A number of posts have discussed congressional capacity, legislative productivity, and deliberation.
Don Wolfensberger at The Hill:
Of the 138 measures with special rules so far in this Congress, as of May 22, 49 (37 percent) make unreported measures in order. That compares to 27 percent in the 109th Congress (2005-06); 25 percent in the 114th Congress (2015-16); and 47 percent of all bills in the previous 117th Congress (2021-22).
Another relevant measure is how many special rules provide for a “structured” amendment process as opposed to “closed” rules that allow for no amendments. In the current 118th Congress, 44 percent of the 138 special rules as of May 22 were structured, and 56 percent were closed. That compares to 44 percent open rules, 47 percent structured rules, and 9 percent closed rules in the 103rd Congress (1993-94); and 58 percent open, 28 percent structured, and 14 percent closed in the 104thCongress (1995-96) — the first Republican House in 40 years. There have been no open amendment rules since the 114th Congress (2015-16).
Looking deeper, in the allocation of amendments by party in special rules, the Republican majority in this Congress has been allowed 57 percent of total amendments, versus 27 percent for Democrats and 16 percent bipartisan. In the 111th Congress (2009-10) under a Democratic majority, Democrats got 59 percent of the amendments, and Republicans 20 percent, and 19 percent were bipartisan.
