Budget Control Act of 2011

Full title	An Act to provide for budget control.
Enacted by the	112th United States Congress
Effective	August 2, 2011
Citations
Public Law	Pub.L. 112-25
Stat.	125 Stat. 239
Codification
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974
Legislative history
Introduced in the Senate as "An original bill to make a technical amendment to the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002" (S. 365) by Tom Harkin (D-IA) on February 16, 2011 Committee consideration by: Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Passed the Senate on February 17, 2011 (Unanimous consent) Passed the House as the "Budget Control Act of 2011" on August 1, 2011 (269–161) with amendment Senate agreed to House amendment on August 2, 2011 (74–26) Signed into law by President Barack Obama on August 2, 2011
v t e

The Budget Control Act of 2011 (Pub.L. 112-25, S. 365) is a federal statute in the United States that was signed into law by President Barack Obama on August 2, 2011. The Act brought conclusion to the 2011 United States debt-ceiling crisis, which had threatened to lead the United States into sovereign default on or about August 3, 2011.

The law involves the introduction of several complex mechanisms, such as creation of the Congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (sometimes called the "super committee")^[1] and options for a balanced budget amendment.

Provisions[link]

Debt limit:

• The debt limit was increased by $400 billion immediately.^[2]
• The President could request a further increase of $500 billion, which is subject to a congressional motion of disapproval which the President may veto, in which case a two-thirds majority in Congress would be needed to override the veto.^[3] This has been called the 'McConnell mechanism' after the Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who first suggested it as part of another scheme.^[4]
• The President could request a final increase of $1.2–1.5 trillion, subject to the same disapproval procedure. The exact amount depends on the amount of cuts in the "super committee" plan if it passes Congress, and whether a Balanced budget amendment has been passed.^[3]

Deficit reduction:

• Spending was reduced more than the increase in the debt limit. No tax increases or other forms of increases in revenue above current law were included in the bill.^[5]
• The bill directly specified $917 billion of cuts over 10 years in exchange the initial debt limit increase of $900 billion.^[5] This is the first installment ("tranche") of cuts. $21 billion of this will be applied in the FY2012 budget.^[4]
• Additionally, the agreement established the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, sometimes called the "super committee",^[1] to produce debt reduction legislation by November 23, 2011, that would be immune from amendments or filibuster (similar to the Base Realignment and Closure).^[4][6] The goal of the legislation was to cut at least $1.5 trillion over the coming 10 years and be passed by December 23, 2011.^[6] Projected revenue from the committee's legislation could not exceed the revenue budgeting baseline produced by current law. (Current law has the Bush tax cuts expiring at the end of 2012.) The committee would have 12 members, 6 from each party.^[5]
• The agreement specified an incentive for Congress to act. If Congress would fail to produce a deficit reduction bill with at least $1.2 trillion in cuts, then Congress could grant a $1.2 trillion increase in the debt ceiling but this would trigger across-the-board cuts ("sequestration") of spending equally split between security and non-security programs.^[4][3] The across-the-board cuts would apply to mandatory and discretionary spending in the years 2013 to 2021 and be in an amount equal to the difference between $1.2 trillion and the amount of deficit reduction enacted from the joint committee. The sequestration mechanism is the same as the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. There are exemptions—across the board cuts would apply to Medicare providers, but not to Social Security, Medicaid, Medicare beneficiaries, civil and military employee pay, or veterans.^[4][5] Security programs include the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the National Nuclear Security Administration, some management functions of the intelligence community, and international affairs from the U.S. State Department.^[7]

Balanced Budget Amendment:

• Congress was required to vote on a balanced budget amendment between October 1, 2011, and the end of 2011,^[3] but is not required to pass it and send it to the states in order for the debt limit increases to occur. (This is unlike the previously proposed Cut, Cap and Balance Act, which was not enacted, which would have required Congress to actually pass such an amendment).^[4]

Other provisions:

• Pell Grant funding was increased, but other financial aid was cut. Graduate and professional students were no longer eligible for interest subsidized loans.^[8] Repayment incentives will also be done away with after July 1, 2012.^[9]

Legislative history[link]

Vice President Biden shook hands and congratulated President Obama immediately after a call between the president and Speaker Boehner in which they reached a deal for the Budget Control Act, July 31, 2011.

House vote by congressional district.

