Welcome to the Urban Caucus

As Chair of the Congressional Urban Caucus, I understand that any coherent discussion of the nation’s education, health, transportation, housing, crime and the environment – cannot take place in a realistic and meaningful way without taking into serious consideration how these issues intertwine with metropolitan areas simply because that is where many Americans live and where a majority of the nation’s economic activity occurs. As a recent report from the Brookings Institution shows almost 75% of our nation’s gross domestic product and 68% of our nation’s jobs are in metropolitan areas.

For cities to grow in an era of increasing competition from around the globe, the federal government must invest in their prosperity. However, this investment cannot be haphazard; instead, we as a nation must first take the time to create a roadmap so that our “investment” is not wasted.

The mission of the caucus is to bring together Members who represent the nation’s metropolitan areas to help create this roadmap. The members of the Urban Caucus intend to foster discussion about the health of the nation’s metropolitan areas through policy forums, legislative proposals, and advocacy.

I look forward to working with you to formulate ideas on how to address the challenges faced by cities.

Very truly yours,

Chaka Fattah
Chair, Congressional Urban Caucus