United States Senate Committee on Finance
Standing committee | |
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Active United States Senate 117th Congress | |
History | |
Formed | December 10, 1816 |
Leadership | |
Chair | Ron Wyden (D) Since February 3, 2021 |
Ranking member | Mike Crapo (R) Since February 3, 2021 |
Structure | |
Seats | 27 members |
Political parties | Majority (14)
|
Jurisdiction | |
Policy areas | United States Customs and Border Protection |
House counterpart | House Committee on Ways and Means |
Meeting place | |
304 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. | |
Website | |
www | |
Rules | |
The United States Senate Committee on Finance (or, less formally, Senate Finance Committee) is a
History
The Committee on Finance is one of the original committees established in the Senate. First created on December 11, 1815, as a
In 1865 the
Despite the loss of one of its signature duties, the committee continued to play a prominent role in the major issues of the nation. The committee was at the center of the debate over the silver question in the latter half of the 19th Century. Passage of the
Around that same time the committee lost jurisdiction over banking and currency issues to the newly created Committee on Banking and Currency. The committee did gain jurisdiction over veterans’ benefits when it successfully passed the War Risk Insurance Act of 1917. The act shifted pensions from gratuities to benefits and served as one of the first life insurance programs created under the federal government.[3]
The Finance Committee continued to play an increasingly important role in the lives of the nation's veterans. The committee helped consolidate the veteran bureaucracy by streamlining the various responsibilities into a Veterans' Bureau, which would ultimately become the Veterans' Administration. In 1924, the committee passed a
Not all Finance Committee legislation was as well received as the G.I. Bill. At the beginning of the Great Depression the committee passed the Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act. The act greatly increased tariffs and had a negative effect on the nation's economy. Following traditional economic practices the members of the committee, including Chairman Reed Smoot, felt that protection of American businesses was required in order to buoy them during the dire economic times. The effort backfired and the economic situation worsened. The Smoot-Hawley Tariff would eventually be replaced by the Reciprocal Tariff Act of 1934 which authorized the President to negotiate trade agreements. This act not only set up the trade policy system as it exists today but also effectively transferred trade making policy from the Congress to the President.[10]
The committee also played an important role in two major acts created under the
Probably the largest and most lasting pieces of legislation shaped by the Finance Committee during the New Deal was the 1935 Social Security Act. Once again, the committee received jurisdiction owing to the payroll taxes that would be enacted to pay for the new program. The act was the first effort by the federal government to provide benefits to the elderly and the unemployed, leading to enhanced economic welfare for many elderly Americans.[12]
In 1981, a Senate Resolution required the printing of the History of the Committee on Finance.[3]
Role
The role of the Senate Committee on Finance is very similar to that of the
In addition to having jurisdiction over legislation, the Committee on Finance has extensive oversight powers. It has authority to investigate, review and evaluate existing laws, and the agencies that implement them.
Jurisdiction
In accordance of Rule XXV of the United States Senate, all proposed legislation, messages, petitions, memorials, and other matters relating to the following subjects are referred to the Senate Committee on Finance:
- Bonded debt of the United States, except as provided in the Congressional Budget Act of 1974;
- Customs, collection districts, and ports of entry and delivery;
- Deposit of public moneys;
- General revenue sharing;
- Health programs under the Social Security Act and health programs financed by a specific tax or trust fund;
- National social security;
- Reciprocal trade agreements;
- Revenue measures generally, except as provided in the Congressional Budget Act of 1974;
- Revenue measures relating to the insular possessions;
- Tariffs and import quotas, and matters related thereto; and,
- Transportation of dutiable goods.[1]
Given its broad remit with regards to
Members, 118th Congress
Majority[15] | Minority[16] |
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|
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Subcommitteess
Subcommittee[17] | Chair | Ranking Member |
