Source: https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/R45029.html
Timestamp: 2019-01-23 20:59:07
Document Index: 24304381

Matched Legal Cases: ['§2242', '§7104', '§241', '§1301', '§4202', '§3551', '§991', '§3551', '§7171', '§1622', '§4202', '§703']

Presidential Appointments to Full-Time Positions on Regulatory and Other Collegial Boards and Commissions, 114th Congress - EveryCRSReport.com
November 28, 2017 R45029
The President makes appointments to certain positions within the federal government, either using authorities granted to the President alone or with the advice and consent of the Senate. There are some 151 full-time leadership positions on 34 federal regulatory and other collegial boards and commissions for which the Senate provides advice and consent. This report identifies all nominations submitted to the Senate for full-time positions on these 34 boards and commissions during the 114th Congress.
Information for each board and commission is presented in profiles and tables. The profiles provide information on leadership structures and statutory requirements (such as term limits and party balance requirements). The tables include full-time positions confirmed by the Senate, pay levels for these positions, incumbents as of the end of the 114th Congress, incumbents’ parties (where balance is required), and appointment action within each board or commission. Additional summary information across all 34 boards and commissions appears in an appendix.
During the 114th Congress, the President submitted 61 nominations to the Senate for full-time positions on these boards and commissions (most of the remaining positions on these boards and commissions were not vacant during that time). Of these 61 nominations, 23 were confirmed, 3 were withdrawn, and 35 were returned to the President. At the end of the 114th Congress, 28 incumbents were serving past the expiration of their terms. In addition, there were 40 vacancies among the 151 positions.
Information for this report was compiled using the Senate nominations database of the Legislative Information System (LIS) at http://www.lis.gov/nomis/, the Congressional Record (daily edition), the Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents, telephone discussions with agency officials, agency websites, the United States Code, and the 2016 Plum Book (United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions).
November 28, 2017 (R45029)
Table 3. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 5. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 7. Consumer Product Safety Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 9. Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 11. Election Assistance Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 13. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 15. Export-Import Bank Board of Directors Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 17. Farm Credit Administration Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 19. Federal Communications Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 21. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Board of Directors Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 23. Federal Election Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 25. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 27. Federal Labor Relations Authority Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 29. Federal Maritime Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 31. Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 33. Federal Reserve System Board of Governors Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 35. Federal Trade Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 37. Financial Stability Oversight Council Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 39. Foreign Claims Settlement Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 41. Merit Systems Protection Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 43. National Credit Union Administration Board of Directors Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 45. National Labor Relations Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 47. National Mediation Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 49. National Transportation Safety Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 51. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 53. Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 55. Postal Regulatory Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 57. Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 59. Railroad Retirement Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 61. Securities and Exchange Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 63. Surface Transportation Board Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 65. United States International Trade Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 67. United States Parole Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table 69. United States Sentencing Commission Appointment Action During the 114th Congress
Table A-1. Nominations and Appointments to Full-Time Positions on Regulatory and Other Collegial Boards and Commissions, 114th Congress
Table A-2. Appointment Action, Regulatory and Other Collegial Boards and Commissions, 114th Congress
Information for each board and commission is presented in profiles and tables. The profiles provide information on leadership structures and statutory requirements (such as term limits and party balance requirements). The tables include full-time positions confirmed by the Senate, pay levels for these positions, incumbents as of the end of the 114th Congress, incumbents' parties (where balance is required), and appointment action within each board or commission. Additional summary information across all 34 boards and commissions appears in an appendix.
The President is responsible for appointing individuals to certain positions in the federal government. In some instances, the President makes these appointments using authorities granted to the President alone. Other appointments, generally referred to with the abbreviation PAS, are made by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate via the nomination and confirmation process. This report identifies, for the 114th Congress, all nominations submitted to the Senate for full-time positions on 34 regulatory and other collegial boards and commissions.
This report includes profiles on the leadership structure of each of these 34 boards and commissions as well as a pair of tables presenting information on each body's membership and appointment activity as of the end of the 114th Congress. The profiles discuss the statutory requirements for the appointed positions, including the number of members on each board or commission, their terms of office, whether they may continue in their positions after their terms expire, whether political balance is required, and the method for selecting the chair. The first table in each pair provides information on full-time positions requiring Senate confirmation as of the end of the 114th Congress and the pay levels of those positions. The second table tracks appointment activity for each board or commission within the 114th Congress by the Senate (confirmations, rejections, returns to the President, and elapsed time between nomination and confirmation) as well as further related presidential activity (including withdrawals and recess appointments).1 In some instances, no appointment action occurred within a board or commission during the 114th Congress.
