Subcommittee Government in the U. S. House: An Analysis of Bill Management

This article examines the commonly held belief that floor management of bills in the U.S. House of Representatives has shifted from full to subcommittee chairs and that such a shift is a meaningful measure of the transition from committee to subcommittee government. The data-based upon an examination of the floor managers of all bills and joint resolutions for the 86th, 89th, and 91st through 95th Congresses-substantiate the general trend away from floor management of bills by full-committee chairs but moderate the belief that full-committee chairs once managed virtually all legislation on the floor. The data also indicate that a substantial shift in bill management responsibilities was underway prior to major House reforms of the 1970s but that full-committee chairs still floor manage a disproportionate share of the legislation in the House.