- Judy Biggert
Infobox_Congressman
name =Judy Biggert
date of birth=birth date and age|1937|08|15
place of birth =Chicago, Illinois
state =Illinois
district = 13th
term_start =January 6 ,1999
preceded =Harris Fawell
succeeded = Incumbent
party =Republican
spouse = Rody Biggert
children = Courtney
Alison
Rody
Adrienne
religion = Episcopalian
residence=Hinsdale, Illinois
occupation= attorney
alma_mater=Stanford University ,Northwestern University Judith Borg "Judy" Biggert (born
August 15 ,1937 inChicago, Illinois ), American politician,has been a Republican member of theUnited States House of Representatives since 1999,representing ushr|Illinois|13| ( [http://nationalatlas.gov/printable/images/preview/congdist/il13_109.gifmap] ).Personal life
Judy Biggert was born in Chicago on
August 15 ,1937 and attendedNew Trier High School inWinnetka, Illinois . She is married toRody Biggert , with whom she has four children: Courtney Caverly, Alison Cabot, Rody Biggert, and Adrienne Morrell, and seven grandchildren: Martin Bray, Gillian and Grant Patterson Caverly, and John Henry, Matthew, and Ethan Cabot, and Greer Morrell. The couple lives in a 138-year-old home inHinsdale , Illinois.cite web |url= http://judybiggert.house.gov/MeetJudy.aspx|title= Meet Judy|publisher= Judy Biggert Congresswoman 13th District of Illinois] Biggert graduated fromStanford University andNorthwestern University School of Law .After graduating with a law degree, Biggert began her legal career as clerk to judge
Luther Merritt Swygert ofUnited States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit . She is a member of the American Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, the DuPage Bar Association, and the DuPage Association of Women Lawyers.On April 3, 2008, Biggert presented with the
ASME President's Award by ASME PresidentSam Zamrik as recognition for her "leadership in advancing the science, engineering and technology enterprise which is so vital to this nation"cite web |url=http://www.asmenews.org/features/0508pres.html |author=ASME |title=NEWS Online |month=May |year=2008]In a report entitled "Family Affair" released on June 18, 2007,
Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington noted that Biggert's daughter Adrienne Morrell is a registered lobbyist forHealth Net , the 6th largest publicly traded for-profit managed health care company, where she has worked since 2004; previously Morrell was a lobbyist withAmerica’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), the chiefhealth insurance industry lobby. cite web |author=Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington |month=June 18, |year=2007 |publisher=CREW |url= http://www.citizensforethics.org/files/FINAL_FULL_REPORT.pdf|title= Family Affair |accessdate=2007-08-02|format=PDF]On August 1, 2007, Biggert voted against the Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act of 2007, which is opposed by Health Net and AHIP because it would eliminate the 12%
subsidy ($157 billion over ten years) given to private above what it would cost to cover the same people under the traditional Medicare program (and raise the federal cigarette tax by 45 cents to 84 cents) to reauthorize theState Children's Health Insurance Program which covers 6.6 million children, expand it to cover an additional four million uninsured children in low-income families, and prevent a scheduled 10% cut in doctor's Medicare payments in 2008. [cite web |author=Miller, Lorraine C. |month=August 1, |year=2007 |title=Final Vote Results for Roll Call 787 on passage of H.R. 3162 Children’s Health and Medicare Protection Act of 2007 |publisher=Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives |url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2007/roll787.xml] [cite web |author=AMA |month=May 22, |year=2007 |title=AMA calls for financial neutrality in Medicare Advantage |publisher=American Medical Association |url=http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/17602.html |accessdate=2007-08-02] [cite web |author=AMA |month=June 23, |year=2007 |title=Medicare physician payment reform |publisher=American Medical Association |url=http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/6583.html |accessdate=2007-08-08] cite journal |author=Pear, Robert |month=August 2, |year=2007 |title=House passes children’s health plan 225-204 |journal=The New York Times |pages=p. A13 |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/02/health/policy/02health.html?ref=health] cite journal |author=Alonso-Zaldivar, Ricardo |month=March 26, |year=2007 |title=Insuring kids may squeeze seniors |journal=Los Angeles Times |pages=p. A1 |url=http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/1243118091.html?dids=1243118091:1243118091&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+26%2C+2007&author=Ricardo+Alonso-Zaldivar&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&edition=&startpage=A.1&desc=Insuring+kids+may+squeeze+seniors]Biggert has received $17,000 in campaign contributions from large drug companies.cite web |url= http://www.dccc.org/gopauctionhouse/members/JudyBiggertIL-13.html|title= GOP Auction House|publisher= "Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee"] She voted against allowing Americans to import prescription drugs from Canada to save on costs.
Legislative career
Biggert began her legislative career in 1992, when she was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives to serve the newly created 81st District. She became the first member of the Illinois House in the 20th Century to be named to leadership after serving only one term.Fact|date=June 2007 She was re-elected in 1994 and 1996 before running for Congress in 1998. Biggert defeated
Peter Roskam in the Republican primary. Biggert earned 61% of the vote to win the seat opened up by the retirement of U.S. Rep.Harris Fawell .Biggert was cited by
Glamour Magazine as one of the "New Female Power Players" and byFortune Magazine as one of "The Picks of Congress' New Litter."cite web |url= http://www.biggert.com/about/|title= About Judy|publisher= Judy Biggert]In 2000, Biggert was re-elected with 66% of the vote, and her winning margins have been similarly large in elections since then.Fact|date=June 2007 She is currently serving on the House Education & Labor Committee, the House Science & Technology Committee, and the House Financial Services Committee — on which she is the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit. Fact|date=October 2007 In 2003, she co-sponsored legislation to outlaw overtime pay, while voting herself another pay raise during the same session of Congress [http://www.therealjudybiggert.com/] [HR 2989, House Vote 489, 9/9/03; H Res 770, House Vote 451] [http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?c108:1:./temp/~c108TIz19X::] .
Biggert's other subcommittee assignments include: Housing and Community Opportunity (Financial Services); Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit (Financial Services); Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education(Education and Labor); Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness(Education and Labor); Energy and Environment (Science & Technology), Technology and Innovation (Science & Technology)cite web |url= http://judybiggert.house.gov/MeetJudy.aspx?Section=2|title= Judy's Resume|publisher= Judy Biggert Congresswoman 13th District of Illinois]
Biggert undertook bipartisan support for the
Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) and was key in working with the employer and insurance communities to enable the passage of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act in the House on April 25, 2007 [http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2007/roll261.xml] . She was an initial cosponsor of the bill [http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:HR00493:@@@P] . She was present when President George W. Bush signed the bill into law on May 21, 2008 [http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2008/05/21/bush_signs_bill_outlawing_genetic_discrimination/] . Biggert voted against necessary healthcare for needy children on September 25, 2007 [Vote 906, HR976: thomas.loc.gov] [http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/b001232/key-votes/] .Biggert is a rank and file Republican, voting 88.7% with the Bush Administration in the 110th Congress [http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/b001232/] .
