A fresh analysis from the Brennan Center for Justice argues that the legislative branch is so overloaded it struggles to finish basic chores like passing budgets and doing routine oversight. The authors say the rules, staffing and structure on Capitol Hill were built for another century and call for big structural changes to drag Congress into the 21st century.
What the Brennan Center Says Is Going Wrong
In a report from the Brennan Center for Justice, Maya Kornberg and Emily Whitehead describe Congress as "overburdened, underresourced, and gridlocked." Their prescription focuses on capacity and expertise: give member offices more staff and support, set up dedicated technology committees, and strengthen nonpartisan support agencies that help lawmakers understand complex policy. They also call for raising pay to attract a wider range of candidates to run for office in the first place.
Big Swings: A Larger House and Tougher Rules
The report homes in on representation as a core problem. Today, each House member represents an average of more than 750,000 people, a number the authors say is out of step with close, responsive democracy. They urge Congress to consider expanding the House to roughly 600 seats, which they argue could shrink district sizes and bring representatives closer to their constituents.
The authors also back stronger ethics enforcement and even age limits for lawmakers. Those kinds of changes would demand significant legal work or a rare burst of broad bipartisan agreement, but they argue that without them public trust will keep eroding.
Spy Powers Lapse as Public Patience Runs Out
Frustration over how Congress operates is not just a vibe, it has concrete consequences. Lawmakers failed to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act before a mid-June deadline, leaving a key surveillance authority in legal limbo, according to NPR.
Public opinion is sliding too. Gallup's tracker shows congressional job approval at about 12% in mid-May, down from roughly 18% in January. Gallup recorded that drop over recent months.
Why the Machinery Feels So Stuck
One big reason the gears grind so loudly is that congressional capacity is capped by law. As the Congressional Research Service explains, members' base pay is $174,000 and the Members' Representational Allowance limits permanent personal staff to 18, a ceiling that has been in place since 1975. The Congressional Research Service documents those limits in detail.
At the same time, scholars at Brookings note that cuts to committee staff and support agencies have thinned out Capitol Hill's in-house expertise on technical and complex issues. According to the report, the Brennan Center sees its package of reforms as a pragmatic toolkit aimed at rebuilding congressional capacity and, with it, some badly needed credibility.
