#Oversight

49 entries

Branches (10)

Where Congress actually works: the standing committees and subcommittees that write bills, hold hearings, and oversee the government

House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

The House's main investigative committee, with authority to examine any matter across the federal government

Office of Congressional Ethics

The independent, nonpartisan House office that reviews misconduct allegations against members and staff and refers cases to the Ethics Committee

Office of Congressional Workplace Rights

The office that applies federal workplace laws to Congress and handles complaints from legislative-branch employees

Select and Special Committees

Committees created for a particular purpose, often investigations, outside the regular standing committee system

Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee

The Senate's chief oversight committee, with jurisdiction over DHS and federal government operations

The Government Accountability Office

Congress's auditor and investigator, often called the watchdog of the federal purse

The Intelligence Committees

The House and Senate committees that oversee the CIA and the rest of the intelligence community, largely in secret

The Senate Judiciary Committee

The committee that vets every federal judge and Supreme Court nominee and oversees the Justice Department

The United States Senate

The upper chamber: two senators per state, six-year terms, and the power to confirm, ratify, and try impeachments

Departments (2)

Defense Contract Management Agency

The Pentagon agency that oversees defense contractors after contracts are signed, checking quality, cost, and delivery

Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration

The independent watchdog that audits and investigates the Internal Revenue Service

Agencies (9)

Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board

The independent board that oversees safety at the Energy Department's nuclear weapons sites and recommends improvements to protect workers and the public

Federal Advisory Committees

The roughly one thousand outside expert panels that advise federal agencies, governed by the Federal Advisory Committee Act's rules on openness and balance

Minerals Management Service Dissolved

The Interior Department agency that leased offshore oil and gas, regulated drilling, and collected mineral royalties until it was broken up after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster

Office of Government Ethics

The small independent agency that leads the executive branch ethics program, including financial disclosure and conflict of interest rules

Presidential and National Commissions

Temporary bodies created by presidents or Congress to investigate a crisis or recommend policy, from the Warren Commission to the 9/11 Commission

Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board Reorganizing

The independent, bipartisan board that reviews federal counterterrorism programs to ensure they protect privacy and civil liberties

The National Archives and Records Administration

Keeper of the Constitution and the government's permanent records, publisher of the Federal Register, and steward of presidential records

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights

The bipartisan independent commission that investigates and reports on civil rights conditions and federal enforcement

U.S. Office of Special Counsel

The independent agency that protects federal employees and whistleblowers and enforces the Hatch Act

Offices & Roles (7)

Clerk of the House of Representatives

The elected officer who keeps the official records of the House, runs its votes and legislative paperwork, and presides at the start of each new Congress until a Speaker is chosen

Committee Chairs and Ranking Members

The majority members who run congressional committees and the minority members who lead the opposition on each

Comptroller General of the United States

The head of the Government Accountability Office, appointed to a single 15-year term and removable only by Congress, who audits federal spending for the legislative branch

Inspectors General

The independent watchdogs inside federal agencies who audit programs and investigate waste, fraud, abuse, and misconduct, reporting to both the agency head and Congress

Secretary of the Senate

The elected chief administrative and legislative officer of the Senate, who keeps its records, manages its clerks and finances, and receives public disclosure filings

White House Counsel

The President's chief in-house lawyer, who advises on the legal powers and limits of the presidency and represents the office, not the President personally

White House Press Secretary

The President's chief spokesperson, who briefs reporters, answers questions on the administration's behalf, and manages the White House press operation

Processes (9)

Campaign Finance

The laws on raising and spending money in federal elections, from contribution limits and disclosure to super PACs, and the court rulings that shape them

Censure and Expulsion

How the House and Senate discipline their own members, from reprimand and censure by majority vote to expulsion by a two-thirds vote

Congressional Hearings

The public sessions in which committees take testimony to consider legislation, oversee agencies, investigate wrongdoing, and review nominations

Congressional Oversight

How Congress investigates and monitors the executive branch, and the limits on that power

Ethics and Financial Disclosure

The rules that require members of Congress, senior officials, and judges to report their finances, limit gifts and conflicts of interest, and the bodies that enforce them

Freedom of Information Act

The law that lets anyone request records from federal agencies, and the nine exemptions that let agencies withhold them

Impeachment

How Congress can remove a President, judge, or other civil officer: a House accusation and a Senate trial

Subpoenas and Contempt of Congress

How Congress compels testimony and documents, and what happens to witnesses who refuse

Whistleblower Protections

The federal laws that protect government employees and contractors who report waste, fraud, abuse, or illegal conduct from retaliation, and the channels for making such reports

Principles (4)

Executive Privilege

The President's qualified right to keep internal communications confidential from Congress and the courts

Lobbying and Interest Groups

How organized groups try to influence government decisions, the constitutional right to petition behind it, and the disclosure laws that regulate it

The Fourth Estate

The press as an informal check on government, protected by the First Amendment and shaped by landmark cases, investigative reporting, and changes in the news business

The Revolving Door

The movement of people between government jobs and lobbying or industry positions related to their public work, and the cooling-off rules that limit it

Documents & Cases (8)

Budget and Accounting Act of 1921

The law that created the modern federal budget, requiring an annual presidential budget and establishing the Bureau of the Budget and the General Accounting Office

Chief Financial Officers Act of 1990

The law that created chief financial officers in major federal agencies and required audited financial statements, the basis of modern federal financial management

Ethics in Government Act of 1978

The post-Watergate law that requires financial disclosure by senior officials, created the Office of Government Ethics, tightened post-employment rules, and established the independent counsel

Federal Advisory Committee Act

The 1972 law requiring federal advisory committees to be chartered, balanced, and open to the public, so outside advice to government is transparent

Inspector General Act of 1978

The law that created independent inspectors general inside federal agencies to audit and investigate waste, fraud, abuse, and misconduct, reporting to both agency heads and Congress

Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946

The law that modernized Congress after World War II by consolidating its committees, creating professional committee staffs, and requiring lobbyists to register

Presidential Records Act

The 1978 law making the official records of Presidents and Vice Presidents public property, transferred to the National Archives when they leave office

The Fifth Amendment

The 1791 amendment guaranteeing grand juries, protection against double jeopardy and self-incrimination, due process, and just compensation for taken property

All Tags

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