Janice Schakowsky

Jan Schakowsky was elected to represent Illinois’ 9th Congressional District in 1998, after serving for eight years in the Illinois State Assembly. She is in her twelfth term.

Schakowsky serves in the House Democratic Leadership as a Senior Chief Deputy Whip. She is a member of the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee, House Budget Committee, as well as the House Energy and Commerce Committee, where she serves as Chair of the Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee, and as a member of the Environment and Oversight & Investigations Subcommittees.

In 2010, Speaker Pelosi appointed Schakowsky to serve on President Obama’s 18-member National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. She opposed the deficit reduction proposal presented by co-chairs Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson and offered her own approach, which reached the same fiscal goals without cutting Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid. The Schakowsky plan addressed the real and growing problem of income disparity – which is at its greatest level since 1928 – and protects middle-class families.

In Congress, Schakowsky focuses on health care and senior issues. She was a leader in passing the historic Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to provide healthcare coverage to all Americans. Schakowsky was responsible for provisions in the law to require improved review of insurance company premiums, nursing home quality protections, and initiatives to increase the number of health care providers, which benefit seniors and all Americans. A champion for the nation’s seniors, Schakowsky continues the fight to prevent the privatization of Social Security and Medicare, and to make prescription drugs more affordable. She spearheaded the creation of the Seniors Task Force in the 111th Congress and continues to serve as Co-Chair in the 116th Congress in the now-renamed Task Force on Aging and Families.

Schakowsky believes the number one priority in this Congress is to create jobs and restore a vibrant middle class. She has introduced the Patriot Corporations of America Act to reward companies that hire American workers and to eliminate tax incentives to businesses for sending jobs overseas. She introduced the Fairness in Taxation Act to create higher tax brackets for millionaires and billionaires.