Administration Oversight

Congress has a responsibility under the Constitution to conduct oversight of the executive branch. The Committee on Government Reform has the specific responsibility to oversee whether laws and programs are being implemented and carried out in accordance with the intent of Congress and whether they should be continued, curtailed, or eliminated; the application, administration, execution, and effectiveness of laws and programs; and the organization and operation of federal agencies and entities having responsibilities for the administration and execution of laws and programs. As set forth in House Rule X, clause 4, the Committee also may, at any time, conduct investigations of any matter regardless of whether another standing committee has jurisdiction over the matter.

Latest News

Democratic Leader Pelosi and Rep. Waxman Question President on Signing Budget Bill

Democratic Leader Pelosi and Rep. Waxman write to the President requesting clarification on his knowledge that the budget bill he signed on February 8, 2006 was different from the bill that passed the U.S. House of Representatives.

Presidential, Vice Presidential Political Travel Cost Taxpayers Millions

Rep. Waxman releases a new minority staff report that shows that taxpayers pay over 95% of the cost of flights by the President and Vice President for campaign-related events. Using figures from 2002, the last time the President and Vice President traveled on behalf of others in a nonpresidential election cycle, the report projects that taxpayers will spend over $7 million in 2006 on presidential and vice presidential political flights.

President May Have Known of Constitutional Defect Before Bill Signing

Rep. Waxman asks the White House to respond to information that the Speaker of the House called President Bush to alert him that the version of the Reconciliation Act he was about to sign differed from the version that passed the U.S. House of Representatives. Rep. Waxman writes: “If the President signed the Reconciliation Act knowing its constitutional infirmity, he would in effect be placing himself above the Constitution.”

New Documents Show FDA Mischaracterized Its Review of PlanB

Documents obtained by Rep. Waxman undercut FDA’s claim that the Plan B application raised “novel” issues requiring extended additional analysis.

Legal Scholars Agree: Budget Bill Did Not Pass Both Houses and Is Not Valid Law

Several constitutional law experts contend that the budget bill the President signed on February 8, 2006, is "not constitutionally permissible" and "is not law." In a letter to the Democratic Leader, Rep. Waxman includes expert analyses he has gathered about the bill, which did not pass the House and Senate in identical form and therefore violates the Bicameral Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

Rep. Waxman and Chairman Davis Request Information on Postal Service Performance

In a letter to the Postmaster General, Rep. Waxman and Chairman Davis request information about service and delivery performance in advance of a scheduled February 16, 2006, hearing on the Postal Service.

Rep. Waxman and Sen. Kerry Question Administration's Emissions Claims

In a letter, Rep. Waxman and Sen. Kerry ask Dr. Paula Dobriansky to explain why, as head of the U.S. delegation to the UN Conference on Climate Change, she stated that U.S. emissions of greenhouse gases had fallen, when in fact they have risen by 3.5% during the Bush Administration.

Dem. Leaders Call Drug Bill Result of “Corrupt Legislative Process,” Seek Investigation into Role of Tainted Lobbying Group

In a letter to Speaker Hastert, Democratic Leader Pelosi, Democratic Whip Hoyer, and Ranking Member Waxman ask for a congressional investigation into the role played by the Alexander Strategy Group, a lobbying firm closely linked to Tom DeLay and Jack Abramoff, in the passage of the Medicare Prescription Drug Act and the drafting of the budget reconciliation bill currently before the Congress.

Rep. Waxman Urges Committee to Request White House Documents on Abramoff

In a letter to Chairman Davis, Rep. Waxman asks that the Committee seek from the White House information about the nature of lobbyist Jack Abramoff's relationship with the White House.

New Details from GAO Raise Further Concerns about Barrett Investigation Spending

Rep. Waxman asks Independent Counsel David M. Barrett for an explanation regarding why his office has been renting 11,500 square feet for only five full-time employees and other new details GAO recently provided on Mr. Barrett's expenditures. To date, his ten-and-a-half year investigation of former HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros has cost the taxpayer over $21 million.