  Democratic yea

  Democratic nay

  Republican yea

  Republican nay

  Absent or no representative seated

The bill was the final chance in a series of proposals to resolve the 2011 United States debt-ceiling crisis, which featured bitter divisions between the parties and also pronounced splits within them. Earlier ideas included the Obama-Boehner $4 trillion "Grand Bargain",^[10] the House Republican Cut, Cap and Balance Act, and the McConnell-Reid "Plan B" fallback. All eventually failed to gain enough general political or specific Congressional support to move into law, as the midnight August 2, 2011, deadline for an unprecedented U.S. sovereign default drew nearer and nearer.^[11]

On the evening of July 31, 2011, Obama announced that the leaders of both parties in both chambers had reached an agreement that would reduce the deficit and avoid default.^[6] The same day, Speaker of the House John Boehner's office outlined the agreement for House Republicans.^[12] One key element in the deal being reached and the logjam being broken earlier that afternoon was U.S. Vice President Joe Biden's ability to negotiate with his 25-year Senate colleague, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.^[13][14][15] Biden had spent the most time bargaining with Congress on the debt question of anyone in the administration, and McConnell had viewed him as the one most trustworthy.^[13][14]

House vote[link]

The agreement, entitled the Budget Control Act,^[1] passed the House on August 1, 2011 by a vote of 269–161; 174 Republicans and 95 Democrats voted for it, while 66 Republicans and 95 Democrats voted against it.^[11] One moment of extra drama came when Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords made her first appearance back on the floor of Congress following the near-fatal assassination attempt upon her in the 2011 Tucson shooting; she voted in favor of the bill.^[11] Giffords received prolonged, loud applause from her colleagues and said in a statement, "I had to be here for this vote."^[11]

Senate vote[link]

The Senate passed the agreement on August 2, 2011 by a vote of 74–26; seven Democrats and 19 Republicans voted against it.^[18] Obama signed the bill shortly after it was passed by the Senate.^[11] In doing so, the president said, "Is this the deal I would have preferred? No. But this compromise does make a serious down payment on the deficit reduction we need, and gives each party a strong incentive to get a balanced plan done before the end of the year."^[10]

Obama publicly announced the debt ceiling deal on the evening of July 31, 2011; Congress began voting on it the next day.

Contingent votes[link]

The vote of disapproval on the $500 billion request failed in the Senate by a vote of 45–52.^{[citation needed]} So regardless of a House vote of disapproval the $500 billion increase in the debt ceiling will occur when the 50 days after the request to increase the ceiling expires.

On November 18, 2011, the balanced budget amendment failed to advance in the House: 261–165,^[19] 23 votes short of the needed 2/3 majority.^[20] On December 14, 2011, two proposed Balanced Budget Amendments failed in the Senate, 21–79 and 47–53.^[21]

On November 21, 2011, the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction announced that it was not able to advance any legislation to the full Congress, issuing a statement that began with the following: "After months of hard work and intense deliberations, we have come to the conclusion today that it will not be possible to make any bipartisan agreement available to the public before the committee’s deadline."^[22]

On January 18, 2012, the House passed a disapproval of the second debt limit increase by a vote of 239–176. The measure was expected to fail in the Senate.^[23]

Projected and known impacts[link]

Congressional passage of the bill gave President Obama the chance to sign the Budget Control Act into law, which he did on August 2, 2011.

The act will not actually reduce the overall U.S. debt over the 10-year period it is specified for, only slow down the existing rate of growth of the debt.^[10] That is partly because the cuts due to the act will not reduce federal spending in absolute terms, but rather reduce the year-to-year increases in spending from what had previously been anticipated.^[2] Even with the slowdown, both federal spending and the debt are still projected to grow faster than the U.S. economy, due to the cost curve effects of health care, which the act does not address.^[10]

The debate on the bill was driven by the Republicans' insistence on spending cuts as their condition for agreeing to raise the debt ceiling. This raised concern because of the relationship between aggregate demand and unemployment; as Patrick Lunsford, Senior Editor of insideARM.com stated in a Forbes magazine blog, "when government spending is slashed, jobs are lost and consumer demand falls."^[24] During the debate over the bill, economists across ideologies agreed that reducing spending during a recession would likely make unemployment worse.^[25] In analyzing the specific bill that emerged, the Economic Policy Institute stated, "The spending cuts in 2012 and the failure to continue two key supports to the economy (the payroll tax holiday and emergency unemployment benefits for the long term unemployed) could lead to roughly 1.8 million fewer jobs in 2012, relative to current budget policy."^[26]

Most of the $900 billion in the first tranche of cuts occur in future years and so will not remove significant aggregate demand from the economy in the current and following year.^[4] Only $25 billion in federal discretionary spending is required to be removed for 2012.^[2] Regarding the across the board cuts, these could not take place until 2013 and so if triggered, a new Congress could vote to eliminate or deepen all or part of them. Some top Republicans were particularly concerned that any defense cuts could not go into effect until after 2013.^[4]

