U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce

The U.S. House Commerce Committee on Energy and Commerce residing at 2125 Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, DC is the oldest (208 years) legislative standing committee in the U.S. House of Representatives. It has served as the principal guide for the House in matters relating to the promotion of commerce and to the public?s health and marketplace interests.

Role of the Committee

Committee on Energy and Commerce has developed what is arguably the broadest (non-tax-oriented) jurisdiction of any Congressional committee. Today, it maintains principal responsibility for legislative oversight relating to telecommunications, consumer protection, food and drug safety, public health, air quality and environmental health, the supply and delivery of energy, and interstate and foreign commerce in general. This jurisdiction extends over five Cabinet-level departments and seven independent agencies--from the Energy Department, Health and Human Services, the Transportation Department to the Federal Trade Commission, Food and Drug Administration, and Federal Communications Commission ? and sundry quasi-governmental organizations.

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To manage the wide variety of issues it encounters, the Committee relies on the front-line work of six subcommittees: the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection, the Subcommittee on Energy and Air Quality, the Subcommittee on Environment and Hazardous Materials, the Subcommittee on Health, the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, and the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet.

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