Congressional Research Service (CRS) reports regarding the presidential appointments process, nomination activity for other executive branch positions, recess appointments, and other related matters are available at http://www.crs.gov.2
As independent entities with staggered membership, executive branch boards and commissions have more political independence from the President than do executive departments. Nonetheless, the President can sometimes exercise significant influence over the composition of a board or commission's membership when he designates the chair or has the opportunity to fill a number of vacancies at once. For example, President George W. Bush had the chance to shape the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) during the first two years of his presidency because of existing vacancies, resignations, and a member's death. Likewise, during the same time period, President Bush was able to submit nominations for all of the positions on the National Labor Relations Board because of existing vacancies, expiring recess appointments, and resignations. Simultaneous turnover of board or commission membership may result from coincidence, but it also may be the result of a buildup of vacancies after extended periods of time in which the President fails to nominate, or the Senate fails to confirm, members.
Two other notable characteristics apply to appointments to some of the boards and commissions. First, for 26 of the bodies in this report, the law limits the number of appointed members who may belong to the same political party, usually to no more than a bare majority of the appointed members (e.g., two of three or three of five).4 Second, advice and consent requirements also apply to inspector general appointments in four of these organizations and general counsel appointments in three.
During the 114th Congress, President Barack H. Obama submitted nominations to the Senate for 57 of the 151 full-time positions on 34 regulatory and other boards and commissions (most of the remaining positions were not vacant during that time). In attempting to fill these 57 positions, he submitted a total of 61 nominations, of which 23 were confirmed, 3 were withdrawn, and 35 were returned to the President. No recess appointments were made. Table 1 summarizes the appointment activity for the 114th Congress. At the end of the Congress, 28 incumbents were serving past the expiration of their terms.5 In addition, there were 40 vacancies among the 151 positions.
(114th Congress, 2015-2016)
Nominations Submitted to the Senate During the 114th Congress (Total)
The length of time a given nomination may be pending in the Senate has varied widely. Some nominations have been confirmed within a few days, others have been confirmed within several months, and some have never been confirmed. In the board and commission profiles, this report provides, for each board or commission nomination confirmed in the 114th Congress, the number of days between nomination and confirmation ("days to confirm").
For those nominations confirmed in the 114th Congress, a mean of 128.6 days elapsed between nomination and confirmation. The median number of days elapsed was 89.0.
The first table lists incumbents to full-time positions as of the end of the 114th Congress, along with party affiliation8 (where applicable), date of first confirmation, term expiration date, and pay level. Incumbents whose terms have expired are italicized. Most incumbents serve fixed terms of office and are removable only for specified causes. They generally remain in office when a new Administration assumes office following a presidential election.
For presidentially appointed positions requiring Senate confirmation, the pay levels fall under the Executive Schedule, which ranges from level I, for Cabinet-level offices, to level V, for the lowest-ranked positions. Most of the chair positions are at level III, and most of the other positions are at level IV.9
Appendix A provides two tables. Table A-1 includes information on each of the nominations and appointments to regulatory and other collegial boards and commissions during the 114th Congress, alphabetically organized and following a similar format to that of the "Appointment Action" sections discussed above. It identifies the board or commission involved and the dates of nomination and confirmation. Table A-1 also indicates if a nomination was withdrawn, returned, rejected, or if a recess appointment was made. In addition, it provides the mean and median number of days taken to confirm a nomination.10
Vanessa L.A. Sutherland (Chair)
Kristin M. Kulinowski
Source: Table created using data from agency websites and the Legislative Information System (LIS) Senate nominations database at http://www.lis.gov/nomis/.
Notes: The abbreviation NA means not applicable. As noted above, the membership of the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board is not required to be politically balanced. Board terms expire five years from the time of appointment.
Vanessa L.A. Sutherland
Source: Table created using data on agency websites and the LIS Senate nominations database at http://www.lis.gov/nomis/.
Timothy G. Massad (Chair)
Ann Marie Buerkle (Acting Chair)
Joyce L. Connery (Chair)
Jessie H. Roberson (Vice Chair)a
Sean Sullivana
Joseph B. Hamiltona
Withdrawn 07/16/15
Thomas Hicks (Chair)
Matthew V. Masterson (Vice-Chair)
Christy A. McCormicka
Jenny R. Yang (Chair)
Constance S. Barkera
Notes: The statutory provision establishing the position of general counsel does not include qualifications related to political party affiliation.
