Congressman Jody Hice was born in Atlanta and raised in Tucker, Georgia. Representative Hice graduated from Asbury University, earned his Master’s degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, as well as a Doctor of Ministry from Luther Rice College and Seminary. Congressman Hice served as pastor in three Georgia counties for almost 25 years, and went on to launch the Jody Hice Show, a conservative talk radio program. Congressman Hice and his wife of over thirty years, Dee Dee, reside in Oglethorpe County and have two daughters and four grandchildren. Congressman Hice took office in 2015 as the Representative of Georgia’s 10th Congressional District and serves on the House Committee on Oversight and Reform and the House Natural Resources Committee. For the 117th Congress, he serves as Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Government Operations for the Committee on Oversight and Reform.
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Agriculture is the number one industry in Georgia and contributes nearly $75 billion annually to the state’s economy. From timber to poultry to cotton, Georgia’s 10th Congressional District is home to a wide range of thriving crops and livestock. Congressman Hice is committed to strengthening our agricultural industries and supports responsible federal policies that give our farmers the tools, the continuity, and the freedom that they need without growing federal bureaucracies in the process. Georgia’s 10th District is home to the Athens-based U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory, where scientists are conducting cutting-edge research and working to combat devastating diseases like the highly pathogenic avian influenza. Congressman Hice is proud to support research at our Nation’s premier land-grant universities, including the University of Georgia, which directly supports Georgia agriculture. Additionally, the EPA’s recent Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule is a prime example of federal overreach and has the capacity to immensely undermine farmers’ private property rights by expanding the EPA’s regulatory reach. Congressman Hice strongly opposes irresponsible and overly burdensome federal regulations – like the WOTUS rule – that slow economic growth instead of facilitating it. |
As a Member of Congress, fulfilling the Constitutional duty to provide for the safety and security of the American people is Congressman Hice’s top priority. Our military is the greatest in the world – bar none. We owe our freedoms to the actions of our brave soldiers, airmen, sailors, and marines. In this day in age, our Nation faces threats from every corner of the world, from lone-wolf terrorist attacks to highly sophisticated cyber-attacks. Congressman Hice knows that the United States must make strategic investments to maintain readiness and retain our military superiority. He will continue to ensure that our military has the support it needs to protect and defend our country.
Congressman Hice is proud to represent a portion of Fort Gordon – the critical installation home to the U.S. Army’s Cyber Center of Excellence, which is tasked with the essential mission of providing for the Army’s force modernization for Cyberspace Operations, Information Services, Signal/Communications Networks and Electronic Warfare. In these increasingly dangerous times when state-sponsored cyber-attacks occur with regularity, the professionals at Fort Gordon bolster our national security by protecting our Nation in cyberspace, while subverting and denying adversaries access to critical information structures. Congressman Hice is honored to continue to work to ensure that Fort Gordon remains equipped with the resources needed to successfully perform this crucial mission.
Congressman Hice fully supports an all-of-the-above energy approach to promote American energy independence. This includes using the nation’s vast resources of oil, natural gas, clean coal technology, wind, solar, and nuclear. Together, the use of all of the resources we have at our disposal will help create jobs and grow our economy. Most importantly, this approach will reduce our dependence for energy from hostile foreign countries.
Furthermore, as a member of the Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee within the House Natural Resources Committee, Congressman Hice is proud to support efforts to expand our domestic energy exploration, both on and offshore in an environmentally safe way. This will further our goal of American energy independence, while generating revenue for the federal and state governments without having to raise taxes. Congressman Hice strongly supports President Trump’s reauthorization of the Keystone XL pipeline, which will bring an additional 830,000 barrels of oil into the country every day.
Energy production is particularly important to our community and Congressman Hice is proud that Georgia is home to Plant Vogtle, which is the site of the first two nuclear reactors to be built in the United States in over thirty years. Once complete, the construction of reactors 3 and 4 at Plant Vogtle will provide Georgians with yet another source of safe, clean energy, while keeping prices low for consumers.
The 10th Congressional District is home to an abundance of natural resources. Over 2,000 workers in the Kaolin mining and processing industry call the 10th District home, and the industry contributes an estimated $771 million to our State’s economy and roughly $194 million to our district alone.
