Video: History of congressional staffing
Congress needs staff to carry out the duties prescribed by the Constitution and demanded by the public. LegBranch.org’s Kevin Kosar discusses how from 1900 to 1990, Congress sporadically… Read More
Congress isn’t paying its interns enough
(Editor’s note: This piece originally appeared in the Washington Post on September 3, 2018.) By Barbara A. Trish Here’s an idea to ponder on Labor Day: Why… Read More
How diverse are Democratic Senate offices? You might be surprised …
Seemingly every year, journalists tweet pictures of House and Senate interns, offering photographic evidence that those interning in the branch of government most connected to the people don’t really look… Read More
How committee staffers clear the runway for legislative action in Congress
Admittedly, the audience at this spring’s “The State of Congressional Capacity Conference” was a receptive one. Congressional scholars from across the country gathered and presented research asking and… Read More
To delegate or not to delegate: Committee staff, congressional capacity, and executive authority
Image source: POGO By Austin Bussing From repeated, thinly-veiled threats to fire Special Counsel Robert Mueller to drastic tariff hikes on steel and aluminum, the administration of president Donald J. Read More
How do congressional committee staff turnover rates compare to personal staff turnover?
Congressional committees are typically thought of as bastions of policy expertise, where committed aides dive deep into the wonkery of narrow issue areas and make careers on Capitol Hill. After… Read More
Legislative staff are spending an increasing amount of time on constituent services
Image Source: Wired The now famous Indivisible guide to grassroots activism advocates mass, coordinated constituent communication with members of Congress, among other tactics. Recent research has, however, shown… Read More
Which Senate offices had the highest staff turnover in 2017?
How do the staff turnover data for Senators compare to those of their House colleagues? This week, Senate offices are placed under the 2017 turnover microscope… Read More
New interactive map reveals 2017 turnover rates for every House office
Relying on disbursement data from the House of Representatives, cleaned and verified by LegiStorm, this new LegBranch resource reveals 2017 staff turnover rates for all members in the House… Read More
Which House offices had the highest staff turnover in 2017?
Which House members churned through employees in 2017 and which retained staff at a higher rate than their colleagues? Relying on disbursement data from the House of Representatives,… Read More