FEDtalk This Week: Making Congress Modern
Chair of the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress, Representative Derek Kilmer (D-WA), and Vice Chair of the Committee, Representative Tom Graves (R-GA), spoke to host Jason Briefel on this week’s episode of FEDtalk. Briefel also spoke with Congressional reform advocates Kevin Kosar of the R Street Institute and Daniel Schuman of Demand Progress.
Modernization efforts are a consistent struggle within the Executive Branch. The podcast examined how similar problems persist in the Legislative Branch, threatening the ability of Congress to deliver on their constituents’ needs. The Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress was created at the beginning of the 116th Congress in 2019 to address how to use technology to make Congress more efficient, effective, and able to work for the people.
The committee has an equal number of Democrats and Republicans. As Representative Kilmer said on the show, “If you’re going to make systemic change it has to be bipartisan.”
Over 57 bipartisan recommendations have been unanimously approved by the committee, some already enacted into changes to rules and law. Chairman Kilmer and Vice Chairman Graves said the committee hopes to advance additional recommendations before the year’s end.
The select committee leaders discussed the importance of Congress having a contingency plan in place for situations such as national emergencies. For example, they discussed the importance of having a continuity of operations plan, including an emergency communications plan and adequate personal protective equipment.
The Congressmen also noted that there should be a strong cybersecurity infrastructure in place within Congress to ensure Legislative Branch employees can effectively work remotely on behalf of constitutions.
From a stakeholder perspective, these recommendations need to be taken up expeditiously to ensure Congress as a system is able to respond to the needs of the American people.
Daniel Schuman said, “The system isn’t working well, and we are not seeing long term problems being solved. Right now, it is very, very easy to stop things from happening, but it’s very hard to actually take steps to solve those problems.”
In the absence of Congressional modernization, Kevin Kosar expressed fear that the executive branch is overpowering the legislative branch.
Kosar highlights how our current system has changed over time, and said, “The last 100 years we have seen an increasing imbalance in the branches of government. Now we have a peculiar arrangement where the president seems to be the be all end all. It’s almost quasi-parliamentary.”
You can stream the show online anytime via the Federal News Network app and listen to the FEDtalk podcast on PodcastOne and Apple Podcasts.
FEDtalk is a live talk show produced by Shaw Bransford & Roth P.C., a federal employment law firm. Bringing you the insider’s perspective from leaders in the federal community since 1993.
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