Another big change that Republicans made when they took power after the 1994 midterm elections — the GOP’s first majority in the House in 40 years — was opting to limit their committee chairmen to serving no more than three two-year terms.

While House Democrats do not place term limits on the leaders of congressional committees, Gingrich and his fellow House Republicans instituted this rule in 1995, saying it would give junior members a shot at committee chairmanships without having to wait decades and arguing that it would ensure that new policy ideas continued to circulate in the Republican conference.

But this decision to create term limits for committee chairs often leads to Republican lawmakers lacking the opportunity to become serious policy experts.

Former Rep. Tom Davis (R-VA) once told USA Today that one reason this rule was imposed was because committee chairmen had become too powerful. But, Davis added, this change inadvertently increased the power of congressional leaders, causing the legislative process to suffer.

Some members of Congress find it difficult to return to the rank-and-file after serving as chair of a powerful committee, and term limits on chairmanships clearly played a role in this election cycle’s surge in congressional retirements.

Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), the outgoing chair of the House Financial Services Committee, seconded Davis’ observation. “Are term limits playing a role in an exodus of chairmen, along with collective years of wisdom? Of course it is.”

In announcing his retirement, Hensarling commented that “the time seems right for my departure” because his term as the top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee was over.

Reps. Bill Shuster (R-PA), Ed Royce (R-CA), and Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ) all likewise noted in their retirement announcements that 2018 was their final year serving as the chairmen of their respective committees. And Rep. Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ) said it seemed like an “appropriate time to leave” this year because he was term-limited as the chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s aviation subcommittee.

The current system, with its massive fundraising expectations, centralized power, and term limits on committee chairs, is the only system that most House Republicans know. At the beginning of the 116th Congress, only eight House Republicans will have tenures that predate this 1995 rules change.

Of course, not all 435 members of Congress can serve as the chairs of committees or subcommittees. Nevertheless, the legislative branch should afford more opportunities for debate and discussion to allow rank-and-file legislators the capacity to learn and legislate.