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Gene Green | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Chair of theHouse Ethics Committee | |
Acting | |
| In office August 20, 2008 – January 3, 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Stephanie Tubbs Jones |
| Succeeded by | Zoe Lofgren |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's29th district | |
| In office January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Sylvia Garcia |
| Member of theTexas Senate from the6th district | |
| In office May 27, 1985 – January 3, 1993 | |
| Preceded by | Lindon Williams |
| Succeeded by | Dan Shelley |
| Member of theTexas House of Representatives | |
| In office January 9, 1973 – May 27, 1985 | |
| Preceded by | J. W. Buchanan |
| Succeeded by | Gene Haney |
| Constituency | 95th district (1973–1981) 140th district (1981–1985) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Raymond Eugene Green (1947-10-17)October 17, 1947 (age 78) |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Helen Green |
| Education | University of Houston (BA,JD) |
Raymond Eugene Green (born October 17, 1947) is an Americanpolitician who served as theU.S. representative forTexas's 29th congressional district, serving for 13 terms. He is a member of theDemocratic Party. His district included most of easternHouston, including portions of thesuburbs.
In November 2017, Green announced that he would retire fromCongress at the end of his current term, and not run for re-election in2018.[1]
Green was born in Houston and he graduated from theUniversity of Houston, earning a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1971 and aJuris Doctor degree in 1977.[2] He held positions as a business manager and a private attorney prior to his election to Congress.
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Green was first elected to theTexas House of Representatives in 1972. He was elected to theTexas Senate in 1985.
Green was first elected to theU.S. House in 1992. Although the 29th was (then as now) drawn as a majority-Hispanic district, Green finished second in the five-way Democratic primary, behindcity councilmanBen Reyes. Green defeated Reyes in the runoff by only 180 votes, all but assuring him of election in this heavily Democratic district. Green was reelected 12 times, never facing substantive electoral opposition. He ran unopposed in 1998, 2002 and 2004.
On November 13, 2017, Green announced his retirement.[1] He later endorsed State SenatorSylvia Garcia, who now represented his old state senate district (and who finished third in the 1992 Democratic primary) as his successor. Garcia went on to win the primary,[3] and easily won the general election.
Green left office in January 2019 after representing portions of eastern Houston for 46 years, having never lost an election.
In the115th Congress, Green was the only non-Hispanic white Democrat representing a significant portion of Houston, and one of only three in the entire Texas delegation (the others beingLloyd Doggett andBeto O'Rourke).
From 1996 until his retirement in 2019, Green was a member of the powerful House Energy and Commerce Committee. In 2011, he became Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy. He also served on the Subcommittee on Energy and Power and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations.
Since being elected to the House of Representatives, Green had been working on education, labor, energy, domestic manufacturing, health issues, NASA's Johnson Space Center, and Social Security and veterans benefits. He has worked to improve access to quality health care, support initiatives to improve our economy and increased job training, and maintain financial aid for students.
Green voted in favor of the Iraq Resolution in 2002, and gave a speech on the house floor linking Saddam Hussein to theSeptember 11 attacks in 2001. Despite the Democratic leadership's general disapproval of the war, Green voted against measures aimed at placing a timetable on military withdrawal.
In September 2004, he proposed theEvery Vote Counts Amendment, which would have abolished theU.S. electoral college inUnited States presidential elections.
Green proposed legislation addressing domestic and globalelectronic waste (e-waste) concerns. H.R. 2284, The Responsible Electronics Recycling Act of 2011, was introduced in the 112th Congress to prohibit the exportation of some electronics whose improper disposal may create environmental, health, or national security risks.
Green also served on the Energy and Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Health during drafting of the Affordable Care Act of 2010 and helped write and amend the legislation. Afterward, he worked for increased access to affordable and quality health care.
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
|---|---|---|
| New constituency | Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's 29th congressional district 1993–2019 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair ofHouse Ethics Committee Acting 2008–2009 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial) | ||
| Preceded byas Former U.S. Representative | Order of precedence of the United States as Former U.S. Representative | Succeeded byas Former U.S. Representative |
