The
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration (also called the
Senate Rules Committee) is responsible for the rules of the
United States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, with administration of congressional buildings, and with credentials and qualifications of members of the Senate, including responsibility for dealing with contested elections.
The
Senate Committee on Rules and Administration (also called the
Senate Rules Committee) is responsible for the rules of the
United States SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, with administration of congressional buildings, and with credentials and qualifications of members of the Senate, including responsibility for dealing with contested elections.
The committee is not as powerful as its House counterpart, the
House Committee on RulesThe Committee on Rules, or Rules Committee, is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. Rather than being responsible for a specific area of policy, as most other committees are, it is in charge of determining under what rule other bills will come to the floor...
: it does not set the terms of debate for individual legislative proposals, since the Senate has a tradition of open debate.
Some members of the committee are also ex officio members of the
Joint Committee on PrintingThe Joint Committee on Printing is a joint committee of the United States Congress devoted to overseeing the functions of the Government Printing Office and general printing procedures of the federal government of the United States...
.
History
The Committee was first created as the Select Committee to Revise the Rules of the Senate on December 3, 1867. On December 9, 1874, it became a standing committee:
Committee on RulesThe United States Senate Committee on Rules is a defunct Congressional committee, replaced by the United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.-History:...
.
On January 2, 1947, its name was changed to the Committee on Rules and Administration, and it took over the functions of the following committees:
- Committee to Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses of the Senate
This committee of the United States Senate was created November 4, 1807. On January 2, 1947 its functions were transferred to the Committee on Rules and Administration....
- Committee on Education and Labor (functions were later transferred to Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee
The United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions generally considers matters relating to health, education, labor, and pensions...
)
- Committee on Enrolled Bills
- Committee on Privileges and Elections
The Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections was a committee of the United States Senate. It was established March 10, 1871 and terminated January 2, 1947, when its functions were transferred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.-Chairmen:...
Members, 112th CongressThe One Hundred Twelfth United States Congress is the current meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It convened in Washington, D.C. on January 3, 2011, and will end on January...
The Committee is chaired by Democrat Chuck Schumer of
New YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and the
Ranking MemberIn United States politics, a ranking member is the second-most senior member of a congressional or state legislative committee from the majority party. Another usage refers to the most senior member of a congressional or state legislative committee from the minority party. This second usage, often...
is Republican
Lamar AlexanderAndrew Lamar Alexander is the senior United States Senator from Tennessee and Conference Chair of the Republican Party. He was previously the 45th Governor of Tennessee from 1979 to 1987, United States Secretary of Education from 1991 to 1993 under President George H. W...
of
TennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
.
| Majority |
Minority |
- Chuck Schumer, New York, Chairman
- Daniel Inouye
Daniel Ken "Dan" Inouye is the senior United States Senator from Hawaii, a member of the Democratic Party, and the President pro tempore of the United States Senate making him the highest-ranking Asian American politician in American history. Inouye is the chairman of the United States Senate...
, Hawaii
- Dianne Feinstein
Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein is the senior U.S. Senator from California. A member of the Democratic Party, she has served in the Senate since 1992. She also served as 38th Mayor of San Francisco from 1978 to 1988....
, California
- Dick Durbin, Illinois
- Ben Nelson
Earl Benjamin "Ben" Nelson is the senior U.S. Senator from Nebraska. He is a member of the Democratic Party and was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2000....
, Nebraska
- Patty Murray
Patricia Lynn "Patty" Murray is the senior United States Senator from Washington and a member of the Democratic Party. Murray was first elected to the Senate in 1992, becoming Washington's first female senator...
, Washington
- Mark Pryor
Mark Lunsford Pryor is the senior United States Senator from Arkansas, serving since 2003. He is a member of the Democratic Party and former Attorney General of Arkansas....
, Arkansas
- Tom Udall
Thomas Stewart "Tom" Udall is the junior United States Senator from New Mexico and a member of the Democratic Party. He had represented as a member of the United States House of Representatives since 1999. Udall was elected as the junior United States senator from New Mexico on November 4, 2008,...
, New Mexico
- Mark Warner
Mark Robert Warner is an American politician and businessman, currently serving in the United States Senate as the junior senator from the Commonwealth of Virginia. He is a member of the Democratic Party. Warner was the 69th governor of Virginia from 2002 to 2006 and is the honorary chairman of...
