United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs

Last updated
House Foreign Affairs Committee
Standing committee
Active
Seal of the United States House of Representatives.svg
United States House of Representatives
118th Congress
History
Formed1822
Leadership
Chair Michael McCaul (R)
Since January 3, 2023
Ranking member Gregory Meeks (D)
Since January 3, 2023
Vice chair Vacant
Structure
Seats51
Political partiesMajority (27)
  •   Republican (27)
Minority (23)
Jurisdiction
Policy areas Foreign policy, aid, diplomacy
Oversight authority Department of State
Agency for International Development
Senate counterpart Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
Website
foreignaffairs.house.gov

    The United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, also known as the House Foreign Affairs Committee, is a standing committee of the U.S. House of Representatives with jurisdiction over bills and investigations concerning the foreign affairs of the United States. [1] Since 2023, the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee has been Michael McCaul of Texas.

    Contents

    The committee has a broad mandate to oversee legislation regarding the impact of national security developments on foreign policy; war powers, treaties, executive agreements, and military deployments abroad; foreign assistance; arms control; international economic policy; and other matters. [1] Many of its responsibilities are delegated to one of six standing subcommittees, which have jurisdiction over issues related to their respective region in the world. The committee also oversees the U.S. Department of State, American embassies and diplomats, and the U.S. Agency for International Development.

    During two separate periods, 1975 to 1978 and 1995 to 2007, the Foreign Affairs Committee was renamed the Committee on International Relations; [2] its duties and jurisdiction remained unchanged.

    Its counterpart in the Senate is the Committee on Foreign Relations.

    Members, 118th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Resolutions electing members: H.Res. 14 (Chair), H.Res. 15 (Ranking Member), H.Res. 80 (R), H.Res. 87 (D), H.Res. 76 (removing Omar), H.Res. 102 (D), H.Res. 205 (D), H.Res. 871 (D)

    Subcommittees

    Whereas until the 118th Congress, subcommittees tended to combine jurisdiction over particular regions of the globe with jurisdiction over broader policy areas (e.g. terrorism or energy policy), in the 118th Congress, the subcommittees were reconfigured to strictly focus on geographical areas, with the exception of global issues and international organisations which received their own subcommittee.

    SubcommitteeChair [3] Ranking Member [4]
    Africa John James (R-MI) Sara Jacobs (D-CA)
    Europe Thomas Kean Jr. (R-NJ) Bill Keating (D-MA)
    The Indo-Pacific Young Kim (R-CA) Ami Bera (D-CA)
    The Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia Joe Wilson (R-SC) Dean Phillips (D-MN)
    Western Hemisphere Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL) Joaquin Castro (D-TX)
    Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations Chris Smith (R-NJ) Susan Wild (D-PA)
    Oversight and Accountability Brian Mast (R-FL) Jason Crow (D-CO)

    List of chairs

    Data from the committee's official website: [5]

    ChairmanPartyDates of serviceHome state
    Jonathan Russell Democratic-Republican 1821–1823 Massachusetts
    John Forsyth Democratic-Republican1823–1827 Georgia
    Edward Everett National Republican 1827–1829 Massachusetts
    William S. Archer Democratic1829–1834 Virginia
    James Moore Wayne Democratic1834–1835 Georgia
    John Young Mason Democratic1835 Virginia
    Benjamin Chew Howard Democratic1835–1839 Maryland
    Francis Wilkinson Pickens Democratic1839–1841 South Carolina
    Caleb Cushing Democratic1841–1842 Massachusetts
    John Quincy Adams Whig 1842–1843 Massachusetts
    Charles Jared Ingersoll Democratic1843–1847 Pennsylvania
    Truman Smith Whig1847–1849 Connecticut
    John Alexander McClernand Democratic1849–1851 Illinois
    Thomas Henry Bayly Democratic1851–1855 Virginia
    Alexander C. M. Pennington Opposition 1855–1857 New Jersey
    Thomas Lanier Clingman Democratic1857–1858 North Carolina
    George Washington Hopkins Democratic1858–1859 Virginia
    Thomas Corwin Republican1859–1861 Ohio
    John J. Crittenden Unionist 1861–1863 Kentucky
    Henry Winter Davis Unionist1863–1865 Maryland
    Nathaniel P. Banks Republican1865–1872 Massachusetts
    Leonard Myers Republican1872–1873 Pennsylvania
    Godlove Stein Orth Republican1873–1875 Indiana
    Thomas Swann Democratic1875–1879 Maryland
    Samuel S. Cox Democratic1879–1881 New York
    Charles G. Williams Republican1881–1883 Wisconsin
    Andrew Gregg Curtin Democratic1883–1885 Pennsylvania
    Perry Belmont Democratic1885–1888 New York
    James B. McCreary Democratic1888–1889 Kentucky
    Robert R. Hitt Republican1889–1891 Illinois
    James Henderson Blount Democratic1891–1893 Georgia
    James B. McCreary Democratic1893–1895 Kentucky
    Robert R. Hitt Republican1895–1906 Illinois
    Robert G. Cousins Republican1907–1909 Iowa
    James Breck Perkins Republican1909–1910 New York
    David J. Foster Republican1910–1911 Vermont
    William Sulzer Democratic1911–1912 New York
    Charles Bennett Smith Democratic1912–1913 New York
    Henry D. Flood Democratic1913–1919 Virginia
    Stephen G. Porter Republican1919–1930 Pennsylvania
    Henry Wilson Temple Republican1930–1931 Pennsylvania
    John Charles Linthicum Democratic1931–1932 Maryland
    Sam D. McReynolds Democratic1932–1939 Tennessee
    Sol Bloom Democratic1939–1947 New York
    Charles Aubrey Eaton Republican1947–1949 New Jersey
    Sol Bloom Democratic1949 New York
    John Kee Democratic1949–1951 West Virginia
    James P. Richards Democratic1951–1953 South Carolina
    Robert B. Chiperfield Republican1953–1955 Illinois
    James P. Richards Democratic1955–1957 South Carolina
    Thomas S. Gordon Democratic1957–1959 Illinois
    Thomas E. Morgan Democratic1959–1977 Pennsylvania
    Clement J. Zablocki Democratic1977–1983 Wisconsin
    Dante Fascell Democratic1983–1993 Florida
    Lee H. Hamilton Democratic1993–1995 Indiana
    Benjamin A. Gilman Republican1995–2001 New York
    Henry Hyde Republican2001–2007 Illinois
    Tom Lantos Democratic2007–2008 California
    Howard Berman Democratic2008–2011 California
    Ileana Ros-Lehtinen Republican2011–2013 Florida
    Ed Royce Republican 2013–2019 California
    Eliot Engel Democratic2019–2021 New York
    Gregory Meeks Democratic 2021–2023 New York
    Michael McCaul Republican 2023–present Texas