Passage of the Budget Control Act of 2011 was not enough to avert, three days later, Standard & Poor's downgrading the nation's credit rating for the first time in the firm's history, from "AAA" (highest) to "AA+" (highest, with qualifications).^[27] They said they were "pessimistic about the capacity of Congress and the administration to be able to leverage their agreement this week into a broader fiscal consolidation plan that stabilizes the government's debt dynamics anytime soon."^[27] (The United States Department of the Treasury pointed out an error of $2 trillion in Standard & Poor's calculation of the ten-year deficit reduction under the Act, and commented, "The magnitude of this mistake – and the haste with which S&P changed its principal rationale for action when presented with this error – raise fundamental questions about the credibility and integrity of S&P’s ratings action."^[28]) S&P has partially disputed this claim of error, arguing that it is not as substantial as the Department of the Treasury is asserting, stating, "In taking a longer term horizon of 10 years, the U.S. net general government debt level with the current assumptions would be $20.1 trillion (85% of 2021 GDP). With the original assumptions, the debt level was projected to be $22.1 trillion (93% of 2021 GDP)." They further state that they used a spending inflation rate of only 5 percent in their calculations which is actually lower than the 7 percent spending inflation rate the Budget Control Act of 2011 assumes.^[29]

See also[link]

• United States public debt
• Gramm–Rudman–Hollings Balanced Budget Act
• Budget Enforcement Act of 1990

References[link]

External links[link]

• S. 365
• Pub.L. 112-25
• Bill as seen by Congress, via GPO.gov
• Bill at crocodoc site, via FoxBusiness.com

Scott Rigell
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia's 2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Glenn Nye
Personal details
Born	(1960-05-28) May 28, 1960 (age 52) Titusville, Florida[1]
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Teri Rigell[1]
Children	Four children[1]
Alma mater	Mercer University (B.B.A. Regent University (M.B.A)[1]
Profession	Car dealership owner
Religion	Protestant[1]
Website	scottrigell.com
Military service
Service/branch	United States Marine Corps Reserve
Years of service	1978–1984
Rank	Sergeant

Edward Scott Rigell^[2] (born May 28, 1960) is the U.S. Representative for Virginia's 2nd congressional district. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life, education, and business career[link]

Rigell was raised in Titusville, Florida. He served for six years in the United States Marine Corps Reserve from 1978–1984, attaining the rank of Sergeant. His father served in the Marines in World War II, landing on Iwo Jima, and his son is a Marine. He holds an A.A. from Brevard Community College, a B.B.A. from Mercer University, and a M.B.A. from Regent University.^[3]

He founded Freedom Automotive in 1991, initially purchasing the former Bruce Flournoy Ford dealership in Norfolk, then expanding to purchase Thompson Ford in Hampton. Later, Rigell subsequently added a Volvo dealership and a Lincoln-Mercury dealer, the former Connolly-Phillips in Chesapeake. He and his wife Teri live in Virginia Beach and have four children.^[4] Freedom Automotive distinguished itself by advertisements in which the entire Rigell family appeared, and Rigell himself gave out his personal home phone number to customers, so that they could talk to him directly if they had compliments or complaints. From the beginning, he billed the company as "a different kind of dealership."

Rigell sold the businesses of Freedom Ford-Hampton & Freedom Volvo and Freedom Lincoln Mercury-Chesapeake to their respective presidents, while continuing to own the properties. Freedom Lincoln-Mercury has since closed, while Freedom Ford-Hampton renamed itself to represent its new ownership under Brian Wynne, as Wynne Ford. Rigell still owns Freedom Ford in Norfolk.^{[citation needed]}

U.S. House of Representatives[link]

2010 election[link]

Primary

Rigell won the Republican nomination in a six-way race. The Hill rated Rigell's primary race as one of the top seven primaries in Congress for this election cycle.^[5] Rigell was considered by many to be the favorite in the primary,^[6] had support from the National Republican Congressional Committee^[7] and Eric Cantor,^[8] and was endorsed by Republican Virginia governor Bob McDonnell.^[9]

Rigell came under attack from his primary opponents for having sold 138 cars under the Cash for Clunkers program, which Rigell subsequently criticized as "reckless bailouts and an out-of-control federal debt."^[10] He also came under attack for making campaign contributions to Barack Obama during the 2008 Democratic primaries and to Virginia Democrat Louise Lucas in her bid against Randy Forbes.^[11] Rigell said he believed that Hillary Clinton would have been a worse option for President.^[12]

General election

Rigell states that his top priority is reducing government spending and that he supports replacing the health care law with market-based reforms.^[13] As of June 4, 2010, Rigell had contributed $775,000 of his personal wealth to his campaign.^[11] Rigell defeated Democratic incumbent Glenn Nye for Virginia's 2nd congressional district.

