CongressMCP-full

Overview Schema Source Related Servers Discussions Admin

Get Committee Bills - Bills referred to or reported by a specific committee

get_committee_bills

Retrieve bills referred to or reported by a specific congressional committee. Filter by chamber, set pagination limits, and prioritize the most recent referrals.

Instructions

Get bills referred to or reported by a specific committee.

Args:
    ctx: Context for API requests
    committee_code: Official committee code (e.g., 'hsju', 'ssju')
    chamber: Chamber of Congress ("house", "senate", or "joint").
             If omitted, inferred automatically from the committee code prefix.
    limit: Maximum number of bills to return
    offset: Starting record (0-based) for explicit paging.
    most_recent: When True (default), return the newest referrals first.
                 The endpoint is oldest-first, so this fetches the final page.

Returns:
    List of bills associated with the committee

Input Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description	Default
`limit`	No
`offset`	No
`chamber`	No
`most_recent`	No
`committee_code`	Yes

Output Schema

TableJSON Schema

Name	Required	Description
`error`	No	Present when success is false: the section-9 error envelope
`items`	No	Results of other kinds (bills, reports, communications, nominations), as returned by Congress.gov
`context`	Yes	Context about the search or operation performed
`members`	No	Member results
`success`	Yes	Whether the operation was successful
`summary`	Yes	Human-readable summary of the results
`item_kind`	No	What `items` contains (bill, committee_report, communication, nomination, ...)
`operation`	Yes	The operation that was performed
`committees`	No	Committee results
`results_count`	Yes	Number of items returned (equals the populated list's length)

Schema Changelog

Changes observed during successful MCP inspections.

Changed34 schema fields changedv2.2.0Aug 26, 2026

addedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / chamber / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / chamber / default
```
Added value: +null
```
removedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / chamber / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / committee_code / description

Previous value: -"Official committee code"New value: +"Official committee system code (e.g. hsju00)"

addedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / committee_type / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / committee_type / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / committee_type / description

Previous value: -"Type of committee (Standing, Select, etc.)"New value: +"Type of committee (Standing, Select, ...)"

removedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / committee_type / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```
addedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / url / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / properties / url / description

Previous value: -"Congress.gov URL for committee details"New value: +"Congress.gov API URL for committee details"

changedOutput schema / $defs / CommitteeSummary / required

Previous value: -[
-  "committee_code",
-  "name",
-  "chamber",
-  "committee_type",
-  "url"
-]New value: +[
+  "committee_code",
+  "name"
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / ErrorInfo

Added value: +{
+  "description": "Section-9 error payload: stable code, human message, secret-safe\ndetail, actionable remediation. Mirrors the bill-text tools' envelope\n(documentation/fulltext/04-tools-responses.md section 9).",
+  "properties": {
+    "code": {
+      "description": "Stable machine-readable error code (lowercase)",
+      "title": "Code",
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    "detail": {
+      "anyOf": [
+        {
+          "additionalProperties": true,
+          "type": "object"
+        },
+        {
+          "type": "null"
+        }
+      ],
+      "default": null,
+      "description": "Structured context; never carries secrets",
+      "title": "Detail"
+    },
+    "message": {
+      "description": "What went wrong",
+      "title": "Message",
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    "remediation": {
+      "anyOf": [
+        {
+          "type": "string"
+        },
+        {
+          "type": "null"
+        }
+      ],
+      "default": null,
+      "description": "What the caller should do about it",
+      "title": "Remediation"
+    }
+  },
+  "required": [
+    "code",
+    "message"
+  ],
+  "title": "ErrorInfo",
+  "type": "object"
+}

changedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / description

Previous value: -"Summary information about a member of Congress."New value: +"Summary information about a member of Congress (list-level fields)."

addedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / chamber / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "string"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / chamber / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / chamber / description

Previous value: -"Chamber (House or Senate)"New value: +"Chamber of the member's most recent term"

removedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / chamber / type
```
Removed value: -"string"
```

addedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / current_member / anyOf

Added value: +[
+  {
+    "type": "boolean"
+  },
+  {
+    "type": "null"
+  }
+]

addedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / current_member / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / current_member / description

Previous value: -"Whether this person is currently serving"New value: +"Whether currently serving (None if unknown)"

removedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / current_member / type
```
Removed value: -"boolean"
```
addedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / district / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / district / description

Previous value: -"District number (for House members)"New value: +"District number (House members)"

addedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / party / default
```
Added value: +null
```
changedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / party / description
```
Previous value: -"Political party (D, R, I)"New value: +"Political party"
```
addedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / state / default
```
Added value: +null
```
addedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / url / default
```
Added value: +null
```

changedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / properties / url / description