As an avid outdoorsman, Hice is proud to serve on the House Natural Resources Committee and is committed to ensuring that our true national treasures – our parks and forests – remain vibrant so that our children and grandchildren can experience the same opportunities to enjoy these lands as our parents and grandparents. Our district contains lush forests, including the Oconee District of the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest that millions of visitors frequent for fly fishing, backpacking, camping, and hunting every year. Outside of protected land, our district has a rich and vibrant forestry industry with approximately 3.25 million acres of forest lands and 25 wood processing mills. The forestry industry contributes an estimated $84 million to the economy of the 10th District alone and an average of $448 million state-wide in state tax revenue each year.
At a time when our federal debt exceeds $20 trillion, Congressman Hice believes every effort must be made to rein in Washington spending instead of simply raising the debt ceiling. Not only is excessive spending harmful to future generations, it is detrimental to our economy and our national security. In order to get our fiscal house in order, we need long term spending cuts, which will have to include significant reforms to our entitlement programs. At the same time, Congress must not and cannot neglect critical investments in our future.
Congressman Hice fully supports the ratification of a Balanced Budget Amendment as the most effective way to address Washington’s spending problem. If hardworking American families and small businesses across Georgia’s 10th Congressional District can balance their budgets, Washington should be able to do so as well. The federal government must be prepared to make the same sacrifices, and Congressman Hice continues to fight to make the Balanced Budget Amendment a reality.
To ensure the safety and security of the American people, Congressman Hice believes that the United States must remain a strong global leader and maintain a robust foreign policy. At a time where the United States faces increasingly-sophisticated threats from around the world, it is vitally important to ensure that our national security, diplomatic, and global development agencies have the resources necessary to protect the United States’ interests abroad.
This includes continuing our unwavering support for Israel, our strongest and most steadfast democratic ally in the Middle East. The United States cannot be afraid to stand up to nations like Iran who aggressively sponsor terrorism and threaten us and our allies. To that end, Congressman Hice is fundamentally opposed to the Iran Nuclear Agreement because it does not effectively prevent Iran from being able to obtain a nuclear weapon and encourages Iran to continue its destabilizing actions throughout the region.
Since the Affordable Care Act – commonly referred to as Obamacare – became law, millions of Americans have lost their health insurance plans, exchanges have collapsed, and premiums have skyrocketed. Instead of increasing the access and improving the quality of healthcare in America, Obamacare has instead increased taxes, destroyed jobs, and grown the national debt. In 2017, Georgians will see their insurance premiums jump by double-digits as many large insurance carriers pull out of the Obamacare exchanges, including Humana. As we enter the sixth year of Obamacare, it is clear that this law is coming off the tracks and hurtling towards the unmitigated disaster that Congressman Hice predicted years ago.
Congressman Hice remains committed to repealing and replacing Obamacare. As we work to eliminate Obamacare’s disastrous policies, we must also work to address the serious challenges that existed in our healthcare system even before President Obama’s law came into effect.
We need to increase competition to lower healthcare costs by allowing Americans to purchase health insurance across state lines, and enable small businesses to pool together to negotiate for more favorable insurance rates. We must reform medical malpractice laws in a commonsense way that limits trial lawyer fees and non-economic damages while maintaining strong protections for patients. We need to reform the tax code to allow families and individuals to deduct healthcare costs, just like companies, providing all Americans with a standard deduction for health insurance. We need to expand access to Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) by increasing the amount of pre-tax dollars Americans can deposit into portable savings accounts to be used for healthcare expenses. We must also protect individuals with pre-existing conditions from being discriminated against by health insurance companies by bolstering state-based high risk pools.
To accomplish these reforms, Congressman Hice is supporter of both Congressman Phil Roe’s (R-TN) American Healthcare Reform Act (AHCRA), one of the leading Republican Obamacare alternatives, and Speaker of the House Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) A Better Way healthcare agenda, which encompasses all the proposals outlined above. Any new healthcare reform must embody patient-centered, free market principles and roll back Obamacare’s government takeover of our healthcare system.
