Vito Fossella: Difference between revisions
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[[Image:Vito_fossella_with_nancy_ru.jpg|thumb|right|194px|Representative Vito Fossella (R-NY) with former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and former First Lady Nancy Reagan]] |
[[Image:Vito_fossella_with_nancy_ru.jpg|thumb|right|194px|Representative Vito Fossella (R-NY) with former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and former First Lady Nancy Reagan]] |
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His legislative initiatives include the following: |
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* Securing $32 million to help purchase three new [[Staten Island Ferry]] boats |
* Securing $32 million to help purchase three new [[Staten Island Ferry]] boats |
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Revision as of 01:20, 7 May 2006
Vito John Fossella, Jr. (born March 9, 1965) is a Republican politician from the state of New York who represents the state's 13th Congressional district (map), including Staten Island and the Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst and Gravesend neighborhoods of Brooklyn in the U.S. House of Representatives. He is the only Republican Congressman from New York City.
Fossella was born on Staten Island into a Roman Catholic family of Irish and Italian extraction. His great-grandfather, James O'Leary, represented Staten Island in Congress from 1935 to 1944. Fossella was a member of the New York City Council from 1994 to 1997, when he won a special election to replace Congresswoman Susan Molinari. He was elected to a full term in 1998 and has been reelected every two years since then.
A native Staten Islander, Fossella attended Monsignor Farrell High School before earning a Bachelor of Science degree from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. In 1993, he earned his Juris Doctor from the Fordham University School of Law.
In 1990, he married Mary Patricia Rowan. Their first son, Dylan Michael Fossella, was born on September 30, 1995, their second son, Griffin Thomas Fossella, on November 21, 1997, and their first daughter, Rowan Frances Fossella, on September 12, 2003.
Work in Congress
Fossella serves as a member of both the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and the House Committee on Financial Services. He is the Vice Chairman of the Environment subcommittee of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
His legislative initiatives include the following:
- Securing $32 million to help purchase three new Staten Island Ferry boats
- Negotiating and securing an agreement between the State Department, the City of New York and the United Nations requiring foreign diplomats to pay motor vehicle citation fines, several million of which were in arrears.
- Introducing legislation withholding US funding to any United Nations Commission that is headed by a nation on the State Department's list of terrorist nations.
- Helping to establish the Congressional Caucus on South Korea and serves as the body’s co-chair. The caucus is a conduit for strengthening US-South Korea relations and also is an "information society" for developments in the North Korea situation.
- Authoring and passing the Investor and Capital Markets Fee Relief Act, which reduces by millions of dollars fees imposed on investors. The Act was signed into law by President Bush on January 16, 2002.The Act was signed into law by President Bush on January 16, 2002.
- Authoring and passing legislation to award the Congressional Gold Medal to John Cardinal O’Connor
Fossella's political career began in 1994 when he was elected to the New York City Council, representing Staten Island 's south shore and mid-island section. Less than seven months later, he was reelected.
His council achievements include:
- Authoring the legislation that led to the agreement to permanently close the Fresh Kills Landfill
- Supporting the idea of the South Richmond Rezoning Study, a comprehensive rezoning initiative on Staten Island
- Securing funding for the construction of P.S. 56 and P.S. 6, the first new schools to be built on Staten Island in over a decade.
Record
Fossella's voting record is considerably more conservative than that of Susan Molinari and her father, Guy Molinari (who represented the district from 1981-90).
Despite representing a district with a substantial Democratic majority in registration, Fossella didn't face truly serious opposition until 2004. That year, former state assemblyman and judge Frank Barbaro gave Fosella his most competitive race to date. Barbaro actually won the district's share of Brooklyn by seven points--the first time Fossella hadn't won this area. Barbaro had represented much of this area in the state assembly for 23 years. Districtwide, Fossella defeated Barbaro 59-41 percent. However, Barbaro was nearly invisible on Staten Island. The Staten Island Advance was the only media outlet besides some Brooklyn community papers covering the election. Steve Harrison, his 2006 opponent, appears to be more visible than Barbaro.