about Schriver's post. A spokesperson for House Minority Leader Matt Hall, R-Richland Township, didn't respond to a message seeking comment Monday morning.

Republican state Sen. John Damoose, R-Harbor Springs, condemned Schriver’s actions in a lengthy Facebook post Sunday .

Michigan gun safety: Michigan has new laws on the way, gun safety advocates want to see more

"I read with great horror yesterday a report of a Michigan state legislator advancing overtly cruel and racist ideas. I am sad to say this was a state representative who claims to be a member of my own Republican Party. But, let us be clear, his sickening words have nothing to do with the ideals we claim to uphold as Americans or conservatives," Damoose said. 

State Rep. Donni Steele, R-Orion Township, also issued a statement blasting Schriver's tweet. "All people have a moral obligation to speak out against hate whenever it rears its ugly head — this is one of those times," she said in a statement.

Schriver — a freshman lawmaker — was elected to the state House in November 2022, winning almost 65% of the vote in the 66th state House district that includes all of Addison, Brandon, and Oxford townships and part of Oakland Township in Oakland County, along with Bruce and Washington townships in Macomb County. Before serving as a state representative, he worked as a kindergarten teacher in Detroit and then as a behavior analyst to support children with autism and their families, according to his biography on the House GOP caucus' website.

Contact Arpan Lobo:  [email protected] . Follow him on X (Twitter)  @arpanlobo .

Contact Clara Hendrickson: [email protected] or 313-296-5743. Follow her on X, previously called Twitter, @clarajanehen .

Become a subscriber today.

house of representatives committee assignments

IMAGES

  1. S.C. House Of Representatives Committee Assignments Announced

    house of representatives committee assignments

  2. Committee Assignments

    house of representatives committee assignments

  3. Committee assignments 2013(1)

    house of representatives committee assignments

  4. (PDF) Committee Assignment Politics in the US House of Representatives

    house of representatives committee assignments

  5. 2019 Legislative Committee assignments

    house of representatives committee assignments

  6. 2017 Legislative Council Study Assignments

    house of representatives committee assignments

COMMENTS

  1. Committees

    The House's committees consider bills and issues and oversee agencies, programs, and activities within their jurisdictions. ... Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence; ... Joint Committee on Taxation; View Committees No Longer Standing from the 117th Congress. U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20515 Phone: 202-224-3121 TTY: 202 ...

  2. Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives

    There are no subcommittees assigned to this committee Committee on Education and the Workforce Subcommittees Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Higher Education and Workforce Development Workforce Protections Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittees Communications and Technology

  3. List of United States House of Representatives committees

    There are two main types of congressional committees in the United States House of Representatives, standing committees and select committees. Committee chairs are selected by whichever party is in the majority, and the minority party selects ranking members to lead them.

  4. Committees of the U.S. Congress

    Committee Assignments House Senate CQ.com (subscription required) Congress.gov covers the activities of the standing committees of the House and Senate, which provide legislative, oversight and administrative services.

  5. PDF Subcommittees House of Representatives Select Committees List of

    AN ALPHABETICAL LIST OF THE MEMBERS AND THEIR COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS ONE HUNDRED EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS Prepared under the direction of KEVIN F. McCUMBER Acting Clerk of the House of Representatives https://clerk.house.gov NOVEMBER 13, 2023 WASHINGTON : 2023 CONTENTS Standing Committees:Page

  6. The House Explained

    The Committee of the Whole House is a committee of the House on which all representatives serve and which meets in the House Chamber for the consideration of measures from the Union calendar. Before members are assigned to committees, each committee's size and the proportion of Republicans to Democrats must be decided by the party leaders.

  7. Rules Governing House Committee and Subcommittee Assignment Procedures

    Rules Governing House Committee and Subcommittee Assignment Procedures Members of the House are assigned to serve on committees at the start of every Congress. Most assignments involve a three-step process involving the party caucuses and action on the House floor. First, a Member is nominated to committee assignments by their party's steering

  8. Committees and Caucuses

    In the House there are twenty-one regular committees, five of which are referred to as exclusive meaning that generally that's the only committee the Member is assigned to due to the breadth of responsibility and workload of the committee.

  9. Six takeaways from House committee assignments so far

    More committee assignments remain to be handed out, but here are the six main takeaways so far: Greene, Gosar back on committees. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., joined at left by Rep. Paul ...

  10. House Committees: Assignment Process

    more specific criteria for committee assignments. Information on the number of, and limitations on, assignments is provided in CRS Report 98-151, House Committees: Categories and Rules for Committee Assignments, by Judy Schneider. In general, pursuant to House rules, Representatives cannot serve on more than two standing committees.

  11. Guide to House committee chairs for 118th Congress

    Posted January 11, 2023 at 2:07pm The House Republican Conference on Tuesday ratified a slate of standing committee chairs for the next two years, after the GOP steering committee recommended...

  12. House Committee Reports

    REPORT ON THE ACTIVITIES of the COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES for the ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION JANUARY 3, 2021-JANUARY 3, 2022 SECOND SESSION JANUARY 3, 2022-DECEMBER 18, 2022 together with DISSENTING VIEWS. H. Rept. 117-703. COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES A N N U A L.