Tenure[link]

Social issues

Representative Rigell has conservative views on social issues: he states he is "proudly pro-life",^[14] he opposes gay marriage and opposed the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell.".^[15] In 2011, Rigell cosponsored bills to prohibit abortion coverage under the national Affordable Health Care law, prohibit the use of federal funds for Planned Parenthood and prohibit taxpayer funding of abortion. Rigell supports a tax credit for heterosexual couples.^[16]

Military issues

Rigell's district includes the largest concentration of active duty and retired service members in the United States. He supported the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Act, which the House and Senate passed. This bill increased the rate of compensation for veterans who were disabled in active duty.^[17] Representative Rigell supports the continued military effort in Afghanistan; he opposed a vote in 2011 to remove troops from the country. However, he also opposes deploying ground troops to Libya.^[18]

Budget

Representative Rigell supported Paul Ryan's budget plan, Path to Prosperity, which called for repeal of the 2010 Healthcare legislation. He vocally criticized Senate inaction on the House's budget plans in 2011, stating "Empirically we can show that the bottleneck is in the Senate – I hope every American stands up and says to Senator Reid: get these bills passed, we’ll go to conference, let’s work it out, we’ll work weekends and get this thing moving again."^[19] Ultimately, he voted in favor of S 627, the 2011 budget proposal which raised the debt ceiling and required a supercommittee to provide more concrete spending cuts.

Warren Buffett challenge to the GOP

Billionaire Warren Buffet challenged the gop that he would match any donations to the treasury they give. In response the congressman donated 49k.^[20]

Committee assignments[link]

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
  • Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
• Committee on Homeland Security
  • Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security
  • Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence
  • Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Communications
• Committee on Science, Space and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics
  • Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation

Caucus memberships[link]

• Shipbuilding Caucus
• Job Creators Caucus
• Contaminated Drywall Caucus
• Prayer Caucus
• Congressional Constitution Caucus
• Navy and Marine Corps Caucus
• Wounded to Work Caucus
• Values Action Team
• Job Creators Caucus
• General Aviation Caucus
• Defense Communities Caucus
• New Media Caucus
• Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus
• Chesapeake Bay Caucus
• Congressional Zoo and Aquarium Caucus
• Aerospace Caucus

Electoral history[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Congressman Scott Rigell official U.S. House site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Republican Primary Winner: Scott Rigell, Alt Daily, June 4, 2010

Joe Heck
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Nevada's 3rd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Dina Titus
Member of the Nevada Senate from the Clark 5 district
In office 2004–2008
Preceded by	Ann O'Connell
Succeeded by	Shirley Breeden
Personal details
Born	(1961-10-30) October 30, 1961 (age 50) Jamaica, New York, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Lisa Heck; 3 children
Residence	Henderson, Nevada, U.S.
Profession	Osteopathic physician
Religion	Roman Catholic
Website	heck.house.gov
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Army Reserve
Years of service	1991–present
Rank	Colonel
Battles/wars	Operation Joint Endeavor Operation Noble Eagle Operation Iraqi Freedom

Joseph John “Joe” Heck (born October 30, 1961) is the U.S. Representative for Nevada’s 3rd congressional district and is a member of the Republican Party. He is an osteopathic physician and former Nevada State Senator.

The district includes the cities of Henderson, Boulder City, parts of Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, unincorporated Clark County, and several smaller towns and cities in the Southern Nevada region. He resides in Henderson, Nevada.

Early life, education, and military service[link]

Heck was born in Jamaica, New York in Queens and raised in Pennsylvania. In 1992, he moved to Clark County, Nevada. He graduated from Penn State University in 1984 with a degree in Health Education. He received his Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine in 1988 from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and obtained a residency in Emergency Medicine in 1992 at the Albert Einstein Medical Center. He earned a Masters of Strategic Studies degree from the U.S. Army War College in 2006.^[1]

Heck is a Colonel in the United States Army Reserve and commands a Medical Readiness Support Group overseeing more than 2,000 soldiers in 6 western states. He continues to serve in this capacity while in Congress. He has served in Operation Joint Endeavor, Operation Noble Eagle, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. His last deployment was January, 2008.^[2]

Medical career[link]

Heck was the president, owner, and medical director of Specialized Medical Operations until 2011. The company provided medical training, consulting, and operational support to law enforcement agencies, EMS, and military special operations. Heck has lectured and is published on special operations medical support, the medical response to acts of terrorism, and emergency preparedness and response.^[3]

From 1998 to 2003, Heck served as the medical director of the Casualty Care Research Center of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland, where he provided medical support for several federal law enforcement agencies and oversight for the medical response to acts of terrorism.

