Congressional oversight is how the legislative branch checks whether laws are being carried out as intended. Committees question officials, examine spending, review agency performance, investigate failures, and make information public through hearings, reports, letters, subpoenas, and legislation.

Start with the relevant House or Senate committee website. Then look for hearing pages, written testimony, committee reports, GAO reports, inspector general reports, agency responses, and Congress.gov records for bills that respond to oversight findings.

Oversight turns government from a promise into a record. It gives citizens a way to see whether money was spent, whether rules were followed, whether officials answered questions, and whether Congress needs to change the law.