Link:
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL30240.pdf<snip>
The Congressional Oversight Manual was developed about 30 years ago
following a three-day December 1978 Workshop on Congressional Oversight and
Investigations. The workshop was organized by a group of House and Senate
committee aides from both parties and the Congressional Research Service (CRS) at
the request of the bipartisan House leadership. The Manual was produced by CRS
with the assistance of a number of House committee staffers. In subsequent years,
CRS sponsored and conducted various oversight seminars for House and Senate staff
and updated the Manual as circumstances warranted. The last revision occurred in
2004. Worth noting is the bipartisan recommendation of the House members of the
1993 Joint Committee on the Organization of Congress (Rept. No. 103-413, Vol. I):
As a way to further enhance the oversight work of Congress, the Joint
Committee would encourage the Congressional Research Service to conduct on
a regular basis, as it has done in the past, oversight seminars for Members and
congressional staff and to update on a regular basis its Congressional Oversight
Manual.
Over the years, CRS has assisted many Members, committees, party leaders, and
staff aides in the performance of the oversight function, that is, the review,
monitoring, and supervision of the implementation of public policy. Understandably,
given the size, reach, cost, and continuing growth of the modern executive
establishment, Congress’s oversight role is even more significant — and more
demanding — than when Woodrow Wilson wrote in his classic Congressional
Government (1885): “Quite as important as lawmaking is vigilant oversight of
administration.” Today’s lawmakers and congressional aides, as well as
commentators and scholars, recognize that Congress’s work, ideally, should not end
when it passes legislation. Oversight is an integral way to make sure that the laws
work and are being administered in an effective, efficient, and economical manner.
In light of this destination, oversight can be viewed as one of Congress’s principal
responsibilities as it grapples with the complexities of the 21st century.
:snip>
It's only 155 pages long. C'mon in... the water's fine.
:shrug:
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