Mercer Island, WA
– In just his first term in office, Rep. Dave Reichert (WA-08) has
continued to move up his power ranking in the U.S. House of
Representatives. In just one term, Congressman Reichert's influence
and ability to get things done for his District in Washington, DC
lands him at the top of Washington State's most powerful legislators
and the second most powerful among Washington State's
Representatives. The criteria used in ranking members of Congress is
based on a combination of position, influence, and legislation.
Congressman Reichert distinguished himself early in the U.S. House
or Representatives and became only the sixth freshman in the history
of the House to be given a committee chairmanship.
"As Chairman of
the Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, we had an obligation to
fix the problems associated with our poor response to Hurricane
Katrina," Congressman Reichert said. "We were successful in pushing
through the House and into law needed reforms that will strengthen
the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and improve emergency
communication for our first responders. In addition, I have been
able to bring back to the district significant amount of funding for
projects that will benefit all of us that live and work in the
District. Projects in and around the Eighth Congressional District
received over $100 million in funding over the last two years,
including $37.5 million in transportation projects from SAFETEA-LU."
Chairman of the
House Homeland Security Committee Peter King commended Chairman
Reichert's work on FEMA reform legislation, "Chairman Reichert was
the driving force behind this legislation. Without his leadership
and 30 years of law enforcement experience, these comprehensive
reforms never would have been possible."
U.S. House of
Representatives from Washington State
Name
Rank in State Score Rank in House
Rep. Dicks
(D-WA-6) 1 32.75
36
Rep. Reichert (R-WA-8,
Freshman) 2 19.25
166
Rep. McMorris (R-WA-5,
Freshman)
3 18.62 178
Rep. Hastings
(R-WA-4) 4
15.50 229
Rep. McDermott (D-WA-7)
5 14.88 245
Rep. Baird
(D-WA-3) 6
11.63 305
Rep. Larsen
(D-WA-2) 7 10.25
330
Rep. Inslee
(D-WA-1) 8
8.94 354
Rep. Smith
(D-WA-9) 9
6.62 408
The rankings were
done by Knowlegis, a government relations knowledge management
company that considers among its ranking criteria Members' position,
influence and legislative activity. A list of all the Power Rankings
can be found at
http://www.congress.org/power
Congressman
Reichert's legislative accomplishments in 2006:
-
The 21st
Century Emergency Communications Act of 2006: Passed the House
of Representatives on July 25, 2006, by a vote of 414-2. The
majority of this legislation was included in the Homeland
Security Appropriations bill for FY 2007 and was signed into law
on October 4, 2006.
-
The National
Emergency Management Reform Enhancement Act of 2006: Passed the
House Committee on Homeland Security on May 17, 2006, by a vote
of 28-0. After in-depth negotiations with Leadership and other
Committee Chairmen, Chairman Reichert was successful in
strengthening FEMA within the Department of Homeland Security
and having this legislation attached to the Homeland Security
Appropriations bill for FY 2007, which was signed into law on
October 4, 2006.
-
The National
Police Athletic League (PAL) Youth Enrichment Reauthorization
Act of 2005: Congressman Reichert was successful in attaching
this language to the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act
of 2006, which was signed into law on July 27, 2006.
-
The Homeland
Security Science and Technology Enhancement Act of 2006: Passed
the Homeland Security Committee on June 14, 2006.
-
Congressman
Reichert offered an amendment to the Agricultural Appropriations
bill for FY 2007 to exempt Smith Brothers Farms from new
producer-handler regulations. Unfortunately the amendment was
not made in order.
-
Congressman
Reichert offered an amendment to the Science, State, Justice,
Commerce Appropriations bill for FY 2007 to increase funding for
Justice Assistance Grants program by $25 million. This amendment
was accepted.
As Chairman of the
Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Science and Technology, Rep.
Reichert has chaired 11 hearings this year important to protecting
our homeland. These hearings include:
-
Protecting the
Homeland: Fighting Pandemic Flu From the Front Lines.
-
The State of
Interoperable Communications: Perspectives from the Field.
-
The State of
Interoperable Communications: Perspectives from State and Local
Governments.
-
Proposed
Fiscal Year 2007 Budget: Enhancing Preparedness for First
Responders.
-
State of
Interoperable Communications: Perspectives on Federal
Coordination of Grants, Standards, and Technology.
-
Washington
State Field Hearing: Planning and Preparedness, Federal, State
and Local Coordination.
-
New Jersey
Field Hearing: Preparing for, Responding to, and Preventing
Terrorist Attacks, Natural Disasters and Other Emergencies: Is
Northern New Jersey Ready.
-
Emergency Care
Crisis: A National Unprepared for Public Health Disasters
-
Northern
Exposure: Assessing Border Security
-
The Department
of Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate: Is it
Structured for Success?
-
Helping
Business Protect the Homeland: Is the Department of Homeland
Security Effectively Implementing the SAFETY Act?
Awards and honors
received by Rep. Reichert this year include:
-
Received the
2006 Process Control and SCADA (Supervisory Control & Data
Acquisition System) Security Leadership Awards from a leading
Cyber Security Organization for the results of their October
2005 joint hearing, “SCADA and the Terrorist Threat: Protecting
the Nation’s Critical Control Systems.
-
Received the Chamber of Congress
Spirit of Enterprise
award for work on tax issues, health care for small business
owners, and promoting free trade.
-
Received the RAINN Crime
Fighter Award because as a result of efforts to bring
sexual offenders to justice, enhance services for victims of
sexual assault and reduce the incidence of rape.
-
Received the
NFIB Guardian award for work on behalf of Small Business.
-
The Genocide Intervention Network gave Rep. Reichert an ‘A’
grade for his efforts stop the genocide of thousands in the
Darfur region of Sudan.