Notes: The statute establishing the position of inspector general provides that appointment shall be made without regard to political party affiliation.
Patricia M. Loui-Schmicker
Withdrawn 01/11/16
John M. McWatters
Osvaldo L.G. Munet
The Farm Credit Administration consists of three members (no more than two may be from the same political party) who serve six-year terms. A member may not succeed himself or herself unless he or she was first appointed to complete an unexpired term of three years or less. A member whose term expires may continue to serve until a successor takes office. One member is designated by the President to serve as chair for the duration of the member's term. (12 U.S.C. §2242)
Kenneth A. Spearmana
a. The incumbent shown in italics term had expired. He continued to serve under the holdover provision noted above.
Thomas E. Wheeler (Chair)
Ajit V. Paia
a. Gruenberg's term as a member expires on December 27, 2018. His current term as chair expires on November 16, 2017.
b. Jay N. Lerner was confirmed near the end of the 114th Congress on December 10, 2016, but was not appointed to begin his term as Inspector General until January 9, 2017, in the 115th Congress.
Note: The statute establishing the position of inspector general provides that appointment shall be made without regard to political party affiliation.
Steven T. Walthera (Chair)
Caroline C. Huntera (Vice Chair)
Lee E. Goodmana
Norman Bay (Chair)
The Federal Labor Relations Authority consists of three members (no more than two may be from the same political party) who serve five-year terms. After the date on which a five-year term expires, a member may continue to serve until the end of the next Congress, unless a successor is appointed before that time. The President designates the chair. The President also appoints the general counsel, with the advice and consent of the Senate. (5 U.S.C. §7104)
Patrick Pizzellaa
Mario Codero
04/14/94a
07/31/03b
Notes: As noted above, the membership of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission is not required to be politically balanced.
a. Jordan was initially confirmed to the board on April 14, 1994. She served from April 1994 to August 2014. From September 2014 to April 2015 she served as Counsel to the Commission. Jordan was again confirmed to the Commission on March 27, 2015.
b. Young was initially confirmed to the board on July 31, 2003. He served from July 2003 to August 2014. From September 2014 to April 2015 he served as Counsel to the Commission. Young was again confirmed to the Commission on March 27, 2015
The Federal Reserve System Board of Governors consists of seven members (no political balance is required) who serve 14-year terms. When a term expires, a member may continue to serve until a successor takes office. The President appoints the chair and vice chair, who are separately appointed as members, for four-year terms, with the advice and consent of the Senate. (12 U.S.C. §§241-242)
Janet L. Yellen (Chair)
08/11/94a
Notes: As noted above, the membership of the Federal Reserve System Board of Governors is not required to be politically balanced.
a. Yellen was first confirmed as a member of the board on August 11, 1994. She served in that position for 3 years, until February 1997. Yellen was later nominated and confirmed as a member and Vice Chair of the board, on September 29, 2010.
b. Yellen's term as a member expires on January 31, 2024. Her current term as chair expires on February 3, 2018. Fischer's term as a member expires on January 31, 2020. His current term as vice chair expires on June 12, 2018.
Edith Ramirez (Chair)a
Note: As noted above, the membership of the Financial Stability Oversight Council is not required to be politically balanced.
Susan T. Grundmann (Chair)a
Richard T. Metsger (Chair)
Note: The statutory provision establishing the position of general counsel does not include qualifications related to political party affiliation.
Linda A. Puchala (Chair)a
Harry R. Hoglandera
Nicholas C. Gealea
Christopher A. Hart (Chair)
08/04/90a
12/31/17b
Tho Dinh-Zarr (Vice Chair)
Earl F. Weenerc
Robert L. Sumwalt IIIc
a. Hart was initially confirmed as a board member on August 4, 1990. He served on the National Transportation Safety Board until 1993. Hart resumed serving on the Board beginning with the 111th Congress.
b. Hart's term as a member expires on December 31, 2017. His term as chair expired on March 17, 2017, two years from the date of his appointment to that post.
c. The terms of incumbents shown in italics had expired. They continued to serve under the holdover provision noted above.
Tho Dinh-Zarr
Withdrawn 10/05/15
Stephen G. Burns (Chair)
Cynthia L. Attwood (Chair)
Note: As noted above, the membership of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission is not required to be politically balanced.