Biggert also serves as Co-chair of the Congressional Missing and Exploited Children's Caucus. Fact|date=October 2007
Committee Assignments
*Financial Services Committee
**Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit (ranking member)
**Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity
*Education and Labor Committee
**Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education
**Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness
*Science & Technology Committee
**Subcommittee on Energy and Environment
**Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation
*Co-Chair of the Caucus on Women's IssuesLegislation and voting record
Judy's views on alternative energy solutions:
“America can neither drill nor conserve its way to cheaper energy or energy security. Nor can we meet today's energy needs -- much less tomorrow's -- with yesterday's energy infrastructure and technology. I believe advanced energy technologies offer the best hope for diversifying energy supplies and promoting conservation. That’s why I continue to press to reduce our reliance on expensive natural gas and Middle Eastern oil, and instead encourage the development and use of clean, efficient, advanced technologies like nuclear power, renewable fuels, and hydrogen. To accelerate their deployment, Congress must increase funding for basic science research and energy technology development at places like Argonne National Laboratory.”~ Judy Biggert, Chairman of the Energy Subcommittee of the Science Committee, 2002-2006 [http://judybiggert.house.gov]
"Reducing the Price at the Pump" Judy supported legislation to increase fuel economy standards for cars and trucks to 35 miles per gallon by 2025, which would reduce gas consumption by 55 billion gallons saving American drivers over $100 billion in fuel costs. (P.L. 110-140, Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy is a cosponsor of legislation to reduce the number of boutique fuels that refiners have to produce across the country, and to allow the EPA to waive requirements for the use of boutique fuels in the event of supply disruptions or other emergencies. Requiring refiners to produce so many unique blends of gasoline only adds to the cost of a gallon of gasoline, and can result in gasoline shortages when there’s a supply disruption. (H.R. 2493, Boutique Fuel Reduction Act of 2007) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy supported suspending the delivery of 70,000 barrels of oil daily to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, allowing this additional supply of oil to flow into the market instead to be refined into gasoline. Currently, the SPR is almost at capacity, holding 702 million of its 727 million barrel capacity. (H.R. 6022, Strategic Petroleum Reserve Fill Suspension and Consumer Protection Act) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy is a cosponsor of legislation directing the Federal Trade Commission to combat price gouging related to the sale of crude oil, gasoline, diesel, home heating oil, and biofuels. (H.R. 2335, Federal Energy Price Protection Act) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy has supported opening to oil and gas production only a very limited portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge – only 2000 acres of ANWR’s 1.5 million-acre coastal plain, or about one-tenth of one percent of the coastal plain, and using all federal royalty revenues to fund efforts to boost efficiency, production, research, development, and deployment of clean, renewable, and alternative energy technologies. (H.R. 6107, American Energy Independence and Price Reduction Act—110th Congress; H.R. 5429, American-Made Energy and Good Jobs Act—109th Congress) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy supported efforts to give states unprecedented control over oil and gas production in Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) waters out to 100 miles, in exchange for ending a 25-year moratorium on oil and gas production beyond 100 miles. The United States is the only developed nation in the world with such a moratorium, which has prevented access to an estimated 420 trillion cubic feet of natural gas (the U.S. consumes 23 TCF per year) and 86 billion barrels of oil (the U.S. imports 4.5 billion per year), according to the U.S. Minerals Management Service. (H.R. 6108, Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act – 110th Congress; H.R. 4761, Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act – 109th Congress) [http://judybiggert.house.gov]
“I hope that we never will have to tap these resources, but we must expand – not limit – our energy options with record high oil prices and growing international demand for oil. A truly comprehensive approach to solving our energy problem must involve domestic oil production. It’s so hypocritical for Democrats to call for OPEC to produce more oil – and even threaten to withhold aid from our allies like Saudi Arabia – while at the same time prohibiting domestic oil production off our own shores.” - Judy Biggert [http://judybiggert.house.gov]