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Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure | Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) | James Lankford (R-OK) |
International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness | Tom Carper (D-DE) | John Cornyn (R-TX) |
Health Care | Ben Cardin (D-MD) | Steve Daines (R-MT) |
Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy | Sherrod Brown (D-OH) | Thom Tillis (R-NC) |
Taxation and IRS Oversight | Michael Bennet (D-CO) | John Thune (R-SD) |
Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth | Maggie Hassan (D-NH) | Chuck Grassley (R-IA) |
Chairs
Historical committee rosters
117th Congress
Majority | Minority |
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|
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- Subcommittees
Subcommittee | Chair | Ranking Member |
---|---|---|
Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure | Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) | James Lankford (R-OK) |
International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness | Tom Carper (D-DE) | John Cornyn (R-TX) |
Health Care | Ben Cardin (D-MD) | Steve Daines (R-MT) |
Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy | Sherrod Brown (D-OH) | Thom Tillis (R-NC) |
Taxation and IRS Oversight | Michael Bennet (D-CO) | John Thune (R-SD) |
Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth | Maggie Hassan (D-NH) | Chuck Grassley (R-IA) |
116th Congress
Majority | Minority |
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- Subcommittees
Subcommittee | Chair | Ranking Member |
---|---|---|
Energy, Natural Resources, and Infrastructure | Tim Scott (R-SC) | Michael Bennet (D-CO) |
Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth | Bill Cassidy (R-LA) | Maggie Hassan (D-NH) |
Health Care | Pat Toomey (R-PA) | Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) |
International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness | John Cornyn (R-TX) | Bob Casey Jr. (D-PA) |
Taxation and IRS Oversight | John Thune (R-SD) | Mark Warner (D-VA) |
Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy | Rob Portman (R-OH) | Sherrod Brown (D-OH) |
Source[20]
115th Congress
Majority | Minority |
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References
- ^ a b "Jurisdiction". The United States Senate Committee on Finance. 1887. Retrieved May 31, 2019. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Faler, Brian (November 2, 2014). "The rise of Ron Wyden". Politico. Retrieved June 11, 2023.
- ^ a b c d "History of the Committee on Finance United States Senate". Government Printing Office.
- ^ Simms, Henry Harrison. Life of Robert M.T. Hunter: A Study in Sectionalism and Secession. Richmond: William Byrd Press, 1935
- ^ Jellison, Charles A. Fessenden of Maine, Civil War Senator. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 1962.
- ^ Sherman, John. Recollections of Forty Years in The House, Senate, and Cabinet: An Autobiography. 2 vols. 1895. Reprint. New York: Greenwood Press, 1968.
- ^ Stephenson, Nathaniel W. Nelson W. Aldrich: A Leader In American Politics. 1930. Reprint. New York: Kennikat Press, 1971.
- ^ The Provision of Federal Benefits for Veterans. House Committee Print 171, 84th Congress, 1st Session, December 28, 1955
- ^ Bennett, Michael. When Dreams Come True: The G.I. Bill and the Making of Modern America. Washington: Potomac Books, Inc., 1999.
- ^ Dobson, John. Two Centuries of Tariffs: The Background and Emergence of the U.S. International Trade Commission. Washington:U.S. Government Printing Office, 1976.
- ^ Ratner, Sidney. Taxation and Democracy in America. Octagon Books, 1980.
- ^ Swain, Martha H. Pat Harrison: The New Deal Years. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi, 1978.
- ^ "Powerful Senate committee invites pharma executives to testify". Reuters. February 4, 2019 – via www.reuters.com.
- ^ "Senate Committee on Finance". GovTrack.us.
- ^ S.Res. 30 (118th Congress)
- ^ S.Res. 31 (118th Congress)
- ^ "Wyden, Crapo Announce Senate Finance Subcommittee Assignments". United States Senate Committee on Finance. February 9, 2023. Retrieved March 9, 2024.
- ^ Chaired a special session of the 29th Congress. His ten-day chairmanship of the committee is the shortest on record.
- ^ Morrill holds the longest non-continuous service as Chairman, at eighteen years. Russell Long holds the longest continuous service as chairman, at sixteen years.
- ^ "The United States Senate Committee on Finance". www.finance.senate.gov. Retrieved February 11, 2017.
External links
- Official website (Archive)
- Senate Finance Committee. Legislation activity and reports, Congress.gov.
- History of the Committee on Finance; United States Senate (pdf). 4th ed. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1981.