Nanci E. Langley (Vice Chair)
The Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007, P.L. 110-53, Title VIII, Section 801 (121 Stat. 352) established the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board. Previously, the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board functioned as part of the White House Office in the Executive Office of the President. That board ceased functioning on January 30, 2008.
Vacant (Chair; Member-at-Large)
Walter A. Barrowsa (Labor Member)
Steven J. Anthony (Management Member)
Notes: As noted above, the membership of the Railroad Retirement Board is not required to be politically balanced. The statute establishing the position of inspector general provides that appointment shall be made without regard to political party affiliation.
Thomas G. Kotarac
Mary Jo White (Chair)
The Surface Transportation Board, located within the Department of Transportation, consists of five members (no more than three may be from the same political party) who serve five-year terms. When a term expires, the member may continue to serve until a successor takes office but for not more than one year after expiration. The President designates the chair. (49 U.S.C. §1301)
Debra L. Miller (Vice Chair)
Irving A. Williamson (Chair)a
David S. Johanson (Vice Chair)
Dean A. Pinkerta
Rhonda K Schmidtlein
The United States Parole Commission is an independent agency in the Department of Justice. The commission consists of five commissioners (political balance is not required) who serve for six-year terms. When a term expires, a member may continue to serve until a successor takes office. In most cases, a commissioner may serve no more than 12 years. The President designates the chair (18 U.S.C. §4202). The commission was previously scheduled to be phased out, but Congress has extended its life several times. Under P.L. 113-47, Section 2 (127 Stat. 572), it was extended until November 1, 2018. (18 U.S.C. §3551 note)
Notes: As noted above, the membership of the United States Parole Commission is not required to be politically balanced.
a. The incumbent shown in italics term had expired. She continued to serve under the holdover provision above.
Larry T. Glenn
The United States Sentencing Commission is a judicial branch agency that consists of seven voting members, who are appointed to six-year terms, and two nonvoting members. The seven voting members are appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. Only the chair and three vice chairs, selected from among the members, serve full time. The President appoints the chair, with the advice and consent of the Senate, and designates the vice chairs. At least three members must be federal judges. No more than four members may be of the same political party. No more than two vice chairs may be of the same political party. No voting member may serve more than two full terms. When a term expires, an incumbent may continue to serve until he or she is reappointed, a successor takes office, or Congress adjourns sine die at the end of the session that commences after the expiration of the term, whichever is earliest. The Attorney General (or designee) serves ex officio as a nonvoting member (28 U.S.C. §§991-992). The chair of the United State Parole Commission also is an ex officio nonvoting member of the commission. (18 U.S.C. §3551 note)
Patti B. Saris (Chair)a
Charles R. Breyer (Vice Chair)a
b. Party balance is statutorily required, as discussed above, but the commission staff did not release this information.
Returned 01/03/17b
Source: Table created by CRS using data from the LIS Senate nominations database at http://www.lis.gov/nomis/.
c. As of the end of the 114th Congress.
Source: Table created by CRS using data found from the LIS Senate nominations database at http://www.lis.gov/nomis/.
For more information on recess appointments, see CRS Report RS21308, Recess Appointments: Frequently Asked Questions, by [author name scrubbed].
Exceptions are as follows: (1) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), located in the Department of Energy (DOE); (2) the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission (FCSC); (3) the United States Parole Commission (USPC), both located in the Department of Justice (DOJ); and (4) the Surface Transportation Board (STB), located in the Department of Transportation (DOT). FERC's enabling statute designated it as an independent entity in DOE and provided that its members and employees are not subject to the supervision or direction of department officials (42 U.S.C. §7171(d)). The FCSC was designated as an independent entity within DOJ with a provision specifying that decisions of the commission with respect to claims shall not be subject to review by the Attorney General (22 U.S.C. §1622g). The enabling statute of the USPC established it as an independent agency within DOJ (18 U.S.C. §4202). The enabling statute of the STB provided that "members, employees, and other personnel of the Board shall not be responsible to or subject to the supervision or direction of any officer, employee, or agent" of DOT (49 U.S.C. §703(c)).
The annual pay rates for the Executive Schedule, as of the end of the 114th Congress (2016), were as follows: Level I, $205,700; Level II, $185,100; Level III, $170,000; Level IV, $160,300; and Level V, $150,200. U.S. Office of Personnel Management, "Salary Table No. 2016-EX," available at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/salary-tables/16Tables/exec/html/EX.aspx.