Congressman Doc Hastings
Congressman Doc Hastings has represented Central Washington’s 4th District for six terms, beginning in 1995 – the year Republicans claimed a majority in the U.S. House of Representatives for the first time in 40 years.
As the third-ranking member of the prestigious House Rules Committee, Hastings helps control the flow of legislation to the House floor, shape final agreements on legislation, and determine which amendments will be put to a vote by the full House.
Hastings serves as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Rules and Organization of the House. The panel’s innocuous sounding name belies its powerful portfolio which includes, for example, responsibility for committee structures and jurisdiction across the House and responsibility for proposals to reform the appropriations process.
Hastings also serves as Chairman of the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct – commonly known as the Ethics Committee – and is charged with upholding ethical standards in the House of Representatives. Hastings has served on the Committee since 2001 and in that capacity, according to the non-partisan Congressional Quarterly, “Hastings won praise – including from [Rep. James A.] Traficant – for his fairness in building the case to expel the Ohio Democrat, who was convicted on 10 federal charges of bribery, racketeering and tax evasion.”
Hastings chairs the bipartisan Congressional Nuclear Cleanup Caucus, which he founded in 1995 to promote the cleanup of federal nuclear waste facilities such as DOE’s Hanford reservation - the largest single employer in his district.
In addition to his post as Assistant Majority Whip, Hastings represents the ten western states on the Republican Steering Committee, which assigns Members to legislative committees and selects the chairmen of these committees.
Perhaps Hastings’ single proudest legislative achievement was the enactment into law in 2003 of his “Citizen Soldier Act.” Hastings’ bill makes legal immigrants serving in the armed forces eligible for U.S. citizenship after just one year in uniform, a process that previously averaged five or more years.
Prior to serving in Congress, Hastings spent eight years in the Washington State Legislature where his colleagues elected him Assistant Majority Leader and Chairman of the Republican Caucus.
While running his family business, Columbia Basin Paper and Supply in his hometown of Pasco, Hastings established himself as a leader in the local business community.
Hastings studied business administration at Columbia Basin College and at Central Washington University.
Doc and his wife, Claire, reside in Pasco. They have three grown children and six grandchildren.
*Note: If you are introducing Congressman Hastings at an event in Central Washington and would like to use his biography, please click here for a shortened version.*