Heck started his medical career as a volunteer firefighter and ambulance attendant in rural Pennsylvania. He volunteered as a Medical Team Manager with the Nevada Urban Search & Rescue Team - Task Force 1 and as a member of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Search & Rescue team. He has also served as a tactical physician with the LVMPD SWAT team.

Heck served as a member of the Nevada State Homeland Security Commission Sub-committee on Health, the American Osteopathic Association's Task Force on Bioterrorism, and as the Medical Director for the Nevada Hospital Association’s Hospital Preparedness program. He also served as the Medical Director for the Southern Nevada Health District's Office of Public Health Preparedness.^[4]

Nevada Senate[link]

Heck served one four-year term in the Nevada Senate, representing Clark County’s 5th district.^[5]

Elections[link]

Heck was first elected to the Nevada Senate to represent Clark County’s 5th district in 2004, after defeating Senator Ann O’Connell in the Republican primary. Heck narrowly lost reelection to Democrat Shirley Breeden by a margin of 46.57% to 45.81% and a plurality of 765 votes. Libertarian T. Rex Hagan received 4754 votes (8.4%).^[6]

Committee assignments[link]

He served on the Natural Resources, Human Resources and Education, the Commerce and Labor Committees. He was also the vice-chair of the Transportation and Homeland Security Committee.

U.S. House of Representatives[link]

Elections[link]

2010

Although Heck had earlier announced he would challenge incumbent Republican Jim Gibbons for Governor, he decided against it in favor of a run for Nevada's 3rd congressional district.^[7] He defeated incumbent Democrat U.S. Congresswoman Dina Titus, 48%-47%, a difference of 1,748 votes. Titus had only held the position for one term after she defeated incumbent Republican U.S. Congressman Jon C. Porter in 2008.^[8]

2012

After redistricting, Heck has decided to run in the newly redrawn 3rd district.

Tenure[link]

Heck was one of three freshmen named to the House Republican Steering Committee in the 112th Congress.^[9] His top three legislative priorities are jobs and the economy, healthcare reform, and national security.

Interest Group Ratings

Heck has yet to receive ratings for his actions in the House of Representatives. His most recent ratings available are from 2007, when he served as a Nevada state senator, and was given a rating of 100% from the Nevada National Federation of Independent Business and the Nevada Prosperity Project- Positions on Economic Growth and Jobs, a coalition of business and associations in Nevada, and a 75% approaval rating from the Nevada Environmental Conservation League.^[10] He has never received a rating from a prominent interest group, as determined by Congressional publication “The Hill.”^[11]

Environment In 2011 Heck voted in favor of bills requiring the EPA to consider the costs and feasibility of air quality standards and delay their regulation of cement manufacturers. He also supported amending the clean water laws to instill looser standards, repealing energy efficiency standards currently in place for incandescent light bulbs, and preventing an energy tax. He voted against repealing provisions currently in place that limit funding for the Endangered Species Act. In a public statement released in January 2011, Heck expressed his opinion on environmental regulation, stating that, “With the current restrictions on our ability to utilize domestic oil and natural gas resources, Nevadans are forced to pay a high premium on energy costs…restrictions on our ability to utilize domestic oil and natural gas resources only drive up energy costs.” ^[12]

Business In 2011 Heck voted in favor of Free Trade Agreements and Trade Promotion Agreements with Korea, Colombia and Panama, expressing a desire to revitalize the role of the United States in the global economy. He also voted against requiring public disclosure of employee bonuses, and the instillation of crowd funding intermediaries to disclose methods of compensation to investors.

National Economy Heck voted against increasing the debt limit and supported a separate bill that expressed disapproval of the President’s authority to raise the debt limit. He released a public statement saying, “Raising the debt ceiling without significant spending cuts will only prolong the uncertainty preventing an economic recovery.” ^[13]

National Security In 2011 Heck strongly voiced his opinion against United States involvement in Libya, saying, “We are already engaged in military operations on two fronts, and Libya opened a third. We cannot afford the troops or taxpayer dollars—especially without a national security objective.” ^[14] He also voted against removing troops from Afghanistan.

Abortion In 2011 Heck voted in favor of amending the federal health care law to prohibit abortion coverage, prohibiting taxpayer funding of abortion, and prohibiting the use of federal funds for Planned Parenthood.

