| Standing committee | |
|---|---|
Active United States Senate 116th Congress | |
| History | |
| Formed | December 10, 1816 |
| Leadership | |
| Chair | Lindsey Graham (R) Since January 3, 2019 |
| Ranking member | Dianne Feinstein (D) Since January 3, 2017 |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 22 members |
| Political parties | Majority (12)
|
| Jurisdiction | |
| Policy areas | Federal judiciary, civil procedure, criminal procedure, civil liberties, copyrights, patents, trademarks, naturalization, constitutional amendments, congressional apportionment, state and territorial boundary lines |
| Oversight authority | Department of Justice, Department of Homeland Security, federal judicial nominations |
| House counterpart | House Committee on the Judiciary |
| Meeting place | |
| 226 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. | |
 | |
| Website | |
| judiciary | |
| Rules | |
The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of 22 U.S. Senators whose role is to oversee the Department of Justice (DOJ), consider executive nominations, and review pending legislation. [1] [2]
In the United States Congress, standing committees are permanent legislative panels established by the United States House of Representatives and United States Senate rules. Because they have legislative jurisdiction, standing committees consider bills and issues and recommend measures for consideration by their respective chambers. They also have oversight responsibility to monitor agencies, programs, and activities within their jurisdictions, and in some cases in areas that cut across committee jurisdictions. Due to their permanent nature, these committees exist beyond the adjournment of each two-year meeting of Congress.
Contents
- History
- Members, 116th Congress
- Historical membership
- Members, 115th Congress
- Members, 114th Congress
- Current subcommittees
- Chair since 1816
- See also
- References
- External links
The Judiciary Committee's oversight of the DOJ includes all of the agencies under the DOJ's jurisdiction, such as the FBI. It also has oversight of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Committee considers presidential nominations for positions in the DOJ, the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the State Justice Institute, and certain positions in the Department of Commerce and DHS. It is also in charge of holding hearings and investigating judicial nominations to the Supreme Court, the U.S. court of appeals, the U.S. district courts, and the Court of International Trade. [1] The Standing Rules of the Senate confer jurisdiction to the Senate Judiciary Committee in certain areas, such as considering proposed constitutional amendments and legislation related to federal criminal law, human rights law, immigration, intellectual property, antitrust law, and internet privacy. [1] [3]
The Office of National Drug Control Policy is a component of the Executive Office of the President of the United States.
The State Justice Institute (SJI) is a private, nonprofit corporation that awards grants to improve judicial administration in the state courts of the United States. It was created by the State Justice Institute Act of 1984.
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. Established pursuant to Article III of the U.S. Constitution in 1789, it has original jurisdiction over a small range of cases, such as suits between two or more states, and those involving ambassadors. It also has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all federal court and state court cases that involve a point of federal constitutional or statutory law. The Court has the power of judicial review, the ability to invalidate a statute for violating a provision of the Constitution or an executive act for being unlawful. However, it may act only within the context of a case in an area of law over which it has jurisdiction. The Court may decide cases having political overtones, but it has ruled that it does not have power to decide nonjusticiable political questions. Each year it agrees to hear about 100–150 of the more than 7,000 cases that it is asked to review.