Congress' Abdication of Oversight

In a pair of new reports, Rep. Henry A. Waxman examines the failure of the Republican-controlled Congress to investigate wrongdoing by the Bush Administration and the very different approach toward oversight taken by the Republican-controlled Congress during the Clinton Administration

Senior Democrats Call for Hearings, Independent Panel on NSA’s Electronic Surveillance

In a letter to the Speaker, Democratic Leader Pelosi, Democratic Whip Hoyer, and Reps. Conyers, Waxman, and Harman ask that the House examine the scope of Presidential power in the area of electronic surveillance.

Democrats Express Concern About Cheney's Refusal to Disclose Travel Records

Rep. Waxman, Rep. Schakowsky, and other Democrats write to the Vice President to ask that he submit a complete accounting of his own and his staff's travel.

Rep. Waxman Asks Chairman to Explain Oversight Choices

In a letter to Chairman Davis, Rep. Waxman asks the Chairman to explain his rationale for rejecting requests to investigate the leak of classified information involving CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson and contract abuses at the Department of Homeland Security, while directing the Committee to look into a leak of classified information related to the Philippines and contract abuses involving the District of Columbia.

Democrats Request Hearing on 'Highly Unusual' Events Surrounding DOJ Approval of Texas Redistricting

In a letter to Chairman Davis, Rep. Waxman and Rep. Clay ask that the Committee investigate whether political appointees at DOJ inappropriately overruled the findings of a panel in the Department's Voting Section that Texas's 2003 redistricting might have a discriminatory effect. Rep. Waxman and Rep. Clay asked that this investigation be included in an expansion of a hearing they requested last week on whether DOJ political appointees approved a discriminatory voter-identification law in Georgia.

Rep. Waxman Speaks Out Against Duncan Hunter Resolution

On the House floor, Rep. Waxman speaks against the Republican resolution and calls for answers to long-standing questions about the Administration's use of forged evidence as the cornerstone of the case for war in Iraq. These concerns were raised by Rep. Waxman before the war started in a letter to President Bush on March 17, 2003.

Democrats Request Hearing on DOJ Approval of Georgia Voter Identification Law

In a letter to Chairman Davis, Rep. Clay, Rep. Waxman, and nine other Committee Democrats request hearings on the process through which the Justice Department approved a Georgia voter law that will likely discriminate against black voters.

Pelosi and Waxman Request Documents Relating to Abramoff’s Request for $9 Million to Arrange Meeting with Bush

Leader Pelosi and Rep. Waxman write to Harriet Miers, Counsel to the President, requesting that she provide Congress with documents relating to lobbyist Jack Abramoff’s request for $9 million to arrange a meeting between President Bush and Omar Bongo, President of Gabon.

Rep. Waxman Urges Chalabi Hearing

Rep. Waxman asks Rep. Chris Shays to cancel tomorrow’s scheduled private briefing with Iraqi official Ahmed Chalabi and instead hold a public hearing where Mr. Chalabi can be questioned about his role in misleading the United States about Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction.

Former CPB Chair Resigns in Face of Inspector General’s Report

CPB Chair Ken Tomlinson resigns six months after Democrats ask for an investigation into whether the Corporation for Public Broadcasing had violated a law prohibiting interference by Federal officials into content or distribution of programming. In recent days, the CPB board has met to consider the Inspector General's initial investigative findings.

Rep. Waxman Decries Dangerous Secrecy

Rep. Waxman speaks on the House floor about how Congress is failing to meet its constitutional responsibility to act as a check on executive branch misconduct.

Rep. Waxman Calls for Hearings on Wasteful DHS Contracting

Rep. Waxman urges Chairman Davis to investigate growing reports of waste, fraud, and abuse under Department of Homeland Security contracts, including new evidence of extensive overcharges in a billion dollar contract with Unisys.

Independent Counsel David M. Barrett Continues to Spend Millions Despite Court Order to Close Cisneros Investigation

Two years after the court ordered a halt to the decade-old investigation of former HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros, Independent Counsel David M. Barrett continues to spend two million taxpayer dollars annually.

Ample Precedent for White House Testimony

Rep. Waxman writes to Senators Collins and Lieberman to clarify that it is not unusual for White House officials to testify before Congress. He cites a Congressional Research Service report with a 14-page list of examples.

Rep. Waxman Again Calls for Hearings on Wasteful DHS Contracting

Rep. Waxman writes to Chairman Davis to renew his request for hearings into reports of excessive charges under Department of Homeland Security contracts.

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