Votes Voting Record ^{[15] [16]}

Committee assignments[link]

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Military Personnel
  • Subcommittee on Readiness
• Committee on Education and the Workforce
  • Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Training
  • Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions
• Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence

Partisan committees:

• House Republican Steering Committee

Source:^[17]

Personal life[link]

Joe and his wife, Lisa (formerly Mattiello), have three children: Monica, Chelsea and Joseph III. Lisa is a registered nurse. Heck is a Roman Catholic. He is active with the Knights of Columbus Council 13456 and Catholic War Veterans Post 1947.^[18]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Congressman Joe Heck official U.S. House site
• Joe Heck for Congress official campaign website
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Campaign contributions at the National Institute for Money in State Politics
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Senator Joe Heck official Nevada Legislature site (2007 session)

v t e Members of the United States House of Representatives from Nevada Territorial (1861-1864) Cradlebaugh Mott At-large seat (1864-1983) Worthington Ashley Fitch Kendall Ashley Fitch Woodburn Wren Daggett Cassidy Woodburn Bartine Newlands Van Duzer Bartlett Roberts Evans Arentz Richards Arentz Scrugham Sullivan Bunker Russell Baring Young Baring Towell Santini 1st district (1983-present) Reid Bilbray Ensign Berkley 2nd district (1983-present) Vucanovich Gibbons Heller Amodei 3rd district (2003-present) Porter Titus Heck

The neutrality of this article is disputed. Please see the discussion on the talk page. Please do not remove this message until the dispute is resolved. (February 2012)

Alcee Hastings
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 23rd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1993
Preceded by	None (District Created After 1990 Census)
Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
In office November 2, 1979 – October 20, 1989
Nominated by	Jimmy Carter
Preceded by	seat created
Succeeded by	Federico A. Moreno
Personal details
Born	(1936-09-05) September 5, 1936 (age 75) Altamonte Springs, Florida
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Divorced
Residence	Miramar, Florida
Alma mater	Howard University, Florida A&M University
Religion	African Methodist Episcopal

Alcee Lamar Hastings (born September 5, 1936) is the U.S. Representative for Florida's 23rd congressional district, serving since 1993. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He is one of only eight federal officials in American history to be impeached and removed from office.

Early life, education, and law career[link]

Born in Altamonte Springs, Florida, Hastings was educated at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee and Howard University in Washington, D.C. He received his law degree from Florida A&M University in 1963.

He began to practice law in 1964.

1970 U.S. Senate election[link]

Hastings ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in 1970, losing in the first primary to Lawton Chiles.

Judicial career (1979-1989)[link]

In 1977, he became a judge of the circuit court of Broward County, Florida. In 1979, he was appointed by President Carter as a U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Florida.

In 1981, Hastings was charged with accepting a $150,000 bribe in exchange for a lenient sentence and a return of seized assets for 21 counts of racketeering by Frank and Thomas Romano, and of perjury in his testimony about the case. In 1983, he was acquitted by a jury after his alleged co-conspirator, William Borders, refused to testify in court (resulting in a jail sentence for Borders).^[1]

In 1988, the Democratic-controlled U.S. House of Representatives took up the case, and Hastings was impeached for bribery and perjury by a vote of 413-3. He was then convicted in 1989 by the United States Senate, becoming the sixth federal judge in the history of the United States to be removed from office by the Senate. The Senate, in two hours of roll calls, voted on 11 of the 17 articles of impeachment. It convicted Hastings of eight of the 11 articles. The vote on the first article was 69 for and 26 opposed,^[2] providing five votes more than the two-thirds of those present that were needed to convict. The first article accused the judge of conspiracy. Conviction on any single article was enough to remove the judge from office. The Senate vote cut across party lines, with Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Democrat of Vermont, voting to convict his fellow party member, and Senator Arlen Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania, voting to acquit.^[3]

The Senate had the option to forbid Hastings from ever seeking federal office again, but did not do so. Alleged co-conspirator, attorney William Borders went to jail again for refusing to testify in the impeachment proceedings, but was later given a full pardon by President Bill Clinton on his last day in office.^[4]

Hastings filed suit in federal court claiming that his impeachment trial was invalid because he was tried by a Senate committee, not in front of the full Senate, and that he had been acquitted in a criminal trial. Judge Stanley Sporkin ruled in favor of Hastings, remanding the case back to the Senate, but stayed his ruling pending the outcome of an appeal to the Supreme Court in a similar case regarding Judge Walter Nixon, who had also been impeached and removed.^[5]

Sporkin found some "crucial distinctions"^[6] between Nixon's case and Hastings's, specifically, that Nixon had been convicted criminally, and that Hastings was not found guilty by two-thirds of the committee who actually "tried" his impeachment in the Senate. He further added that Hastings had a right to trial by the full Senate.

