Congress has not engaged in regular lawmaking for some time. Does this require structural reform, such as abolishing the filibuster? Some seem to think so. I am skeptical. If Congress is reluctant to legislate, there will be difficulty cobbling together the requisite number of votes whether 51 or 60 votes are required. If there is insufficient reason to craft a legislative vehicle that can pass, it will not get passed.
Legislative quiescence is a serious problem, but it is not as if Congress never acts. Must-pass legislation gets enacted, albeit often after much consternation (and the occasional government shutdown). What I believe this illustrates is that creating stronger incentives for Congress to act, and to revisit existing laws, is fruitful path for encouraging more regular lawmaking, including the reauthorization of programmatic statutes.
Chris Walker and I explored this issue some in our paper, "Delegation and Time." I discuss it further in "Making Congress Legislate Again," my contribution to today's Civitas Outlook symposium on structural reform. From my essay:
