Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs

The Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs (OCL) has responsibility for the development and implementation of strategies to advance the Department's legislative initiatives and other interests relating to Congress.

OCL serves to:

  • Articulate the Department's position on legislation proposed by Congress in testimony, statements for the record and views letters
  • Facilitate the appearance of Department witnesses at congressional hearings
  • Manage the interagency clearance of legislative proposals, post-hearing questions for the record, statutory reports and other Congressional correspondence in coordination with OMB
  • Coordinate the Department's responses to congressional committee oversight requests and other inquiries from individual Members and congressional staff
  • Lead the Senate confirmation process for Department nominees

These functions are important to the Department's cooperative and productive relationship with Congress.