Over the course of a Congress, committees receive many bill referrals that they can choose to formally act on through hearings and markups. The committee chair sets the agenda for these meetings, identifying bills or issues that the panel will try to formally address through the process.
Committee members discuss the bills in question, offering and voting on amendments to the proposal – potentially changing the original text of a bill completely. The committee then votes on whether the amended proposal will be sent to the full House for consideration.
This week, the House Ethics Committee quietly voted to release its report on Rep. Matt Gaetz’s sexual misconduct and obstruction allegations, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The move marks a significant reversal from the Republican committee’s initial plan to keep its findings private.
The panel is expected to vote next week to send the final version of its report to the full House for a vote. The decision to make the report public could signal that the panel is now ready to pursue an impeachment case against Gaetz, who has pleaded not guilty to a series of counts of sexual assault and obstruction of justice.
If the committee decides to pursue an impeachment case against the Florida lawmaker, it would face a long legal battle to remove him from office, including possible removal from his leadership roles in the House. He is a close ally of President Trump and flirted with a bid for the state governorship in 2026.
As the 116th Congress gets underway, several lawmakers are jockeying to serve as the top Republicans on various panels in the House of Representatives. The House Oversight Committee is one of the most powerful, leading numerous investigations into the first Trump administration, and the top slot will likely go to Reps. James Comer (R-Ky.) or Bob Goodlatte (R-Ark.).
Both candidates have aligned themselves closely with the GOP leadership and both have been spending time at Mar-a-Lago recently. However, Connolly seems to be a front-runner because of his close ties with leadership and his role as the chairman of the Ukraine Caucus.
The race for the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is a close one, but it appears to be between Reps. David Rouzer (R-N.C.) and Rick Crawford (R-Ark). The two are both considered to be favorites for the post. If both win, they would become the only Black men to serve as full committee chairs next year. Neither one is expected to get a waiver from the rules for another two years at T&I, but both are well-liked by colleagues and are respected by members. If either of them loses, it is unlikely to cause a big upset for the panel. The rest of the races appear to be pretty much toss-ups at this point.