How to: Plan a Hearing

Presenters:

• John Heinemann, Senior Counsel, Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs. John came to Capitol Hill from management consulting, where he performed internal investigations for large financial services institutions. In 2019, he joined the House Financial Services Committee where he served as the Deputy Chief Oversight Counsel and the Financial Services Liaison to the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis. After spending time working in the venture capital industry, he currently serves as Senior Counsel for the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations where he focuses on matters of finance and technology. John is a native of the Mountain West. He enjoys writing fiction, gardening, and getting into nature whenever he can. John attended the University of Texas School of Law and the College of Idaho.
• Mark LeDuc, Former Chief Counsel, Senate Special Committee on Aging. Mark came to Capitol Hill in 2003 to serve as the lead economic advisor to U.S. Senator Susan M. Collins (R-ME). In that capacity he handled such legislation as the 2003 Bush Tax Cuts, the TARP bill, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the Dodd-Frank Act, and the Affordable Care Act. Between 2011 and 2021, he served as the Minority General Counsel to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and then as the Majority Chief Counsel to the Senate Special Committee on Aging. In his committee work, Mark led more than two dozen Senate hearings, and headed the legal team during the Aging Committee’s 2015-2016 drug pricing investigation. During his 18 years on Capitol Hill, Mr. LeDuc was the lead Senate staffer on a number of important bills enacted into law, including:
  - The “See Something, Say Something” Act as part of the 9/11 Commission Act).
  - The Collins Capital Standard Amendment (section 171 of PL 111-203, the Dodd-Frank Act).
  - The STOCK Act (PL 112-105)
  - Senior$afe Act as part of the Banking Reform bill of 2018)
  - The Paycheck Protection Program (section 1102 of PL 116-136, the CARES Act).
  Prior to coming to the Senate, Mark headed the legislative staff for the Governor of Maine, and then served as Counsel to the Maine Senate President. He also practiced law for many years, chiefly in administrative litigation before regulatory agencies at the state and federal levels. Mark LeDuc is a graduate of Bowdoin College, the Columbia University School of Law, and the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. He left the Hill in 2021 and presently lives in Florida with his wife, Marie.

This session was moderated by Tim Stretton, Director of the Congressional Oversight Initiative.

Event Recap:

Training Resources:

• Do's and Don'ts of an Oversight Hearing, some helpful ways of thinking about investigations.
• Framing Questions for a Hearing, some tips on how to make the most of your questions.