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Committee Work:

In the 112^th Congress, I am proud to be serving the 15^th District of California as a member of the House Appropriations Committee and the House Budget Committee, two of the key committees in the development of the federal budget and in setting government fiscal priorities.

I believe my life experiences have prepared me well to serve on these committees. I came to Congress with more than a decade of experience in local and state government, and more than thirty years of service as an educator and administrator. This experience has shown me how the priorities set by Congress impact what state and local officials and public servants are able to do for their communities. As a member of the Budget and Appropriations Committees, I will fight to make sure that we address the needs of states, communities and families such as:

access to affordable healthcare
worker training
port and border security
adequate law enforcement to keep our streets and neighborhoods safe
health care for our veterans
recovery from natural disasters, particularly Hurricane Katrina
education, particularly fully funding No Child Left Behind and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
keeping our nation competitive in the global economy through science and technology

Budget Committee

In the 112^th Congress, I have returned to the Budget Committee, on which I last served in the 107^th Congress. The budget committee was established to handle broad questions about federal spending and taxation in 1974 during an era of unprecedented institutional reform in Congress to address increasing conflicts between Congress and the President over the federal budget, the challenge of managing long-term programs such as Social Security and Medicare, and budget deficits in the latter 20th century.

As the first panel to examine the President’s annual budget message, the Budget Committee’s chief responsibility is to draft a concurrent resolution that reconciles spending details with the overall comprehensive budget package. The committee is required to draft a budget resolution, agreed to by April 15 of each year, which establishes total targets in five budget areas: authority; outlays; revenues; surplus or deficit; and public debt. The resolution also sets budget authority and outlay targets for each of the 21 spending categories. Although Congress originally planned to have two budget resolutions per year, the committee eventually eliminated the second resolution date because of the effectiveness of the reconciliation process. Finally, the committee prepares guidelines in the annual budget resolution for cutting programs to meet spending targets.

As both a member of the Budget Committee and the Congressional Progress Caucus (CPC), I have taken the lead in drafting the CPC’s alternative budget, which reflects the values and priorities of working families in this country. To find out more about the CPC Budget and my role in drafting it, click here.

Hearing Schedule:

The Hearing Schedule for the Budget Committee can be found on the Budget Committee website.

Appropriations Committee:

Directing Funding to Fundamental Needs

In 2007, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee selected me to serve on the powerful U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations. I am proud to serve on the following subcommittees:

Commerce, Justice, and Science
Legislative Branch, of which I am the Ranking Democratic Member

After the adoption of the Congressional Budget Resolution, the Appropriations Committee determines the amount of funding that will be appropriated for federal programs and executive branch agencies. You can see the current status of appropriations bills.

In the 112^th Congress, Republican leadership has established a moratorium on congressionally directed spending projects known “earmarks.” While I recognize that some Members of Congress have abused the earmarking process, I believe this is an unwise course of action, as the Constitution grants Congress the “power of the purse.” You can view the projects for which I have requested appropriations in past appropriations bills.

You can learn about the appropriations process in these reports from the Congressional Research Service: