One by one, the committee chairmen broached the table in front of the House's lone committee chairwoman. They sat down, exchanged pleasantries, and asked for money.
There were X number of bills referred to the committee, Y number of bills taken up on the House floor, and Z number of bills signed into law during the 113th Congress, many would say. The committee completed all this under tight budget constraints and staffing levels that oftentimes were less than adequate.
On Wednesday, 11 committee chairmen and ranking members came before the House Administration Committee and Chairwoman Candice Miller, outlining the work performed over the last two years, their agenda for the next two and—most importantly—the funding they need to accomplish those goals. Many requested modest increases to their committee budgets: about 1 percent for the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Science, Space, and Technology Committee; about 3.5 percent for the Small Business Committee and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence; and around 9 percent for the Judiciary Committee, seemingly the largest ask of the day. (The panel needs to establish a task force in case the impeachment of a federal judge from Alabama accused of beating his wife goes forward.)