OKC Standard

Today, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 7592 and H.R. 7593, two pieces of legislation sponsored by Congresswoman Bice. The first bill, H.R. 7592, rescinds the print requirement of the Annotated Constitution and promotes a more cost-effective, efficient, and regularly updated digital version. This reform aims to reduce government waste and save taxpayers millions of dollars. The second bill, H.R. 7593, strengthens Article I of the Constitution and modernizes the Congressional Research Service’s ability to collect information from executive agencies.

These pieces of legislation originated in the Committee on House Administration, where Congresswoman Bice serves as the Chairwoman of the Modernization Subcommittee.

Congresswoman Bice issued the following statement:

“As Chairwoman of the Modernization Subcommittee, I was pleased to be able to host the first markup in this subcommittee’s history. Alongside Chairman Steil, I have sought to bring Congress into the 21st Century. In many cases, the hard-bound copy of the Constitution Annotated is outdated by the time it is printed, which is why I introduced H.R. 7592. This legislation saves taxpayer money by removing print requirements and allows prioritization of the superior digitized version, which is used by citizens, schools, libraries, and lawmakers across the country.

“When our support agencies falter, we falter, and it is incumbent upon us to fix what’s not working. My bill, H.R. 7593 helps Congress fulfill their Article I obligations and modernizes the Congressional Research Service, which is utilized by members for data and information on issues facing our communities and countries. This commonsense bill grants CRS the authority to secure information for all congressional requests, allowing us to legislate more effectively.”