Although America is a Nation of immigrants, illegal immigration is one of the greatest threats facing us today. Our porous borders represent a significant national security threat, and the first step to fixing illegal immigration is to secure our borders. Only once our borders are secure can we address the other needed reforms within our immigration system.
Congressman Hice is adamantly opposed to granting amnesty to the over 12 million illegal aliens currently residing in the United States. Our Nation is guided by a set of core principles and the rule of law, and we cannot reward illegal behavior with any form of amnesty or citizenship.
One of the most pressing issues that has come to Congressman Hice’s attention is that of illegal alien criminals who have committed felony crimes in the United States but remain free in society due to the failed policies of the Obama Administration. The scope of this criminal alien problem is astounding: In 2014, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported 177,000 convicted illegal alien criminals – almost half of whom were convicted of aggravated felonies – and 91,000 were arrested by the Border Patrol attempting to illegally re-enter the country. In fact, as many as one in every five arrests by the Border Patrol last year was a criminal alien.
An example of this crisis is the recent discovery that ICE has released hundreds of rapists, child molesters, and other sex offenders without first notifying local law enforcement or the general public. To rectify this fundamental error in policy, Congressman Hice has introduced the Tracking Reoffending Alien Criminals (TRAC) Act. His bill would require Homeland Security to register criminals in their custody as sex offenders and thereby ensure that local law enforcement and the general public are aware that these criminals are in their area, thereby preventing these individuals from disappearing into the shadows as they currently are prone to do.
We must also address the nearly 300 sanctuary cities across this Nation that refuse to comply with federal immigration enforcement agents. Congressman Hice has supported legislation, the Enforce the Law for Sanctuary Cities Act, that passed the U.S. House of Representatives and would withhold federal grant money from sanctuary communities refusing to comply with federal immigration enforcement efforts. Sanctuary city policies needlessly endanger American lives by refusing to honor the federal government’s authority to enforce immigration laws. Unfortunately, the Obama Administration’s own reckless policies enable these rogue local governments to defy federal immigration laws. All too often, these policies create preventable tragedies involving criminal aliens victimizing American citizens in their crimes. President Obama’s lack of interior enforcement has made the United States a sanctuary nation and, as a result, hundreds of thousands of criminal aliens are currently roaming free in United States.
As a strong supporter of the rule of law, Congressman Hice will continue to work tirelessly on the issue of immigration reform. Congressman Hice believes in a smart and pragmatic approach to immigration policy – one that weeds out those who may likely become an economic burden on the American people. We need an immigration system that focuses on attracting those individuals who possess skills that will benefit this country as a whole. Accordingly, Congressman Hice has introduced the Nuclear Family Priority Act, H.R. 604. This legislation would end the phenomenon known as “chain migration” by abolishing the extended-family preference category for legal immigration. Under his bill, the emphasis would shift to skills and employment-based immigration visas instead.
Congressman Hice will continue to champion policies that will help solve the problems our nation faces as a result of both legal and illegal immigration.
One of Congressman Hice’s top priorities in Congress is to grow the economy and create jobs, both in Georgia and across our country. We must pursue policies that will bring the American free enterprise system into the 21st century. Unfortunately, too often, burdensome federal regulations – from the EPA, the Internal Revenue Service, or the Department of Labor – prevent the very economic growth that we hope to achieve.
It is incumbent on Congress to seek meaningful regulatory reform so manufacturers, small business men and women, and our Nation’s innovators can put people back to work. Congressman Hice strongly opposes the culture of bailouts and stimulus plans that was so pervasive from the Obama Administration. These policies simply grow the size of the federal government and provide little genuine benefit to the private sector. We must never forget that it is the American free enterprise system – not the federal government – that made this country great.
At home, Congressman Hice takes an active role in bringing jobs and expanding the economy of Georgia’s 10th District. Over the past several years, he has met with executives considering relocating their businesses to Georgia to demonstrate all that the 10th District has to offer. In other cases, Hice has gone to bat for our district, working to ease unnecessary burdens from the federal government overregulation that have caused job losses. Finally, Congressman Hice’s office has worked with local employers to bring millions of dollars in grant funding and low-interest loans, creating jobs, and expanding opportunities along the way.
