Most of the members of Congress said they believe that their state legislature performs better than Congress. But not all. One member of Congress who had been in the minority in her state legislature but in the majority in Congress thought that Congress worked better. The same was true of a member from a state that had experienced significant stalemates and one who had had to deal with ideological, uncompromising governors. Several of them pointed out that most bills in Congress pass with overwhelming support, just as state legislators reported.
When asked to compare their state legislative and congressional experiences, a few themes emerged from their comments. Compared to Congress, state legislatures or their members:
* Operate on a substantially smaller scale and with a more homogeneous polity. There are 201 legislators in Minnesota compared to 535 in Congress; 5 million people compare to 300 million, said one. Theres a whole difference in magnitude between Virginia General Assembly and Congress, said another.
* Are more collegial and less partisan. Members of Congress who had served both in the minority and majority in their state legislatures said that minority members were more effective there than in Congress. In Tennessee I was friends with members from both parties. Its hard to make friends across parties in Congress except when we go on international trips together, was one of several comments about how congressional delegations (also known as CODELS) are one of the only ways to get to know members of Congress from the other party. Members also said that the leaders in their state legislatures were more collegial across party and chamber than congressional leaders.
* Have more genuine debate on the floor and in committee. The art of debate mattered in my Legislature, said a former Maine leader. Speaking of his experience in Colorado, another member of Congress commented, We were on the floor together and had real debates, not one-minute speeches. A Virginian said, Our debates in Congress are not real. Its a loss..
* Have governors who are more involved in the state legislative process than the president is in Congress.
* Use earmarks as a tool to get compromise and bridge gaps on the budget.
* Are lower profile and face fewer demands, especially for campaign fundraising. Theres much more demand for my time and attention in Congress, said a freshman member from Washington. I didnt have to sit on the phone all the time to raise money in St. Paul, said a congressional veteran.
We also asked the members of Congress what practices from their state legislative experience they would like to see adopted by Congress. Following are some noteworthy responses:
* One member of Congress said that he would like to see Congress give every bill a hearing and a vote. Another version of this from a different representative was to give every member the right to get a vote on a bill without having a formal requirement of a vote.
* A former state house majority leader said he thought that Congress should act promptly, both in committee and on the floor, on bills before them. He added that members of Congress should be expected to stay on the floor until their business is done. Forcing members to stay in session is a better way of controlling amendments than having the rules committee block them, he said.
* Several said that Congress should conduct open debates on issues. What would be the harm? asked a former state senate majority leader.
* A Republican House member said that she thought there would be greater trust in Congress if it devoted institutional resources to building personal relationships across parties. A freshman representative said that his class has held periodic bipartisan meetings and that this practice needs to be adopted and expanded by other subgroups in the Congress.
* Regarding budgets and appropriations, almost all members of Congress suggested reinstating earmarks as a tool of negotiation and compromise. Republican members, though not Democrats, said that they thought a federal balanced budget requirement would force Congress to act in a more timely and effective manner on the budget. One member also suggested that Congress get rid of its separate budget and appropriations processes.
Our small sample size of 12 members of Congress did not allow us to draw hard conclusions about practices that might help that institution improve policymaking in the face of polarization. However, the comments offered by congressmen who have served in state legislatures suggested that they are a rich source of ideas for strengthening the institution. Their perspectives also reinforce key themes we gleaned from our ten case study states.
https://www.ncsl.org/Portals/1/HTML_...isanship_1.htm