A Do-Nothing Congress? Well, Pretty Close

After a burst of legislative activity in the past decade, representatives in the House are now proposing fewer bills. This House is on track to produce the lowest number of legislative proposals since the Clinton administration.

Through mid-May, representatives introduced 18 percent fewer bills compared with the same point in the previous Congress. That’s the largest drop between Congresses in the period beginning in 1995, when Republicans overturned decades of Democratic rule in the House. The number of lawmakers who have introduced at least 25 proposals has fallen by nearly two-thirds compared with the previous Congress. The number who have produced five or fewer pieces of legislation has jumped 81 percent. The representatives who have introduced little or no legislation come from both parties and are veterans and newcomers alike. Political scientists and legislators have several theories on the slowdown.