Agriculture - David Scott, 75, first elected 2002
Appropriations - Rose DeLauro, 78, first elected 1990
Armed Services - Adam Smith, 55, first elected 1996
Budget - John Yarmuth, 75, first elected 2006
Education and Labor - Bobby Scott, 73, first elected 1992
Energy and Commerce - Frank Pallone, 69, first elected 1988
Ethics - Ted Deutsch, 54, first elected 2010
Financial Services - Maxine Waters 82 , first elected 1990
Foreign Affairs - Gregory Meeks 67, first elected 1998
My point is not "lol old people." It's more "it takes a very long time to achieve seniority in the House, which means it takes a long time to have any power at all, which means the career incentives in the House, as in many places, are perhaps not what they should be."
It isn't just that it takes a long time to become a committee chair, it's that so much isn't even done at the committee level anymore. You know, the country is largely run through occasional giant "save the world" bills negotiated between leadership and the president.