, Virginia
- Patrick Leahy
Patrick Joseph Leahy is the senior United States Senator from Vermont and member of the Democratic Party. He is the first and only elected Democratic United States Senator in Vermont's history. He is the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Leahy is the second most senior U.S. Senator,...
, Vermont |
Lamar AlexanderAndrew Lamar Alexander is the senior United States Senator from Tennessee and Conference Chair of the Republican Party. He was previously the 45th Governor of Tennessee from 1979 to 1987, United States Secretary of Education from 1991 to 1993 under President George H. W...
, Tennessee, Ranking Member
Mitch McConnellAddison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
, Kentucky
Thad CochranWilliam Thad Cochran is the senior United States Senator from Mississippi and a member of the Republican Party. First elected to the Senate in 1978, he is the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations and was its chairman and 2005 to 2007.-Early life:He was born in Pontotoc,...
, Mississippi
Saxby ChamblissClarence Saxby Chambliss, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Georgia. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a U.S. Representative ....
, Georgia
Kay Bailey HutchisonKathryn Ann Bailey Hutchison, known as Kay Bailey Hutchison , is the senior United States Senator from Texas.She is a member of the Republican Party. In 2001, she was named one of the thirty most powerful women in America by Ladies Home Journal. The first woman to represent Texas in the U.S....
, Texas
Pat RobertsCharles Patrick "Pat" Roberts is the senior United States Senator from Kansas. A member of the Republican Party, he has served since 1997...
, Kansas
Richard ShelbyRichard Craig Shelby is the senior U.S. Senator from Alabama. First elected to the Senate in 1986, he is the ranking member of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and was its chairman from 2003 to 2007....
, Alabama
Roy BluntRoy D. Blunt is the junior United States Senator from Missouri. He is a member of the Republican Party. His Senate seat was previously held by Republican Kit Bond, until his retirement....
, Missouri |
Source:
Select Committee to Revise the Rules of the Senate, 1867–1874
- 1867–1871: Henry B. Anthony
Henry Bowen Anthony was a United States newspaperman and political figure. He served as the editor and later part owner of the Providence Journal and later was the 21st Governor of Rhode Island between 1849 and 1851, as a member of the Whig Party.The son of William Anthony and Mary Kennicut...
(R-RI)
- 1871–1873: Samuel Pomeroy (R-KS)
- 1873–1874: Thomas Ferry (R-MI)
Committee on Rules, 1874–1947
- Thomas Ferry (R-MI) 1874–1877
- James G. Blaine
James Gillespie Blaine was a U.S. Representative, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, U.S. Senator from Maine, two-time Secretary of State...
(R-ME) 1877–1879
- John T. Morgan (D-AL) 1879–1881
- William P. Frye
William Pierce Frye was an American politician from the U.S. state of Maine. Frye spent most of his political career as a legislator, serving in the Maine House of Representatives and U.S. House of Representatives before being elected to the U.S. Senate, where he served for 30 years and died in...
(R-ME) 1881–1887
- Nelson W. Aldrich
Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich was a prominent American politician and a leader of the Republican Party in the Senate, where he served from 1881 to 1911....
(R-RI) 1887–1893
- Joseph C. S. Blackburn (D-KY) 1893–1895
- Nelson W. Aldrich
Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich was a prominent American politician and a leader of the Republican Party in the Senate, where he served from 1881 to 1911....
(R-RI) 1895–1899
- John C. Spooner (R-WI) 1899–1907
- Philander C. Knox
Philander Chase Knox was an American lawyer and politician who served as United States Attorney General , a Senator from Pennsylvania and Secretary of State ....
(R-PA) 1907–1909
- W. Murray Crane (R-MA) 1909–1913
- Lee S. Overman (D-NC) 1913–1919
- Philander C. Knox
Philander Chase Knox was an American lawyer and politician who served as United States Attorney General , a Senator from Pennsylvania and Secretary of State ....
(R-PA) 1919–1921
- Charles Curtis
Charles Curtis was a United States Representative, a longtime United States Senator from Kansas later chosen as Senate Majority Leader by his Republican colleagues, and the 31st Vice President of the United States...
