U. S. Representative John F. Tierney is serving his fifth term in Congress representing the Sixth Congressional District of Massachusetts. He is the only New England Member of Congress on the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, serving on the Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness and the Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations. After eight years of service on the House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, where he concentrated on national security, non-proliferation, energy markets and regulatory oversight, Tierney took a leave of absence from that Committee in order to join the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence where he serves on the Subcommittee on Oversight and the Subcommittee on Intelligence Policy.
Representative Tierney believes that in order to make sure people move forward economically, Congress has to invest in America's future: restore jobs, opportunity, and fiscal responsibility to our federal budget, and create a more robust economy. His priorities include fighting terrorism and giving first responders the resources they need to keep our communities safe; reversing the terrible trend of outsourcing by investing in job creation here in the United States; ensuring every child in America has a quality education, including the chance to go to college; and, making sure that everyone in the United States has accessible, affordable health care.
As a strong advocate of a federal partnership with state and local governments in upgrading the nation's schools, Congressman Tierney has joined in sponsoring a measure to strengthen local efforts to provide safe and drug-free schools. Congressman Tierney 's Alternative Paths to Teaching Act to encourage America's best and brightest students to enter the teaching profession was included in the House version of Title II (Teacher Training) of the Higher Education Act. He is the chief House sponsor of far-reaching campaign finance legislation. Tierney has authored the States' Right to Innovate in Health Care Act to encourage states to develop their own systems of health care coverage for all residents. He is also the author of the Retiree Health Benefits Protection Act, which would prohibit companies from curtailing or eliminating benefits under their retiree health plans after a worker retires.
Born in Salem, Massachusetts on September 18, 1951, Congressman Tierney attended public schools in Salem, and graduated from Salem State College. He earned a law degree from Suffolk University, and, until he took office in 1997, was a partner in the North Shore community law firm of Tierney, Kalis and Lucas for over 20 years. He and his wife Patrice continue to make Salem their home.
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