Field Hearings: Fact Sheet on Purposes, Rules,
Regulations, and Guidelines
Valerie Heitshusen
Analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process
December 8, 2009
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
RS20928
CRS Report for Congress
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repared for Members and Committees of Congress
Field Hearings: Fact Sheet on Purposes, Rules, Regulations, and Guidelines
ield hearings are congressional hearings held outside Washington, DC. They date at least to
the Civil War, when committees sometimes traveled to the front lines to observe conditions
F and war preparedness.
Purposes of Field Hearings
Members and committees hold field hearings for a variety of reasons. A field hearing brings
Congress directly to the scene of an important national issue. For example, in the 111th Congress,
a Senate committee held a field hearing in El Paso, TX, on violence along the U.S.-Mexico
border, and a House subcommittee held a field hearing in Los Angeles, CA, on the effects of high
housing foreclosure rates in the region. A field hearing can serve other purposes. It can
• raise public visibility of an issue;
• provide an opportunity to evaluate a government program “on site”;
• reinforce a Member’s relationship with his or her constituents; and
• attract local, and sometimes national, media attention.
Chamber Rules
The formal authority for field hearings is found implicitly in chamber rules. House Rule XI,
clause 2, states in part that a committee is authorized “to sit and act at such times and places
within the United States, whether the House is in session, has recessed, or has adjourned, and to
hold such hearings as it considers necessary.” Similarly, Senate Rule XXVI, paragraph 1, states
that a committee “is authorized to hold such hearings to sit and act at such times and places
during the sessions, recesses, and adjourned periods of the Senate” as it sees fit. Otherwise,
chamber rules do not distinguish field hearings from those held in Washington.
Committee Rules
House and Senate committee rules are generally silent on field hearings specifically, but, in the
rules for the 111th Congress, some committees included related provisions. For example, the rules
of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the Senate Select Committee
on Intelligence both require that members be notified 48 hours prior to a field hearing. (For
hearings held in Washington, DC, the notice requirement is 24 hours.) Rules of the House
Committee on Education and Labor provide another example, specifying that field hearings
(including those of subcommittees) may only be scheduled when authorized by the chairman of
the full committee.
Regulations and Guidelines
Funding for committee travel and other administrative issues raised by field hearings are covered
by regulations established by the House Administration Committee and the Senate Rules and
Administration Committee. In the House, regulations printed in the House Administration
Committee’s Committees’ Congressional Handbook cover matters specific to field hearings. The
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Field Hearings: Fact Sheet on Purposes, Rules, Regulations, and Guidelines
handbook is available from the committee and can be viewed online at http://cha.house.gov/
committee_handbook.aspx. In the Senate, committee travel in general is governed by regulations
compiled in the U.S. Senate Handbook. Print and online versions of the handbook are available—
to Senate offices only—from the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration.
It is common for committees to prepare guidelines or informal checklists for field hearings based
on chamber and committee rules and practices as well as the respective travel regulations of the
House Administration Committee and the Senate Rules and Administration Committee. Expenses
incurred by a Representative, Senator, or staff aide attending a field hearing—including
transportation, lodging, meals and incidentals—are reimbursable by the committee holding the
hearing. When a field hearing involves oversight of a federal agency, it may be possible, under a
committee’s oversight authority, to request that the agency provide transportation for committee
members and staff. Usually, such requests require a letter from the committee chair to the agency
head.
Although field hearings involve some administrative matters different from hearings held in
Washington, most of the procedural requirements are the same: scheduling, notice, subpoena
authority, quorum requirements, broadcasting, and the like. Notably, field hearings cannot be
explicitly employed for political or electoral purposes. House Rule XXV and associated
regulations forbid official travel for any political or campaign purposes, and Senate regulations
forbid reimbursement for per diem expenses associated with official travel during the 60 days
before a Senator’s name appears on a ballot.1 Members and staff should consult with the relevant
committee (Senate Committee on Ethics or House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct)
for additional guidance on permissible and nonpermissible reimbursements for Member’s official
and other travel; additional details are also provided in the Senate Ethics Manual, the House
Ethics Manual, and other publications of the House Committee on Standards of Official
Conduct.2
Venue
No rule or regulation determines a field hearing’s location. Committee or subcommittee
leadership usually choose the location, including the specific site, such as a federal building,
public school, or private facility. It may be necessary for staff to travel to the field location a day
or more before the hearing to make certain administrative arrangements—including layout of
tables and chairs for Members, witnesses, and the public, as well as setup of a sound system.
Other advanced preparations may include arrangements for security personnel and sound system
technicians.
1 The Senate regulations provide some exceptions for airfare and in cases when a Senator whose election is not
contested. Campaign funds are allowed to cover per diem in some circumstances. See Senate Ethics Manual, S.Pub.
108-1, p. 120, available online at http://ethics.senate.gov/downloads/pdffiles/manual.pdf.
2 The Senate document is available at http://ethics.senate.gov/downloads/pdffiles/manual.pdf. The House publication is
available at http://ethics.house.gov/Media/PDF/2008_House_Ethics_Manual.pdf. (Additional travel guidelines that
may affect travel taken for official business can be found at http://ethics.house.gov/Subjects/List.aspx?subid=3.) In the
110th Congress, the House adopted new regulations governing gifts and travel (through changes to House Rule XXV).
The new guidelines do not apply to committee-funded travel, or that paid for by federal, state, or local government
entities. See “New Travel Rules for Officially-Connected Travel Paid for by a Private Source,” Memorandum to All
Members, Officers, and Employees, House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, Mar. 14, 2007, available at
http://ethics.house.gov/Media/PDF/pink_sheet_paid_by_private_source_2007.pdf.
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Field Hearings: Fact Sheet on Purposes, Rules, Regulations, and Guidelines
Author Contact Information
Valerie Heitshusen
Analyst on Congress and the Legislative Process
vheitshusen@crs.loc.gov, 7-8635
Acknowledgments
This report was originally written by Thomas P. Carr, formerly an Analyst in American National
Government at CRS. The listed author has updated this report and is available to respond to inquiries on the
subject.
Congressional Research Service
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