United States Senate Committee on Appropriations

Last updated

Senate Appropriations Committee
Standing committee
Active
Seal of the United States Senate.svg
United States Senate
119th Congress
History
FormedMarch 6, 1867
Leadership
Chair Susan Collins (R)
Since January 3, 2025
Vice chair Patty Murray (D)
Since January 3, 2025
Structure
Seats29 members
Political partiesMajority (15)
  •   Republican (15)
Minority (14)
Jurisdiction
Policy areas Appropriations bills, Discretionary spending, Rescission bills
Oversight authority Federal government of the United States
House counterpart House Committee on Appropriations
Meeting place
304 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C., S-128 United States Capitol
Washington, D.C.
Website
www.appropriations.senate.gov

    The United States Senate Committee on Appropriations, informally known as the Senate Appropriations Committee, is a standing committee of the United States Senate. It has jurisdiction over all discretionary spending legislation in the Senate.

    Contents

    The entrance to the Appropriations Committee Suite in the United States Capitol W corr1 us capitol.jpg
    The entrance to the Appropriations Committee Suite in the United States Capitol

    The Senate Appropriations Committee is the largest committee in the U.S. Senate, with 30 members in the 117th Congress. Its role is defined by the U.S. Constitution, which requires "appropriations made by law" prior to the expenditure of any money from the Treasury, and the committee is therefore one of the most powerful committees in the Senate. The committee was first organized on March 6, 1867, when power over appropriations was taken out of the hands of the Finance Committee.

    The chair of the Appropriations Committee has enormous power to bring home special projects (sometimes referred to as "pork barrel spending") for their state as well as having the final say on other senators' appropriation requests. For example, in fiscal year 2005, per capita federal spending in Alaska, the home state of Chair Ted Stevens, was $12,000, double the national average. Alaska has 11,772 special earmarked projects for a combined cost of $15,780,623,000. This represents about four percent of the overall spending in the $388 billion Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2005 passed by Congress.

    From 2001 to 2021, every Senate Majority Leader was a previous or concurrently serving member of the Appropriations Committee: Tom Daschle (committee member, 1991–1999; majority leader, 2001–2003), Bill Frist (committee member, 1995–2002; majority leader, 2003–2007), Harry Reid (committee member, 1989–2006; majority leader, 2007–2015), and Mitch McConnell (current committee member; majority leader, 2015–2021).

    The appropriations process

    Former Committee Chair Robert Byrd (D-WV, far right) shakes hands with Secretary of Defense Robert Gates while Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT, center right) and Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) look on. The hearing was held to discuss further funding for the War in Iraq. GATES APPRO.jpg
    Former Committee Chair Robert Byrd (D-WV, far right) shakes hands with Secretary of Defense Robert Gates while Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT, center right) and Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) look on. The hearing was held to discuss further funding for the War in Iraq.
    Ted Stevens was especially noted for his ability to use his Appropriations chair to bring home federal dollars for the state of Alaska. Appropriations Chair, Ted Stevens, in 1997.jpg
    Ted Stevens was especially noted for his ability to use his Appropriations chair to bring home federal dollars for the state of Alaska.

    The federal budget is divided into two main categories: discretionary spending and mandatory spending. Each appropriations subcommittee develops a draft appropriations bill covering each agency under its jurisdiction based on the Congressional Budget Resolution, which is drafted by an analogous Senate Budget committee. Each subcommittee must adhere to the spending limits set by the budget resolution and allocations set by the full Appropriations Committee, though the full Senate may vote to waive those limits if 60 senators vote to do so. The committee also reviews supplemental spending bills (covering unforeseen or emergency expenses not previously budgeted).

    Each appropriations bill must be passed by both houses of Congress and signed by the president prior to the start of the federal fiscal year, October 1. If that target is not met, as has been common in recent years, the committee drafts a continuing resolution, which is then approved by Congress and signed by the president to keep the federal government operating until the individual bills are approved.

