Official Summaries

This resolution establishes the House Select Committee on Electoral Reform to examine current methods of electing Members of Congress, consider alternative methods of election, and report appropriate recommendations to Congress and the President.

Specifically, the committee must (1) determine how alternative methods of election would affect the responsiveness, accountability, and functionality of Congress; (2) conduct hearings to take testimony and receive evidence from appropriate expert witnesses; and (3) examine federal barriers to state experimentation with alternative electoral systems. The committee must consider alternatives to current methods that include adopting multi-member congressional districts with proportional representation; adjusting the total number of Members of the House of Representatives; adopting alternative methods of voting (e.g., ranked-choice voting); and holding open and nonpartisan primaries.

The committee shall be made up of 14 Members of Congress appointed by the Speaker of the House, 7 of whom shall be appointed in consultation with the minority leader. The committee's co-chairs shall be designated by the Speaker and minority leader, respectively. The resolution provides that the committee must hold its first meeting within 30 days after all of its members have been appointed.

The committee shall issue its final report to Congress and the President within one year after the committee's first meeting.

Current Full Text

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 20 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 20

         Establishing the Select Committee on Electoral Reform.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 7, 2025

Ms. Perez (for herself and Mr. Golden of Maine) submitted the following 
        resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Rules

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
         Establishing the Select Committee on Electoral Reform.

Whereas approval of Congress is unacceptably low, and this disapproval is in 
        part caused by the structure of Congress and how it is elected;
Whereas Americans are increasingly turning to electoral reform to improve their 
        experience of politics and elections, including by adopting proportional 
        representation, ranked choice voting, open primaries, and various 
        redistricting reform measures;
Whereas article I, section 4 of the Constitution of the United States gives 
        Congress the power to enact laws governing the time, place, and manner 
        of elections for Senators and Members of the House of Representatives;
Whereas the law commonly known as the Uniform Congressional District Act, passed 
        in 1967, requires every State to elect its delegation to the House of 
        Representatives exclusively from single-member districts; and
Whereas the law commonly known as the Permanent Apportionment Act of 1929 
        established that the House of Representatives would permanently have 435 
        representatives, a departure from the earlier practice of adding members 
        after each census to reflect the Nation's growing population: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved,

SECTION 1. ESTABLISHMENT.

    There is hereby established the Select Committee on Electoral 
Reform (hereafter referred to as the ``Select Committee'').

SEC. 2. COMPOSITION.

    (a) Appointment of Members.--The Speaker shall appoint 14 Members 
to the Select Committee, 7 of whom shall be appointed after 
consultation with the minority leader.
    (b) Designation of Co-Chairs.--The Speaker shall designate one 
Member to serve as co-chair of the Select Committee. The minority 
leader shall designate one member to serve as co-chair of the Select 
Committee.
    (c) Vacancies.--Any vacancy in the Select Committee shall be filled 
in the same manner as the original appointment.

SEC. 3. DUTIES.

    (a) In General.--The duties of the Select Committee are the 
following:
            (1) To examine the current methods by which citizens of the 
        United States elect Members of Congress.
            (2) To examine alternatives to these methods to determine 
        how such alternatives would affect the responsiveness, 
        accountability, and functionality of Congress, including--
                    (A) adopting multi-member congressional districts 
                with proportional representation;
                    (B) adjusting the number of Members of the House of 
                Representatives;
                    (C) adopting alternative methods of voting, such as 
                ranked-choice voting and cumulative voting, as well as 
                changes to ballot design such as fusion voting, in 
                which parties may nominate candidates also nominated by 
                another party;
                    (D) holding open and nonpartisan primaries; and
                    (E) establishing independent congressional 
                redistricting commissions.
            (3) To conduct hearings to take testimony and receive 
        evidence from witnesses selected for their relevant expertise, 
        including--
                    (A) political scientists;
                    (B) current and former Members of Congress;
                    (C) officials from States and local governments 
                that have previously adopted one or more of the 
                alternative methods to be examined by the Select 
                Committee; and
                    (D) officials from countries which currently use 
                one or more of the alternative methods to be examined 
                by the Select Committee.
            (4) To examine Federal barriers to State experimentation 
        with alternative electoral systems, including the Act entitled 
        ``An Act for the relief of Doctor Ricardo Vallejo Samala and to 
        provide for congressional redistricting'', approved December 
        14, 1967 (2 U.S.C. 2c), commonly known as the Uniform 
        Congressional District Act, and its requirement that States use 
        single-member districts.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the first meeting of the 
Select Committee, the Select Committee shall issue a final report to 
Congress and the President, and shall include in the report such 
recommendations as it considers appropriate.

SEC. 4. MEETINGS.

    (a) Meetings.--The Select Committee shall hold its first meeting 
not later than 30 days after all of its members have been appointed, 
and shall meet at the call of the co-chairs or a majority of its 
members.
    (b) Quorum.--Twelve members of the Select Committee shall 
constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold hearings.

SEC. 5. RULES AND PROCEDURES.

    (a) In General.--Except as otherwise provided in this section, the 
Select Committee shall have the authorities and responsibilities of, 
and shall be subject to the same limitations and restrictions as, a 
standing committee of the House, and shall be deemed a committee of the 
House for all purposes of law or rule.
    (b) Applicability of General Rules for Standing Committees.--Rules 
X and XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives shall apply to 
the Select Committee except as follows:
            (1) Service on the Select Committee shall not count against 
        the limitations in clause 5(b)(2) of rule X.
            (2) Clause 2(m)(1)(B) of rule XI, clause 2(m)(3) of rule 
        XI, and section 3(r) of House Resolution 5, One Hundred 
        Nineteenth Congress, shall not apply to the Select Committee, 
        but the Select Committee may recommend subpoenas and 
        depositions and submit such recommendations to the relevant 
        standing committee.
            (3) Clause 2(d) of rule X shall not apply to the Select 
        Committee.
    (c) No Legislative Jurisdiction.--The Select Committee shall not 
have legislative jurisdiction and shall have no authority to take 
legislative action on any bill or resolution.

SEC. 6. FUNDING.

    To enable the Select Committee to carry out the purposes of this 
resolution--
            (1) the Select Committee may use the services of staff of 
        the House; and
            (2) the Select Committee shall be eligible for interim 
        funding pursuant to clause 7 of rule X of the Rules of the 
        House of Representatives.

SEC. 7. TERMINATION.

    The Select Committee shall terminate 30 days after filing the final 
report under section 3.
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