Committees and Caucuses
A congressional caucus is a collection of like-minded representatives working on common legislative objectives in a particular area important to them. Rep. Denny Heck is affiliated with a number of caucuses and coalitions focused on important issues affecting the 10th Congressional District.
REP. HECK’S CAUCUS & COALITION MEMBERSHIPS
Economy & Jobs
New Democrat Coalition
The New Democrat Coalition is dedicated to maintaining America’s standing as the world’s strongest, most successful nation. Founded in 1997, the New Dems believe firmly in the power of American ingenuity and innovation, and are focused on finding ways to foster and harness this creativity to grow our economy, create new American jobs, and ensure a safer and more secure future for our country.
Within the New Democrat Coalition, Rep. Heck serves as co-chair of the Financial Services Task Force and is a member of the 21st Century Job Skills Working Group.
“America needs leaders willing to propose serious solutions to tackle the toughest problems of our time, and the New Democrat Coalition is ready to step in and fill the void. We care about the middle class and those working to get into it. We believe the best ideas come from evidence-based and data-driven approaches to policymaking, irrespective of political labels. We believe the best way to secure America’s economic future is to grow small businesses, the backbone of our economy. I will continue to work with my New Dem colleagues to find ways to move our country forward.”
House Small Business Caucus
The Congressional Small Business Caucus is comprised of over 90 bipartisan members dedicated to advancing efforts to foster the economic certainty needed for small businesses and entrepreneurs to succeed and create jobs.
Congressional Career and Technical Education Caucus
The Career and Technical Education Caucus is a bipartisan group of Members of Congress created to enhance awareness in Congress of the importance of career and technical education in preparing a well-educated and skilled workforce in America. CTE programs exist in every congressional district and every state. These fields include STEM disciplines, nursing, allied health, construction, information technology, energy, cybersecurity, sustainability, and other areas that keep our nation competitive in the global economy.
Congressional Small Business Information Technology Caucus
The Small Business Information Technology Caucus raises awareness for issues affecting emerging technology and IT small businesses.
Military & National Service
Congressional Army Caucus
The Congressional Army Caucus is a bipartisan group of over 100 Members of Congress that meet regularly to promote the interests of the United States Army.
Defense Communities Congressional Caucus
The Defense Communities Congressional Caucus is a bipartisan group of lawmakers providing a unified voice for the hundreds of communities that host active and closed installations, support those communities in their efforts to assist service members and their families, and raise awareness of the unique issues and challenges facing defense communities,such as defense infrastructure,installation efficiency, renewable energy projects, and military families/veterans support.
Congressional Military Family Caucus
The Military Family Caucus seeks to educate Members of Congress and their staff on resources the military has for families, focusing on issues such as education, childcare, healthcare, spousal employment, and the effects of multiple deployments.
National Service Congressional Caucus
The National Service Congressional Caucus is a bipartisan group of legislators dedicated to raising awareness of national service and expanding service opportunities for all Americans.
Congressional Mobility Air Forces Caucus
The Mobility Air Forces Caucus is dedicated to promoting our nation’s air mobility forces, by raising awareness of the critical roles that air refueling, airlift and aero medical evacuation play in our national security, establishing a forum for exchange among Members who are committed to promoting air mobility, and ensuring Members’ access to the most accurate and up-to-date information about developments in air mobility.
Congressional National Guard Youth Challenge Caucus
The Congressional National Guard Youth Challenge Caucus was formed to support National Guard’s Youth ChalleNGe program, which is a voluntary, disciplined educational program that has allowed thousands of high-school dropouts to earn their GED.
Trade
Congressional Singapore Caucus
In collaboration with the 50th anniversary of Singapore’s independence, the bipartisan Congressional Singapore Caucus was re-launched with Congressman Heck and Congressman Bradley Byrne of Alabama as the Co-Chairs. The goal of the Caucus will be to strengthen the political, military, and economic relationship between the two countries, and engage more Americans and policymakers on the promise of Singapore and Asia. It was first established in 2002 and has served as a platform to strengthen Singapore’s strategic partnership with the United States and connected the country with various Congressional districts. The United States and Singapore concluded the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement in 2004, the first bilateral trade agreement between the United States and an Asian country.
Congressional Taiwan Caucus
The Congressional Taiwan Caucus works to enhance and strengthen U.S.-Taiwan relations and to ensure that Taiwan continues to have a free and democratic government.
U.S.- Japan Congressional Caucus
The U.S.-Japan Caucus aims to facilitate bilateral collaboration on issues of common interest between our two countries, including trade, foreign direct investment, regional stability, military cooperation, energy, technological development, and the environment.
