• Congress passed fewer than 40 bills in 2025, setting modern record for lowest first-year output
• DeSantis says paltry production noteworthy because so much meat left on the bone
• Biden signed 81 bills by end of first year, Trump signed 97 during 2017, compared to just 38 this year

TALLAHASSEE, FL (TDR) — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis rebuked House Speaker Mike Johnson’s claims of a productive Congress, warning in a December 29 post that lawmakers have become “a mere observer of the constitutional system rather than a player inside of it.” The rebuke comes as Congress set a modern record for the lowest legislative output in the first year of a new presidency.

DeSantis acknowledged that legislative productivity shouldn’t be measured solely by bill count, since Congress often creates more problems than it solves through legislation. However, he wrote that “the paltry production by the current Congress is noteworthy because so much meat is still left on the bone.”

Historic Low in Legislative Output

With fewer than 40 bills signed into law by December 22, the House and Senate established a modern record for lowest first-year legislative output under a new president, according to data maintained by C-SPAN and Purdue University. The final tally reached just 38 bills by year’s end.

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The numbers represent a dramatic decline from previous administrations. President Joe Biden signed 68 bills during his first year in 2021. Donald Trump signed 78 bills in 2017 during his first term. Barack Obama signed 119 new laws in 2009.

“I guess we got the big, beautiful bill done. Other than that, I really can’t point to much that we got accomplished,” Ohio Rep. David Joyce told The Washington Post.

The Republican-controlled Congress cast just 362 votes during 2025, barely half as many as the 2017 session when Trump first took office with GOP majorities in both chambers.

Johnson Defends Congressional Record

Despite the historically low output, Speaker Johnson hailed 2025 as “one of the most productive first years of any Congress in our lifetimes” in a Wall Street Journal op-ed published over the weekend. The Louisiana Republican pointed to passage of 441 House bills, though the vast majority died in the Senate or never received votes.

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“House Republicans passed 441 bills,” Johnson wrote. “We voted to codify 70 of President Trump’s America First executive orders, clawed back billions in wasteful spending through rescissions, and repealed 23 harmful Biden-era regulations with the Congressional Review Act.”

Johnson highlighted passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which he called the largest middle and working-class tax cut in U.S. history. He blamed congressional dysfunction on Democrats, saying their “record-breaking shutdown made clear today’s Democratic leadership is interested not in finding solutions but in preserving issues for November.”

The speaker’s optimistic assessment contrasts sharply with views from members of his own conference, many of whom expressed disappointment with the legislative session.

Executive Orders Replace Legislation

A major factor in Congress’s diminished output has been Trump’s unprecedented reliance on executive orders. The president signed 224 executive orders in 2025, surpassing his entire first-term total and exceeding 70 percent of all executive orders signed by Biden and Obama during their combined 12 years in office.

“He has signed every executive order he could possibly think of,” Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley said. “I mean, you can sign EOs, but he needs somebody to codify those.”

The shift toward executive action has effectively sidelined Congress from major policy decisions. Trump bypassed legislators on immigration enforcement, tariff policy, and federal spending, consolidating power in the executive branch while Republican lawmakers largely acquiesced.

In the Senate, roughly 60 percent of votes this year focused on confirming Trump’s nominees rather than approving legislation, further reducing congressional productivity on substantive policy matters.

Growing Exodus from Capitol Hill

The dysfunction has contributed to a wave of congressional retirements. A total of 46 legislators announced they would not seek reelection, many citing toxic partisanship and an inability to accomplish meaningful work.

“The level of partisanship, rancor, vitriolic debate, demonizing the other side of the aisle, not willing to work across the aisle to get good things done for the American people, and just the overall toxic environment,” one departing lawmaker told reporters, describing conditions on Capitol Hill.

Many retiring members are seeking governorships or other state offices, believing they can accomplish more outside Washington than within the gridlocked federal legislature.

2026 Midterms Loom Over Legislative Agenda

Political experts predict even less legislative activity in 2026 as midterm elections approach. Historically, congressional output drops during election years as politicians become risk-averse about controversial votes.

“Nobody wants to do anything too provocative during an election year,” said Todd Belt, Political Management program director at George Washington University. “And that’s true on both sides.”

Democrats are well-positioned to flip the House, according to political analysts, while Republicans remain favored to retain Senate control. The president’s party has lost House seats in eight of the last 10 midterm elections.

Can Congress reassert its constitutional role in 2026, or will lawmakers continue ceding authority to the executive branch while partisan dysfunction prevents meaningful legislation?

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