Biography of Congressman Jason Altmire

Congressman Jason Altmire is serving his first term in the United States House of Representatives. He represents all or parts of Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Lawrence, Mercer, and Westmoreland Counties. He serves on the powerful House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure as well as the House Committee on Education and Labor. Jason is also a subcommittee chairman, a very rare accomplishment for a freshman Member of Congress. As chairman of the House Committee on Small Business Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight, Jason is the first representative from Pennsylvania's Fourth Congressional District to serve as a committee or subcommittee chair in nearly two decades.

Jason used his chairmanship to bring top Small Business Administration disaster relief officials to western Pennsylvania to assist local business owners affected by flooding that occurred in the summer of 2007. Jason has proven to be a strong advocate for small businesses. Two of his signature small business bills have already passed the House, one dealing with improved access to capital for small businesses and the other with improved business opportunities for veteran entrepreneurs. His legislation to expand small business development and loan programs for veterans and reservists was signed into law on February 14, 2008.

Jason has quickly established himself as one of Congress' strongest advocates for veterans. His leadership on guaranteeing bonuses for combat wounded veterans garnered national attention, and his separate bills to improve treatment for traumatic brain injuries at VA facilities and assist the families of deployed guard and reserve members have each passed and been signed into law.

His significant accomplishments as a freshman congressman have been widely recognized, and Jason has been profiled in a number of national publications, including TIME Magazine, USA Today and the New York Times. He has also been a featured guest on national television programs such as MSNBC, Bloomberg television, CNBC, Fox News and even Comedy Central’s popular political satire, The Colbert Report.

Jason grew up in Lower Burrell, Pennsylvania, where he was a record-breaking two-sport letterman at Burrell High School. He attended Florida State University, where he was a member of the school's first Sugar Bowl championship football team. He also has a Master's Degree in Health Administration from the George Washington University. Prior to his election to Congress in 2006, Jason spent 15 years in health care policy, working as a congressional staffer, a hospital association executive and finally for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Jason currently lives in the North Hills of Allegheny County with his wife Kelly and their two young daughters.

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