Judy voted for the No Oil Producing and Exporting Cartels (NOPEC) Act, which would give the Department of Justice additional tools to combat those nations that might try to limit the production, set the price, or restrain the trade of petroleum products. (H.R. 2264, NOPEC) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] "Reducing our Reliance on Foreign Oil and Natural Gas" Judy is a lead cosponsor of the COMMUTER Act, which offers employers a 50 percent tax credit for all transit benefits provided to employees, up to $115 per employee per month. Current law only allows businesses a tax deduction for the purchase of transit benefits for their employees. Under the COMMUTER Act, employees could receive up to $1,380 in free mass transit each year, with the employer receiving $690 in tax credits per employee. (H.R. 6030, the Creating Opportunities to Motivate Mass-transit Utilization To Encourage Ridership Act of 2008) [http://judybiggert.house.gov]
“By boosting the incentive to offer transit benefits, this bill will ensure that more employees are given the option to leave their car at home. And the more people fill up at $4.00 a gallon, the more interested they become in alternatives like mass transit.” - Judy Biggert [http://judybiggert.house.gov]
Judy introduced and the House and Senate approved H.R. 85, the Energy Technology Transfer Act, to help move energy efficiency and advanced energy technologies out of the laboratory and into the marketplace. It does so by directing the DOE to create a network of energy tech transfer centers by awarding grants to existing community outreach networks to transfer knowledge and information about advanced energy technologies, especially those developed at the DOE’s national labs, to a wide range of energy users. (P.L. 110-229; H.R. 85/S. 2739, Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy introduced legislation to repeal tax credits for oil and gas production included in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT) law, and redirect those funds to consumers and businesses that switch to alternative fuel vehicles. (H.R. 86, Oil and Gas-to-Alternatives Swap Act) [http://judybiggert.house.gov]
“In 2005, it made sense to provide incentives to drill for oil here in the United States. Today, oil and gas producers do not need more incentives to drill – especially not when oil prices reach $130 or more a barrel. Let’s put that money to much better use by redirecting it to consumers who purchase plug-in hybrids and alternative fuel vehicles.” [http://judybiggert.house.gov]
"Encouraging the Use of Alternative Fuels" Judy is a cosponsor of legislation to extend the tax credit for electricity produced from wind, solar, geothermal, biomass, animal waste, and other renewable resources. (H.R. 197, A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code…) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy is a cosponsor of legislation that, among other things, extends tax credits in the 2005 Energy Policy Act for energy efficiency improvements to homes and businesses, and for the construction of energy efficient homes and the manufacture of energy efficient appliances. (H.R. 5984, the Clean Energy Tax Stimulus Act) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy is a cosponsor of legislation to provide a tax credit for the installation of wind turbines and accelerated depreciation of the property. (H.R. 1772, Rural Wind Energy Development Act) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy is a cosponsor of legislation to encourage the blending of gasoline with no less than 10 percent renewable fuel by 2012. (H.R. 635, A bill to amend the Clean Air Act…) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Judy is a cosponsor of legislation directing to the DOE to conduct research and development on Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) technologies, and to provide 25 grants to state and local governments to test and demonstrate PHEV’s. (H.R. 2079, Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Act) [http://judybiggert.house.gov] Biggert has voted with President Bush 79% of the time and with the Republican Party 89% of the time.
Two of Biggert's initiatives during her first term became law: the Cybertipline legislation to report and track down computer-based sex crimes against children, and another bill which increased penalties for traffickers of Ecstasy. She helped write the
No Child Left Behind legislation. She also helped write theSarbanes-Oxley legislation. Both of these bills have received criticism for increasing the size of government and adding intrusive regulation into businesses (in the case of Sarbanes-Oxley) and schools (No Child Left Behind).cite web |url= http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2006/0603.drum.html|title= George W. Bush is no Ronald Reagan|date= 2006-03|publisher= "Washington Monthly"]According to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Biggert has received $29,000 in campaign contributions from companies related to large oil and gas industries and she has voted for the energy bill, which gives those industries subsidies, each year. She voted for bills in both 2004 and 2005 that would shield a Saudi Arabian royal family-owned group from liability for a possibly cancer-causing gasoline additive, MBTE, that seeped into the groundwater in New England. [http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2005/05/16/saudis_lobby_to_limit_liability_on_additive/:Saudis lobby to limit liability on additive] at the Boston Globe accessed on
May 30 2007 ] The bill provided for federal money to clean up the MBTE and to give grants to the Saudi company to help them develop different technologies.
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