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"What is a resolution of inquiry?"
Great question! You've probably heard about this recently with what's going on at Ways and Means.
House Ways and Means Chair Kevin Brady scheduled a markup on Trump tax returns. Committee Democrats forced the markup with a resolution of inquiry. So what is a resolution of inquiry? It's a tool that members of the House can use to obtain information from the executive branch. Add it to your list of procedural tools.
It's different than most orders of business in the House and is an especially powerful tool for the minority party. So in this case, if Ways and Means didn't take up the resolution, the minority could bring it up on the House floor for consideration. Now, once the committee reports the resolution, only the chairman or his designee can bring it up on the floor. Still confused? Roll Call walks you through how this works here.