    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 is referred to the Senate Committee on Appropriations:

    1. Appropriation of the revenue for the support of the Government, except as provided in subparagraph (e);
    2. Rescission of appropriations contained in appropriation Acts (referred to in section 105 of title 1, United States Code);
    3. The amount of new spending authority described in section 401(c)(2) (A) and (B) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 which is to be effective for a fiscal year; and,
    4. New spending authority described in section 401(c)(2)(C) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 provided in bills and resolutions referred to the committee under section 401(b)(2) of that Act (but subject to the provisions of section 401(b)(3) of that Act). [1]

    Likewise, Article I, Section 9, Clause 7 of the United States Constitution, clearly vesting the power of the purse in Congress, states: "No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law...and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time." [1] This clause is the foundation for the congressional appropriations process and the fundamental source of the Senate Appropriations Committee's institutional power – as is the same with its counterpart in the lower house. [2] In other words, Article I, Section 9, Clause 7 of the United States Constitution charges the United States Congress with the legislative duty of controlling government spending separate from the executive branch of government – a significant check and balance in the American constitutional system. [3]

    Members, 119th Congress

    Majority [4] Minority [5]

    Subcommittees

    Subcommittee [6] ChairRanking Member
    Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies John Hoeven (R-ND) Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
    Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Jerry Moran (R-KS) Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
    Defense Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Chris Coons (D-DE)
    Energy and Water Development John Kennedy (R-LA) Patty Murray (D-WA)
    Financial Services and General Government Bill Hagerty (R-TN) Jack Reed (D-RI)
    Homeland Security Katie Britt (R-AL) Chris Murphy (D-CT)
    Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
    Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
    Legislative Branch Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) Martin Heinrich (D-NM)
    Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies John Boozman (R-AR) Jon Ossoff (D-GA)
    State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Lindsey Graham (R-SC) Brian Schatz (D-HI)
    Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS) Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)

    Committee reorganization during the 110th Congress

    At the outset of the 110th Congress, Chair Robert Byrd and Chair Dave Obey, his counterpart on the House Appropriations Committee, developed a committee reorganization plan that provided for common subcommittee structures between both houses, a move that both the chairs hope will allow Congress to "complete action on each of the government funding on time for the first time since 1994." The subcommittees were last overhauled between the 107th and 108th Congresses, after the creation of the Subcommittee on Homeland Security and again during the 109th Congress, when the number of subcommittees was reduced from 13 to 12.

    A key part of the new subcommittee organization was the establishment of a new Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government, which consolidates funding for the Treasury Department, the United States federal judiciary, and the District of Columbia. These functions were previously handled by two separate Senate subcommittees.

    Committee leadership

    Vice Chair Robert Byrd, Patrick Leahy and Chair Ted Stevens meeting for FY98 Appropriations in 1997 Byrd (D-WV), Leahy (D-VT), Stevens (R-AK).jpg
    Vice Chair Robert Byrd, Patrick Leahy and Chair Ted Stevens meeting for FY98 Appropriations in 1997

    Chairs

    NamePartyStateStartEnd
    Lot Morrill Republican ME18671869
    William Fessenden Republican ME1869
    Lot Morrill Republican ME18691871
    Cornelius Cole Republican CA18711873
    Lot Morrill Republican ME18731876
    William Windom Republican MN18761879
    Henry Davis Democratic WV18791881
    William Allison Republican IA18811893
    Francis Cockrell Democratic MO18931895
    William Allison Republican IA18951908
    Eugene Hale Republican ME19081911
    Francis Warren Republican WY19111913
    Thomas Martin Democratic VA19131919
    Francis Warren Republican WY19191929
    Wesley Jones Republican WA19291932
    Frederick Hale Republican ME19321933
    Carter Glass Democratic VA19331946
    Kenneth McKellar Democratic TN19461947
    Styles Bridges Republican NH19471949
    Kenneth McKellar Democratic TN19491953
    Styles Bridges Republican NH19531955
    Carl Hayden Democratic AZ19551969
    Richard Russell Democratic GA19691971
    Allen Ellender Democratic LA19711972
    John McClellan Democratic AR19721977
    Warren Magnuson Democratic WA19771981
    Mark Hatfield Republican OR19811987
    John Stennis Democratic MS19871989
    Robert Byrd Democratic WV19891995
    Mark Hatfield Republican OR19951997
    Ted Stevens Republican AK19972001
    Robert Byrd Democratic WV2001
    Ted Stevens Republican AK2001
    Robert Byrd Democratic WV20012003
    Ted Stevens Republican AK20032005
    Thad Cochran Republican MS20052007
    Robert Byrd Democratic WV20072009
    Daniel Inouye Democratic HI20092012
    Barbara Mikulski Democratic MD20122015
    Thad Cochran Republican MS20152018
    Richard Shelby Republican AL20182021
    Patrick Leahy Democratic VT20212023
    Patty Murray Democratic WA20232025
    Susan Collins Republican ME2025present