Previous value: -"Congress.gov URL for member details"New value: +"Congress.gov API URL for member details"

changedOutput schema / $defs / MemberSummary / required

Previous value: -[
-  "bioguide_id",
-  "name",
-  "party",
-  "state",
-  "district",
-  "chamber",
-  "current_member",
-  "url"
-]New value: +[
+  "bioguide_id",
+  "name"
+]

changedOutput schema / description

Previous value: -"Response from the members and committees tool."New value: +"Response from the members and committees tools.\n\nSome operations return items that are neither members nor committees\n(a member's sponsored bills, a committee's reports/communications/\nnominations); those arrive in `items` as the API's own dicts, labeled\nby `item_kind`."

addedOutput schema / properties / error

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "$ref": "#/$defs/ErrorInfo"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "Present when success is false: the section-9 error envelope"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / item_kind

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "description": "What `items` contains (bill, committee_report, communication, nomination, ...)",
+  "title": "Item Kind"
+}

addedOutput schema / properties / items

Added value: +{
+  "default": [],
+  "description": "Results of other kinds (bills, reports, communications, nominations), as returned by Congress.gov",
+  "items": {
+    "additionalProperties": true,
+    "type": "object"
+  },
+  "title": "Items",
+  "type": "array"
+}

changedOutput schema / properties / results_count / description

Previous value: -"Number of results returned"New value: +"Number of items returned (equals the populated list's length)"

Changed3 schema fields changedv2.1.0Aug 21, 2026

addedInput schema / properties / chamber

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "string"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "title": "Chamber"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / most_recent

Added value: +{
+  "default": true,
+  "title": "Most Recent",
+  "type": "boolean"
+}

addedInput schema / properties / offset

Added value: +{
+  "anyOf": [
+    {
+      "type": "integer"
+    },
+    {
+      "type": "null"
+    }
+  ],
+  "default": null,
+  "title": "Offset"
+}

First observedv2.0.0Apr 3, 2026

TDQS

A4.3/5.0

Behavior4/5

Does the description disclose side effects, auth requirements, rate limits, or destructive behavior?

With no annotations, the description carries the burden of behavioral disclosure, and it does a good job: it explains that the endpoint is oldest-first and that most_recent works by fetching the final page. It also clearly describes pagination parameters. It does not mention permissions, rate limits, or error behavior, but the core call mechanics are transparent.

Agents need to know what a tool does to the world before calling it. Descriptions should go beyond structured annotations to explain consequences.

Conciseness5/5

Is the description appropriately sized, front-loaded, and free of redundancy?

The summary line is a single, precise sentence, and the Args section is a clean bullet-style list with no filler. Every sentence contributes actionable information, and the behavioral note about most_recent is economical.

Shorter descriptions cost fewer tokens and are easier for agents to parse. Every sentence should earn its place.

Completeness4/5

Given the tool's complexity, does the description cover enough for an agent to succeed on first attempt?

The tool has an output schema, so the return format does not need explanation, and the description covers all parameters plus a non-obvious endpoint ordering quirk. The only gap is lack of guidance on how this relates to the many similar bill/committee tools, but that is more of a usage-optimization concern than a correctness blocker.

Complex tools with many parameters or behaviors need more documentation. Simple tools need less. This dimension scales expectations accordingly.

Parameters5/5

Does the description clarify parameter syntax, constraints, interactions, or defaults beyond what the schema provides?

Schema description coverage is 0%, yet the description provides meaningful semantics for every parameter: committee_code gets an example, chamber gets allowed values and inference behavior, limit/offset get paging meaning, and most_recent gets a behavioral explanation. This fully compensates for the schema's lack of parameter descriptions.

Input schemas describe structure but not intent. Descriptions should explain non-obvious parameter relationships and valid value ranges.

Purpose5/5

Does the description clearly state what the tool does and how it differs from similar tools?

The description opens with a specific verb-resource pairing: 'Get bills referred to or reported by a specific committee.' This clearly distinguishes the tool from siblings like get_committee_reports or search_bill_text while still being immediately actionable.

Agents choose between tools based on descriptions. A clear purpose with a specific verb and resource helps agents select the right tool.

Usage Guidelines3/5

Does the description explain when to use this tool, when not to, or what alternatives exist?

The description gives useful invocation details such as committee_code format, chamber auto-inference, and pagination semantics, but it does not state when to prefer this tool over alternatives or when not to use it. It is clear enough for a straightforward database lookup, but lacks explicit routing guidance among the large sibling set.

Agents often have multiple tools that could apply. Explicit usage guidance like "use X instead of Y when Z" prevents misuse.