Original Article By Ashley Brasfield
The Republican-led Congress set several records in 2025, though not all of them were achievements lawmakers would be keen to celebrate.
With fewer than 40 bills signed into law as of Dec. 22, the House and Senate posted the lowest legislative output in the first year of a new presidency in modern history, according to data from C-SPAN and Purdue University, The Washington Post reported.
Is Congress getting enough done? Rep. Tim Burchett joined Todd Starnes on NEWSMAX to respond to the ever-present topic of discussion regarding the government's productivity. @toddstarnes pic.twitter.com/7TaImgs5y3
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) December 27, 2025
The House logged the fewest votes of any first session in a two-year Congress this century, with just 362 votes taken. That total is barely half the number recorded in 2017, President Donald Trump’s first year in office, when Republicans controlled the chamber.
Even with little legislative output, the Senate conducted more roll-call votes than in any other odd-numbered year in the 21st century — 659 in total — with nearly six in ten devoted to moving forward President Donald Trump’s executive and judicial nominees.
Republicans have been particularly active in using the Congressional Review Act, a tool rarely employed since its 1996 passage but increasingly used by recent GOP majorities. Their efforts have targeted 22 Biden-era regulations, including rules on fossil fuel production, gas-powered vehicles and overdraft fees.
Another factor contributing to the “lack of productivity” has been President Trump’s growing reliance on executive orders, many of which have faced multiple court challenges. In his second term alone, he has signed 225 executive orders — far more than the 55 he issued in 2017 and exceeding the total from his entire first term.
Meanwhile, a notable number of lawmakers are leaving the House. So far, 24 Republicans and 19 Democrats have announced plans to retire or run for other offices, putting the chamber on track for a 21st-century record for departures in a single Congress, according to C-SPAN and Purdue.
While Senate retirements remain similar to the 2024 cycle, the House is seeing its highest rate of departures in more than ten years, according to analysis from Ballotpedia.
For over a decade, the Senate has devoted much of its floor time to executive and judicial confirmations, leaving limited space for other legislation beyond must-pass measures.
Legislative productivity should not simply be a measure of the number of bills passed, as Congress is apt to create more problems through legislation than It solves.
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) December 29, 2025
That said, the paltry production by the current Congress is noteworthy because so much meat is still left on the… https://t.co/ZeiV3VVl4e
The House has faced similar slowdowns. Speaker Mike Johnson has at times adjourned the chamber early amid internal disagreements, including in July, when divisions within the GOP over a proposed vote to compel the Justice Department to release files related to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation stalled legislative action.
Then, in late September, Johnson sent the House home for seven weeks in an effort to pressure Senate Democrats into accepting a short-term funding deal for federal agencies — a standoff that fed into a 43-day government shutdown, itself a record.
2025 has set a modern record for congressional inaction, with the fewest laws passed and the fewest House votes since at least 1989.
— AF Post (@AFpost) December 25, 2025
Under 40 bills were signed into law.
Follow: @AFpost pic.twitter.com/Zald120rWF
Republicans remain divided on their next steps as they govern with razor-thin margins: a House majority of just a few seats and a slim 53–47 Senate advantage.
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