Introduction

The 112th Congress has been sworn in, committees are finalizing their rosters and laying out their agendas, and 106 new members are slowly getting adjusted to their new lives on Capitol Hill. With 87 of those newly elected members being Republicans, the House of Representatives has been given quite a makeover. With new leadership comes change, which is what newly elected Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-OH) has promised. After a weeklong pause in the House to reflect on the shooting in Arizona that left six people dead and Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) critically injured, lawmakers were back to work last week starting with a debate over the repeal of the health care reform law. The health care debate will weigh heavily on the agenda of the House Energy and Commerce Committee while the House Financial Services Committee will look to breakdown the Dodd-Frank Act. The highly debated issue of earmarking in Congress continues with a whole lot of uncertainty surrounding it. With Republicans taking the majority in the House, and Democrats retaining their power in the Senate, the 112th Congress will look to strike some sort of balance in order to accomplish their agenda items over the next two years.

In This Issue:

1. Boehner Elected Speaker, Promises More Transparent Leadership Style

2. Energy and Commerce: A flurry of activity for Congress's most active committee

3. Health Care Repeal Efforts

4. What's Next for the Dodd-Frank Bill?

5. Earmarking Debate Continues

6. President Obama Issues Executive Order

7. Current List of US House of Representatives Committee Assignments

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