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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.

Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

FACT BRIEF

Is the 116th Congress one of the least productive in history?

Thursday, November 5, 2020

By Christopher Hutton

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YES

The 116th Congress, if measured by new legislation enacted, is on track to be one of the least productive in history. Since convening at the beginning of 2019, the Congress has passed only 1% of proposed legislation—or 193 bills. Its term ends Jan. 3, 2021. The last ten Congresses passed an average of 417 bills each year, or 3.6% of proposed legislation.

According to an October 2019 count by S&P Global, only a portion of 65 bills passed were "substantive"; some were ceremonial measures, such as renaming public buildings.

Split House and Senate control has snagged many bills. The House devoted much time to impeachment inquiries and other oversight efforts while the Senate confirmed a steady stream of judicial appointees. March's passage of a massive round of coronavirus relief spending was followed by subsequent gridlock blocking a second round.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

Govtrack: 116th Congress Statistics

S&P Global: Impeachment inquiry may make 116th Congress least productive in history

Common Cause: Democracy scorecard

Ballotpedia: Coronavirus relief

US Courts: Judicial confirmations

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Gigafact

Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

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Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.