Energy & Environment
Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (SEEC)
The purpose of the House of Representatives Sustainable Energy & Environment Coalition is to advance policies that promote clean energy technology innovation and domestic manufacturing, develop renewable energy resources, create green collar jobs throughout the product supply-chain, and to advance policies to help combat global warming and protect our nation’s clean air, water and natural environment.
Congressional Puget Sound Recovery Caucus
The Puget Sound Recovery Caucus was cofounded by Congressman Denny Heck and Congressman Derek Kilmer in June of 2013 to promote Puget Sound cleanup efforts, including 3 region-wide Puget Sound recovery priorities: preventing pollution from urban stormwater runoff, protecting and restoring habitat, and restoring and re-opening shellfish beds.
Congressional Coastal Communities Caucus
The CCCC gives a bipartisan, bicoastal voice to issues unique to those who live, work and do business in America’s coastal communities. Whether it be pre-disaster mitigation, tourism, marine ecology, or flood insurance, American coastal areas face unique challenges and priorities. The CCCC gives a voice to coastal districts’ interests and serves as an arena to share information, advocate initiatives, and work together on behalf constituents who live, work and recreate on our coastlines. The Caucus is led by four Republicans and four Democrats from all stretches of the U.S., Washington, California, North Carolina, Florida, Alabama and New Jersey.
Northwest Energy Caucus
The bipartisan Northwest Energy Caucus aims to raise awareness and promote cooperation about issues that impact the continued availability of low-cost power in the Pacific Northwest region.
Congressional National Parks Caucus
Devoted to our nation’s 84 million acres of national parks, the National Parks Caucus advocates for the protection and promotion of our country’s most beautiful natural landscapes, including Olympic National Park, Mount Rainier National Park, and North Cascades National Park in Washington.
Congressional Shellfish Caucus
The Shellfish Caucus is a bipartisan group of Members of Congress working to enhance the understanding and awareness of the issues and policies that affect the United States’ shellfish industry including its harvesters, processors, distributors and consumers.
Congressional Invasive Species Caucus
The Invasive Species Caucus raises awareness of invasive species issues, supports local communities who bear the brunt of this problem, and promotes efforts to prevent and control the spread of invasive species.
Health & Well-being
Congressional Diabetes Caucus
The Diabetes Caucus supports legislative activities that would improve diabetes research, education and treatment. The Caucus successfully obtained $1.5 billion for a program that funds juvenile diabetes research and Native American treatment and prevention programs through the Indian Health Service, enacted legislation to provide Medicare coverage for blood testing strips, glucose monitors and diabetes self-management education, and urged the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to provide coverage for insulin infusion pumps.
Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth
The Congressional Caucus on Foster Youth provides a forum for Members of Congress to discuss and develop policy recommendations to strengthen the child welfare system and improve the overall well-being of youth and families.
Congressional Native American Caucus
The Native American Caucus is a bipartisan coalition of legislators working to improve nation-to-nation relationships between the federal government and the 566 sovereign tribal nations. For 15 years, the Caucus has worked to protect tribal sovereignty, meet federal trust obligations, and improve the lives of American Indians, Alaska Natives, and Native Hawaiians.
Congressional Primary Care Caucus
The Congressional Primary Care Caucus aims to raise awareness of the value of primary care and encourage lawmakers to provide greater support for those who practice it.
Congressional Motorcycle Caucus
The Congressional Motorcycle Caucus aims to address the specific needs of motorcycle riders and all those that share the road with them.
Congressional Humanities Caucus
The Congressional Humanities Caucus was founded in 2004 to ensure the vitality of the humanities in American life and to provide a forum for Members of Congress to engage in the humanities in current public policy issues. Members of the caucus work together to strengthen the nation’s awareness of history, literature, languages, philosophy, ethics, religion, anthropology, government, linguistics, and other humanities disciplines.
Congressional Animal Protection Caucus
The Congressional Animal Protection Caucus (CAPC) is a bipartisan organization committed to raising awareness of animal welfare issues in Congress. CAPC was formed in February 2009 and replaced the Friends of Animals Caucus founded by former Representatives Tom Lantos (D-CA) and Chris Shays (R-CT). The purpose of CAPC is to highlight important issues affecting animals and to educate Members and their staff on the need for sensible animal protection legislation. Partnering with reputable animal welfare organizations, CAPC sponsors non-partisan briefings and tracks the progress of relevant legislation, providing Caucus members with dependable information on animal welfare issues. The goal of CAPC is to build broad coalitions in support of common-sense, humane animal welfare laws.