  13. My Committee Assignments

    The House of Representatives has a total of 20 committees, in addition to 2 select committees and 4 joint committees shared with the Senate. These committees and their respective subcommittees are tasked with conducting hearings, examining and developing legislation, conducting oversight, and/or helping to manage chamber business and activities.

  14. Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives

    Overview & Contact Committee and Subcommittee Assignments Committee on Appropriations Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Homeland Security Loading. Please wait. CONTACT: 1410 Longworth House Office Building, Washington DC 20515-1314, COMMITTEE: Committee on Appropriations

  15. Committee Assignments in the House of Representatives

    Committee Assignments in the House of Representatives* - Volume 55 Issue 2. 3 Data have been derived from unstructured interviews with members and staffs of the various committees, personal letters and similar papers, official documents of various types, and personal observations. I interviewed members of the committees-on-committees, deans of state delegations, and other members affected by ...

  16. Committees

    Our national security depends on it.". - Congressman Mike Waltz, January 25, 2023. The House Armed Services Committee retains exclusive jurisdiction for: defense policy generally, ongoing military operations, the organization and reform of the Department of Defense and Department of Energy, counter-drug programs, acquisition and industrial ...

  17. Congressman Larson's Committees

    Congressman Larson's Committee Assignments The Committee on Ways and Means Congressman Larson is the Chairman of the Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee. The Committee on Ways and Means is the oldest committee of the United States Congress, and is the chief tax-writing committee in the House of Representatives.

  18. Which committees are Wisconsin's US House members assigned to in the

    The U.S. House of Representatives is wrapping committee and subcommittee assignments for the 118th Congress, which began in January and continues until January 2025. "Overall, this looks like a good set of committee assignments for the Wisconsin delegation," said David Canon, a UW-Madison Department of Political Science professor who ...

  19. Committee Assignments of the 118th Congress

    U.S. Senate: Committee Assignments of the 118th Congress Committee Assignments of the 118th Congress Below are all current senators and the committees on which they serve. Baldwin, Tammy (D-WI) Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee on Defense

  20. MIGOP lawmaker has committee assignments, office staff revoked over

    Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford. (Michigan House of Representatives) A GOP state representative who promoted the racist "great replacement theory" has been stripped of his committee assignments ...

  21. Republican Michigan lawmaker loses staff and committee assignment after

    Rep. Josh Schriver on the floor of the Michigan House of Representatives, at the Michigan Capitol, in Lansing, Mich., on Oct. 10, 2023. The Republican lawmaker, Schriver, in Michigan lost his committee assignment and staff Monday, Monday, Feb. 12, 2024, days after posting an image of a racist ideology on social media.

  22. Christine Hunschofsky

    Current Committee Assignments. Infrastructure Strategies Committee Democratic Ranking Member; Agriculture, Conservation & Resiliency Subcommittee ... Elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2020, reelected subsequently Other Public Services. Mayor, Parkland, FL, 2016-2020 Vice Mayor, Parkland, FL, 2014-2016 ...

  23. House Speaker strips Michigan Rep. of committee assignments ...

    Speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives Joe Tate (D-Detroit) has taken action against Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford) following several social media posts on the platform "X" which are ...

  24. US House panel considers commission to tackle nation's soaring debt

    Bipartisan legislation to create a commission charged with taming the $34 trillion U.S. national debt is set to advance this week in a House of Representatives panel, as lawmakers battle over federal spending. The House Budget Committee on Tuesday said it will hold a work session at 10 a.m. (1500 GMT) on Thursday to debate and potentially vote on the "Fiscal Commission Act of 2023," just weeks ...

  25. Michigan Rep. Stripped of Committee Assignments Over Racist Content

    The House of Representatives condemned his actions as deeply offensive and passed a resolution against racist language. Michigan Rep. Josh Schriver was stripped of his committee assignments, staff, and office funding after engaging with racist content on social media. The House of Representatives condemned his actions as deeply offensive and ...

  26. PDF The House Committee on Oversight and Accountability (Oversight

    against President Biden for consideration by the full House.1 Along with the House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, we set forth in a September 27, 2023, memorandum the evidence justifying the inquiry and the scope of this impeachment investigation.2 On December 13, 2023, the House of Representatives directed the Committees to ...

  27. Michigan GOP rep Josh Schriver loses committee post over racist theory

    State Rep. Josh Schriver, R-Oxford, lost his staff and his spot on a legislative committee as punishment for sharing a social media post amplifying a racist conspiracy theory. House Speaker Joe ...

  28. Hunter Biden indicates willingness to comply with a Republican subpoena

    Hunter Biden on Friday indicated a new willingness to testify before lawmakers under certain conditions but held firm against complying with a current subpoena as House Republicans moved to hold him in contempt of Congress. In a letter to the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees, Abbe Lowell, Hunter Biden's attorney, seemed to open the door for a private deposition between the president's ...