Congressional Modernization
The Foundation supports efforts to strengthen the First Branch of the US Government by providing technical assistance and publishing public articles and papers with recommendations on modernization strategies for the legislative and executive branches.
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The Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress: Virtual Fix Congress Cohort Listening Session
POPVOX Foundation Co-Founder, Marci Harris, testified before the House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress at the first listening session of the 117th Congress.
I would like to suggest that the work of the committee in this Congress should include an expansion of scope to the inter-branch and external pacing problems — to ensure that Congress is up to the task of overseeing a rapidly modernizing executive branch and exploring innovations in policy-making process to maintain pace with our changing society and address complex problems.
Marci Harris, Oral Testimony | Mar 25, 2021
House Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress
Chair Kilmer and Vice Chair Timmons, thank you for this opportunity to join you.
It’s great to see the new Members of this very special committee and I congratulate the returning members on the successes of the last Congress.
We’ve seen considerable innovations in the House this past year and I believe the most significant was not the adoption of any specific technology or process but rather the demonstration that the House could act quickly to keep the metaphorical lights on and the legislative process going.
In our 2019 recommendations, my colleagues on the APSA Congressional reform task force that Kevin Esterling mentioned took note of the concept of a “pacing problem”—“the growing gap between the pace of science and technology and the lagging responsiveness of political institutions.” We explained Congress doesn’t just have one pacing problem, it has three:
The internal pacing problem, referring to Congress’ need to apply modern technology and processes for its own operations
The inter-branch pacing problem, describing an increasing gap between Congress’ leveraging of data, evidence, and technology vis-a-vis the executive branch
The external pacing problem, highlighting the ongoing structural and staff capacity challenges that make it difficult for Congress to keep up with society at large
I think it is fair to say that “Modernization 1.0” focused primarily on the internal pacing problem — addressing challenges with the internal operations of the House.
I would like to suggest that the work of the committee in this Congress should include an expansion of scope to the inter-branch and external pacing problems — to ensure that Congress is up to the task of overseeing a rapidly modernizing executive branch and exploring innovations in policy-making process to maintain pace with our changing society and address complex problems. That includes incorporating what we have called the “SIDE” elements — the inclusion of Stakeholders, Individuals, Data, and Evidence — in the policymaking process. You have heard some wonderful examples of that from my co-panelists.
I look forward to working with you to make “Modernization 2.0” a success.
POPVOX Foundation
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