    Vice Chairs

    NamePartyStateStartEnd
    Cornelius Cole Republican CA18671869
    William Sprague Republican RI18691871
    William Windom Republican MN18711873
    William Allison Republican IA18731875
    Stephen Dorsey Democratic AR18751877
    Henry Davis Democratic WV18771879
    William Windom Republican MN18791881
    Henry Davis Democratic WV18811883
    James Beck Democratic KY18831889
    Francis Cockrell Democratic MO18891893
    William Allison Republican IA18931895
    Francis Cockrell Democratic MO18951905
    Henry Teller Democratic CO19051909
    Benjamin Tillman Democratic SC19091913
    Francis Warren Republican WY19131919
    Lee Overman Democratic NC19191930
    William Harris Democratic GA19301933
    Frederick Hale Republican ME19331941
    Gerald Nye Republican NC19411945
    Styles Bridges Republican NH19451947
    Kenneth McKellar Democratic TN19471949
    Styles Bridges Republican NH19491953
    Carl Hayden Democratic AZ19531955
    Styles Bridges Republican NH19551961
    Leverett Saltonstall Republican MA19611967
    Milton Young Republican ND19671981
    William Proxmire Democratic WI19811983
    John Stennis Democratic MS19831987
    Mark Hatfield Republican OR19871995
    Robert Byrd Democratic WV19952001
    Ted Stevens Republican AK2001
    Robert Byrd Democratic WV2001
    Ted Stevens Republican AK20012003
    Robert Byrd Democratic WV20032007
    Thad Cochran Republican MS20072013
    Richard Shelby Republican AL20132015
    Barbara Mikulski Democratic MD20152017
    Patrick Leahy Democratic VT20172021
    Richard Shelby Republican AL20212023
    Susan Collins Republican ME20232025
    Patty Murray Democratic WA2025present

    Historical membership rosters

    118th Congress

    Majority [7] Minority [8]

    117th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    116th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    115th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Source : "U.S. Senate: Committee on Appropriations". Senate.gov. Retrieved April 11, 2018.

    114th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Source: 2013  Congressional Record, Vol. 159, Page  S296

    113th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Source: [13]

    112th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    111th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    110th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    109th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    See also

    References

    1. 1 2 McGowan, Matthew (2008). "Senate Manual of the United States Senate" (PDF). United States Senate. pp. 26–27. Retrieved May 31, 2019.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
    2. "The U.S. Constitution | Constitution Center". National Constitution Center – constitutioncenter.org.
    3. Stith, Kate. "Article I, Section 9, Clause 7, United States Constitution: Appropriations Clause". National Constitution Center. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
    4. S.Res. 16 (119th Congress)
    5. S.Res. 17 (119th Congress)
    6. "Collins, Murray Announce Appropriations Subcommittees Leadership and Rosters for the 119th Congress". U.S. Senate: Committee on Appropriations. January 29, 2025. Retrieved February 13, 2025.
    7. S.Res. 30 (118th Congress)
    8. S.Res. 31 (118th Congress)
    9. Joe Manchin is an independent but caucuses with the Democrats.
    10. Kyrsten Sinema is an independent but caucuses with the Democrats.
    11. "Majority Leader Schumer Announces New Senate Democratic Committee Assignments". Senate Democrats. October 17, 2023. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
    12. "Committee Members | United States Senate Committee on Appropriations". www.appropriations.senate.gov.
    13. "U.S. Senate: Committee on Appropriations". www.senate.gov. Retrieved March 4, 2021.
    ^ "Overview of the Committee's role". U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations. Archived from the original on October 13, 2005. Retrieved October 14, 2005.
    ^ "Creation of the Senate Committee on Appropriations". U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations. Archived from the original on September 27, 2005. Retrieved October 14, 2005.
    ^ Courtney Mabeus. "Buying Leadership". Capital Eye. Retrieved October 14, 2005.
    ^ Rosenbaum, David E. (February 9, 2005). "Call it Pork or Necessity, but Alaska Comes Out Far Above the Rest in Spending". New York Times.
    ^ "Senate, House Appropriations Set Subcommittee Plans for New Congress". U.S. House Committee on Appropriations. Archived from the original on January 31, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
    ^ "Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Rosters Set". National Thoroughbred Racing Association. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved January 27, 2007.
    ^ "Daniel Inouye Dies". Politico. December 17, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2012.

    Further reading