The Supreme Court, however, ruled in Nixon v. United States that the federal courts have no jurisdiction over Senate impeachment matters, so Sporkin's ruling was vacated and Hastings's conviction and removal were upheld.^[7]

1990 Secretary of State election[link]

Hastings attempted to make a political comeback by running for Secretary of State of Florida, campaigning on a platform of legalizing casinos. In a three-way Democratic primary, he placed second with 313,758 votes, or 33%, behind newspaper columnist Jim Minter's 357,340 votes (38%) and ahead of former Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon John Paul Rogers' 275,370 votes (29%). In the runoff, which saw a large dropoff in turnout, Hastings lost to Minter in a landslide, 300,022 votes to 146,375. Minter would go on to lose the general election to incumbent Republican James C. Smith.

U.S. House of Representatives (1993-Present)[link]

Elections[link]

Hastings was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992, representing Florida's 23rd district. After placing second in the initial Democratic primary for the post, he scored an upset victory over State Representative Lois J. Frankel in the runoff and went on to easily win election in the heavily-Democratic district. From that point on he has yet to face a serious challenge for reelection.

Tenure[link]

He was one of the 31 who voted in the House not to count the electoral votes from Ohio in the 2004 presidential election.^[8]

Hastings voted to impeach Texas federal judge Samuel B. Kent on all four counts presented against him on June 19, 2009.^[9]

In March 2010, defended the Democrats’ approach to passing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, saying "I wish that I had been there when Thomas Edison made the remark that I think applies here: "There ain't no rules around here, we're trying to accomplish something." And therefore, when the deal goes down, all this talk about rules, we make them up as we go along."^[10]

Comments regarding Sarah Palin

On September 24, 2008, Hastings came under fire for controversial comments made regarding Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Hastings, speaking in Washington D.C. to a conference sponsored by the National Jewish Democratic Council, said "If Sarah Palin isn't enough of a reason for you to get over whatever your problem is with Barack Obama, then you damn well had better pay attention. Anybody toting guns and stripping moose don't care too much about what they do with Jews and blacks. So, you just think this through." ^[11]

On September 29, 2008, Hastings issued an apology via a written statement, while standing by its core message: "I regret the comments I made last Tuesday that were not smart and certainly not relevant to hunters or sportsmen. The point I made, and will continue to make, is that the policies and priorities of a McCain-Palin administration would be anathema to most African Americans and Jews. I regret that I was not clearer and apologize to Governor Palin, my host where I was speaking, and those who my comments may have offended."^[12]

Use of Expense Allowance

According to the Wall Street Journal, Representative Hastings spent over $24,000 in taxpayer money in 2008 to lease a luxury Lexus hybrid sedan. The articles cited other examples of lawmakers spending comparable amounts on vehicle leases. In general, they highlighted some lavish personal benefits for members of Congress using public spending in comparison to typical US citizens. The expenditure was legal, properly accounted for, and drawn from an expense allowance the U.S. government grants to all lawmakers.^[13]

Sexual Harassment Investigation

A Congressional Ethics Panel is looking into claims that Representative Hastings sexually harassed one of his staff members, the Wall Street Journal reports.^[14] The investigation is the result of a lawsuit filed by Winsome Packer alleging Hastings made repeated unwanted sexual advances and threatened her job when she refused him. Packer is being represented by the conservative legal group Judicial Watch. Representative Hastings has denied the claims and called them "ludicrous."^[15]

Least Wealthy Congressman

In a 2011 survey of U.S. lawmakers, the Center for Responsible Politics named Hastings the "Poorest Member of Congress," with a 2010 average net worth of -$4,732,002.^[16] His congressional financial disclosure form indicated that, as of 2010, Hastings did not have any earned income, he had a bank account with a balance in $1,000 to $15,000 range, and he owed several million dollars in legal fees to several attorneys stemming from 1981-1989 charges.^[17]

Committee assignments[link]

Overview

Hastings is a member of the Congressional Black Caucus and was elected President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in July 2004. Today, as a Senior Democratic Whip, Hastings is an influential member of the Democratic leadership. Representative Hastings is also a member of the powerful House Rules Committee and is a senior Member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI). On the HPSCI, Hastings is the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.

