Senate Governmental Affairs Committee at a Glance

Majority
Room, 340 Dirksen
Phone, 224-4751
Fax, 228-3679
www.senate.gov/~gov_affairs

Minority
Room, 326 Dirksen
Phone, 224-2627
Fax, 224-9682
www.senate.gov/~gov_affairs

Major issues
Independent-counsel law
Regulatory reform
Intergovernmental relations
Government management
U.S. Postal Service
Civil service
Census
Procurement Reform

Committee profile
For years, comity reigned among the staff of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee. The bipartisan spirit was fed by the panel's focus on abstruse issues involving federalism, government management, and procurement-hardly a recipe for controversy. Then everything changed when the panel launched an investigation into possible campaign fund-raising abuses during the 1996 elections. The contentious 1997 probe led to acrimony and mistrust among the staff. Today, however, there seems to be little lingering bitterness. Many who worked on the investigation have left, and Majority Staff Director Hannah Sistare's low-key style has facilitated a good relationship with the new Democratic staff chief, Joyce Rechtschaffen. Even recent hearings into the independent-counsel law went off smoothly. Camaraderie is returning.


Republicans (9)
Fred D. Thompson, Tenn.
William V. Roth Jr., Del.
Ted Stevens, Alaska
Susan Collins, Maine
George Voinovich, Ohio
Pete V. Domenici, N.M.
Thad Cochran, Miss.
Arlen Specter, Pa.
Judd Gregg, N.H.


Majority

Staff Director, Counsel
Hannah Sistare, 224-4751

Chief Counsel
Fred Ansell, 224-4751

Senior Counsels
Paul Noe, 224-4751
Dan G. Blair, 224-4751

Counsel
Ellen B. Brown, 224-4751

Chief Investigative Counsel
Christopher A. Ford, 224-4751


Democrats (7)
Joseph I. Lieberman, Conn.
Carl Levin, Mich.
Daniel K. Akaka, Hawaii
Richard J. Durbin, Ill.
Robert G. Torricelli, N.J.
Max Cleland, Ga.
John Edwards, N.C.


Minority

Staff Director, Counsel
Joyce Rechtschaffen, 224-2627

Chief Counsel
Laurie Rubenstein, 224-2681

Counsel
Kevin J. Landy, 224-7194

Press Secretary
Leslie Phillips, 224-0384