    Previous members

    117th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Resolutions electing members: H.Res. 9 (Chair), H.Res. 10 (Ranking Member), H.Res. 62 (D), H.Res. 63 (R), H.Res. 146 (R), H.Res. 1471 (D)

    Subcommittees
    SubcommitteeChairRanking Member
    Africa, Global Health and Global Human Rights Karen Bass (D-CA) Chris Smith (R-NJ)
    Asia, the Pacific, Central Asia and Nonproliferation Ami Bera (D-CA) Steve Chabot (R-OH)
    Europe, Energy, the Environment and Cyber Bill Keating (D-MA) Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA)
    Middle East, North Africa and Global Counterterrorism Ted Deutch (D-FL) Joe Wilson (R-SC)
    International Development, International Organizations and Global Corporate Social Impact Joaquin Castro (D-TX) Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY)
    Western Hemisphere, Civilian Security, Migration and International Economic Policy Albio Sires (D-NJ) Mark Green (R-TN)

    116th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Sources: H.Res. 24 (Chair), H.Res. 25 (Ranking Member), H.Res. 57 (D), H.Res. 68 (R), H.Res. 1072 (R)

    Subcommittees
    Subcommittee [6] Chair [7] [8] Ranking Member [9]
    Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations Karen Bass (D-CA) Chris Smith (R-NJ)
    Asia, the Pacific and Nonproliferation Ami Bera (D-CA) Ted Yoho (R-FL)
    Europe, Eurasia, Energy, and the Environment Bill Keating (D-MA) Adam Kinzinger (R-IL)
    Middle East, North Africa and International Terrorism Ted Deutch (D-FL) Joe Wilson (R-SC)
    Oversight and Investigations Joaquin Castro (D-TX) Lee Zeldin (R-NY)
    Western Hemisphere, Civilian Security, and Trade Albio Sires (D-NJ) Francis Rooney (R-FL)

    115th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Sources: H.Res. 6 (Chair), H.Res. 7 (Ranking Member), H.Res. 45 (D), H.Res. 51 (R) and H.Res. 52 (D) [10]

    See also

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    References

    1. 1 2 "About". House Foreign Affairs Committee. Retrieved 2021-01-22.
    2. "House Foreign Affairs Committee".
    3. "Chairman McCaul Announces Committee Leadership Team". Committee on Foreign Affairs. Retrieved 2023-02-04.
    4. "Ranking Member Gregory W. Meeks Announces HFAC Subcommittee Membership for the 118th Congress". House Foreign Affairs Committee. 2023-02-08. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
    5. "Past Chairs of the Committee". History of the Committee. U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs. Archived from the original on January 9, 2012. Retrieved February 5, 2012.
    6. "Subcommittees". House Foreign Affairs Committee. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
    7. "Engel Announces Foreign Affairs Subcommittee Democrats and Committee Vice Chair". House Foreign Affairs Committee. 2019-01-29. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
    8. "Engel Announces Changes to Foreign Affairs Subcommittee Leadership". House Foreign Affairs Committee. 2019-12-13. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
    9. "McCaul Announces Republican Subcommittee Leadership and Membership Rosters at 116th Committee Organizational Meeting". Committee on Foreign Affairs. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
    10. "Full Committee". Foreign Affairs Committee.