Committees

• Committee on Rules
  • Subcommittee on Legislative and Budget Process (Ranking Member)
• Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Ranking Member)

Leadership positions

• Florida Congressional Delegation (Co-Chairman)
• Senior Democratic Whip
• Congressional Caucus on Global Road Safety (Co-Chairman)
• International Conservation Caucus
• Sportsmen's Caucus

House Intelligence Committee candidacy

After the 2006 United States House of Representatives elections, Hastings attracted attention after it was reported that incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi might appoint him as head of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Pelosi reportedly favored Hastings instead of the ranking Democrat Jane Harman due to policy differences and support for Hastings by the Congressional Black Caucus.^[18]

On November 28, 2006, Pelosi announced that Hastings would not be the Committee's chairman,^[19] and later she chose Silvestre Reyes instead. While Representative Hastings was passed over to chair the committee he became chair of a sub-committee.

References[link]

1. ^ Federal Judge Acquitted Milwaukee Journal, Feb. 4, 1983
2. ^ Senate Removes Hastings, The Washington Post, October 21, 1989. Retrieved March 14, 2012.
3. ^ "Hastings Ousted As Senate Vote Convicts Judge", The New York Times, October 21, 1989. Retrieved April 10, 2008.
4. ^ "The Power of the Pardon". Law.com. 2011-07-15. http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1066080426784. Retrieved 2011-07-22. 
5. ^ "Senate Conviction of Hastings Is Reversed by Judge Sporkin". Washingtonpost.com. 1992-09-18. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/campaigns/junkie/links/hastings091892.htm. Retrieved 2011-07-22. 
6. ^ "Hastings v. U.S., 802 F.Supp. 490". Classes.lls.edu. http://classes.lls.edu/archive/manheimk/fedcts/hastings1.html. Retrieved 2011-07-22. 
7. ^ HASTINGS v. U.S. 837 F.Supp. 3 (1993)
8. ^ http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll007.xml
9. ^ "U.S. House of Representatives Roll Call Votes". Clerk.house.gov. http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/index.asp. Retrieved 2010-08-23. 
10. ^ "Rep. Alcee Hastings invokes Thomas Edison: ‘No rules around here — we’re trying to accomplish something’". Post on Politics. 2010-03-20. http://www.postonpolitics.com/2010/03/rep-alcee-hastings-invokes-thomas-edison-no-rules-around-here-were-trying-to-accomplish-something/. Retrieved 2010-08-23. 
11. ^ Rigel Anderson (2008-09-24). "Florida Congressman: Palin 'Don't Care Too Much What They Do With Jews and Blacks' - Political Radar". Blogs.abcnews.com. http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2008/09/florida-congres.html. Retrieved 2010-08-23. 
12. ^ "Black Florida congressman apologizes for Palin comments". CNN. http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/09/29/black-florida-congressman-apologizes-for-comments-about-palin/. Retrieved April 23, 2010. 
13. ^ Radnofsky, Louise; T.W. Farnam (May 30, 2009). "Lawmakers Bill Taxpayers For TVs, Cameras, Lexus". Wall Street Journal. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124364352135868189.html. Retrieved 2009-06-15. 
14. ^ Fields, Gary (2011-06-22). "Florida Congressman Faces New Ethics Review - WSJ.com". Online.wsj.com. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304887904576400053258305010.html?mod=WSJ_WSJ_US_News_5. Retrieved 2011-07-22. 
15. ^ McCormack, Simon (2011-06-22). "Alcee Hastings Sexual Harassment Allegation Investigated By Ethics Panel". Huffingtonpost.com. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/22/alcee-hastings-sexual-harassment_n_882251.html?icid=maing-grid7%7Cmain5%7Cdl1%7Csec3_lnk1%7C72410. Retrieved 2011-07-22. 
16. ^ "Richest and 'poorest' Members of Congress". Washingtonpost.com. 2011-12-30. http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/25-richest-members-of-congress/2011/07/11/gIQAmtxiMK_gallery.html?hpid=z2#photo=52. Retrieved 2011-12-30. 
17. ^ "Calendar Year 2010 Financial Disclosure Statement, The Hon. Alcee Lamar Hastings". http://clerk.house.gov/public_disc/financial-pdfs/2011/8202579.pdf. 
18. ^ Battle of Hastings adds to Pelosi drama MSNBC, Nov. 16, 2006
19. ^ Pelosi Shuts Hastings Out of Intel Chairmanship NPR, Nov. 28, 2006

External links[link]

Wikisource has original works written by or about: Alcee Lamar Hastings

• U.S. Congressman Alcee Hastings official U.S. House site
• Alcee L. Hastings for Congress official campaign site
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Alcee Hastings at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.