(R-KS) 1921–1929
- George H. Moses
George Higgins Moses was a U.S. diplomat and political figure.He graduated from Phillips Exeter Academy in 1887 and Dartmouth College with the class of 1890....
(R-NH) 1929–1933
- Royal S. Copeland
Royal Samuel Copeland was an American academic, homeopathic physician, and politician who held elected offices in both Michigan and New York . He represented New York in the United States Senate from 1923 until 1938.-Early life and medical career:Born in Dexter, Michigan to parents Roscoe P....
(D-NY) 1933–1936
- Matthew M. Neely
Matthew Mansfield Neely was a Democratic politician from West Virginia. He is the only West Virginian to serve in both houses of the United States Congress and as the Governor of West Virginia...
(D-WV) 1936–1941
- Harry F. Byrd
Harry Flood Byrd, Sr. of Berryville in Clarke County, Virginia, was an American newspaper publisher, farmer and politician. He was a descendant of one of the First Families of Virginia...
(D-VA) 1941–1947
Committee on Rules and Administration, 1947–present
- C. Wayland Brooks (R-IL) 1947–1949
- Carl Hayden (D-AZ) 1949–1953
- William E. Jenner
William Ezra Jenner was a U.S. Republican Indiana State and U.S. Senator.Jenner was born in Marengo, Crawford County, Indiana. He graduated with a Law degree from Indiana University School of Law - Bloomington in 1930, and set up practice in Paoli, Indiana...
(R-IN) 1953–1955
- Theodore F. Green
Theodore Francis Green was an American politician from the U.S. state of Rhode Island. A Democrat, Green served as the 57th Governor of Rhode Island and in the United States Senate . He was the grandnephew of Samuel G...
(D-RI) 1955–1957
- Thomas C. Hennings, Jr.
Thomas Carey Hennings, Jr. was an American political figure from Missouri, and a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives , and the United States Senate ....
(D-MO) 1957–1960
- Mike Mansfield
Michael Joseph Mansfield was an American Democratic politician and the longest-serving Majority Leader of the United States Senate, serving from 1961 to 1977. He also served as United States Ambassador to Japan for over ten years...
(D-MT) 1960–1963
- B. Everett Jordan
Benjamin Everett Jordan was a Democratic U.S. Senator from the state of North Carolina from 1958 until 1973. He lived most of his life in Alamance County, North Carolina....
(D-NC) 1963–1973
- Howard W. Cannon (D-NV) 1973–1978
- Claiborne Pell
Claiborne de Borda Pell was a United States Senator from Rhode Island, serving six terms from 1961 to 1997, and was best known as the sponsor of the Pell Grant, which provides financial aid funding to U.S. college students. A Democrat, he was that state's longest serving senator.-Early years:Pell...
(D-RI) 1978–1981
- Charles McC. Mathias, Jr. (R-MD) 1981–1987
- Wendell H. Ford
Wendell Hampton Ford is a retired politician from the U.S. state of Kentucky. He served for twenty-four years in the U.S. Senate and was the 53rd Governor of Kentucky. He was the first person to be successively elected lieutenant governor, governor, and U.S. senator in Kentucky history...
(D-KY) 1987–1995
- Ted Stevens
Theodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens, Sr. was a United States Senator from Alaska, serving from December 24, 1968, until January 3, 2009, and thus the longest-serving Republican senator in history...
(R-AK) 1995
- John W. Warner (R-VA) 1995–1999
- Mitch McConnell
Addison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
(R-KY) 1999–2001
- Christopher Dodd
Christopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
(D-CT) 2001
- Mitch McConnell
Addison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
(R-KY) 2001
- Christopher Dodd
Christopher John "Chris" Dodd is an American lawyer, lobbyist, and Democratic Party politician who served as a United States Senator from Connecticut for a thirty-year period ending with the 111th United States Congress....
(D-CT) 2001–2003
- Trent Lott
Chester Trent Lott, Sr. , is a former United States Senator from Mississippi and has served in numerous leadership positions in the House of Representatives and the Senate....
(R-MS) 2003–2007
- Dianne Feinstein
Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein is the senior U.S. Senator from California. A member of the Democratic Party, she has served in the Senate since 1992. She also served as 38th Mayor of San Francisco from 1978 to 1988....
(D-CA), 2007–2009
- Chuck Schumer (D-NY), 2009-
External links