Biography Congressman Steve Scalise

Congressman Steve Scalise is the newest Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Scalise won a special election to fill Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal’s vacated Congressional seat on Saturday, May 3. Scalise won with 75% of the vote against three other opponents.

Scalise is known as a staunch conservative who advocates for the conservative principles of lowering taxes, fiscal constraint, creating a strong national defense and fighting for traditional family values. Scalise has already emerged as one of the leaders in Congress pushing for a strong national energy policy to increase the supply of American oil and lower gas prices at the pump.

Along with Scalise’s legislative priorities he is committed to maintaining an open line of communication with his constituents to better serve them in Congress. Scalise held 10 town hall meetings throughout the district during his first two months in office.

Personal

Steve Scalise was born in New Orleans on October 6, 1965. A native of Jefferson Parish, Steve grew up in Metairie, and attended James Madison Elementary School and John Quincy Adams Middle School.

Scalise attended Rummel High School where he wrestled and played tennis for the Raiders. He went to Louisiana State University where he earned a Computer Science degree and minored in political science. Scalise started his political career at LSU, serving as Speaker of the Student Government Association.

Scalise has been married to the former Jennifer Letulle since 2005 and has a one year old daughter, Madison Carol.

Scalise served in the Louisiana Legislature for 12 1/2 years. In the State Senate Scalise served as the Chairman of the Senate Labor and Industrial Relations Committee.

Scalise has many proud legislative accomplishments especially his creation of the tax incentives for Louisiana’s film industry. The tax incentives made Louisiana the third most popular place to film in the United States, generating over $500 million in film activity and creating more than 3,000 jobs in Louisiana in 2006.

Among Scalise’s many other legislative accomplishments, he has been a leader in reforming Louisiana’s ethics laws, consolidating the state’s system of levee boards after hurricane Katrina to impose professional requirements and comprehensive earmark reform. Scalise has championed tax cuts for working families and businesses. He has strongly fought to defend 2nd Amendment rights, passing landmark legislation ending lawsuits against gun makers.

Scalise also successfully changed Louisiana’s constitution by passing the Defense of Marriage Amendment, which was approved by 78% of the state’s voters. While not an attorney, Scalise has a 2-0 legislative record before the U.S. Supreme Court.

In addition to his service in the Louisiana Legislature Scalise has also worked as a systems engineer for local technology companies. He and his wife are members of St. Agnes Catholic Church.