Congressman Hice is proud to serve as a member of the House Oversight & Government Reform Committee – one of the most important committees in the U.S. Congress. Any organization the size of the federal government must have stringent oversight, and that is the role of the Committee. The Committee is committed to uncovering waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government and zeroing in on solutions to make the government work in a more efficient and effective manner. Congressman Hice introduced legislation – the Federal Employee Accountability Act – to address one area of waste within the government. If enacted, his legislation would end the practice of federal employees conducting union business instead of their normal jobs during the work day while on “official time.”
The Committee investigates a very broad range of issues, and Congressman Hice routinely participates in hearings that address illegal immigration, the IRS scandals, EPA mismanagement, and criminal justice reform. As a member of the full Committee, he also has the privilege of serving on the Health Care, Benefits, and Administrative Rules Subcommittee and serves as Vice Chairman for the National Security Subcommittee. Within these subcommittees, he has the opportunity to work with my colleagues on oversight of Obamacare as well as the resources dedicated to our safety and security. Representative Hice will continue using this position to advocate for a smaller, more accountable, and more efficient federal government.
The United States Constitution guarantees the “right to life.” Moreover, the Preamble of this document states that our unalienable rights that are protected by our Constitution and Bill of Rights are recognized by the People for both ourselves and our posterity. The right to life of the unborn is clear in this recognition of its extension to the posterity of the People.
Congressman Hice is a staunch supporter of the cause for life. And it is time that we, as a Nation, challenge Roe v. Wade. The Supreme Court based much of its opinion in their decision on science that is now half a century old. Modern medical science has provided us with tools like 3D high definition sonogram imaging of the baby in the womb, clear evidence of intelligent human life. There is clear science that answers many of the questions of when life begins that were asked in Roe v. Wade and the time for a challenge to the decisions made in that case has arrived.
During the course of the 115th Congress, the House has made tremendous strides in the cause for life. Among other important pro-life bills, Congressman Hice voted in favor of H.R. 7 to permanently end taxpayer funding of abortion. Additionally, Congressman Hice was honored to introduce H.R. 586, the Sanctity of Human Life Act. His bill defines life as beginning at conception without exception. If enacted, it would end the plight of abortion on our nation.
Congressman Hice believes that our country is currently undergoing a revival of support for life, and he will continue to fight for those without a voice – the unborn.
First and foremost, the Second Amendment is an individual’s right to keep and bear arms. As a proud member of the National Rifle Association and Gun Owners of America, an avid hunter, and an owner of a Georgia Weapons Carry License, Congressman Hice is committed to being a staunch defender of these constitutionally protected rights for law-abiding citizens in Congress.
Despite the fact that the Second Amendment is an individual right, there are too many impediments within the federal government that jeopardize these rights. For example, Congressman Hice has introduced the Fairness in Firearms Testing Act to address the egregious lack of uniformity in testing procedures of firearms by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Due to the lack of any clearly defined testing requirements by ATF, American gun manufacturers are being punished unfairly and consumers are disadvantaged. His bill would force the ATF to make video recordings of their testing procedures for firearms and ammunition and make this video available to American firearm manufacturers that have submitted a firearm for testing.
In the 114th Congress, Representative Hice introduced the Military Recruiters Right to Carry Act in the wake of the tragedy that occurred at two military recruiting centers in Chattanooga, Tennessee on July 16, 2015 that resulted in the death of four Marines and one Navy sailor. His bill would permit members of the Armed Forces assigned to duty at recruitment offices to carry a firearm while at their post, particularly since many of our recruitment offices are often located in unsecured commercial buildings. These brave servicemen and women should not have to worry about their safety.
Congressman Hice has also cosponsored many pro-Second Amendment bills introduced by his colleagues in the U.S. House of Representatives. He supports legislation that would allow individuals with concealed carry permits from their home state to exercise those rights in any other state; legislation to push back against controversial policies from the Obama Administration to ban certain types of ammunition; legislation to prohibit the federal government from requiring race or ethnicity to be disclosed in order to purchase firearms; legislation ensuring that the federal government does not make suppressors more difficult to obtain than a rifle; legislation that would invalidate and defund any infringements on law-abiding Americans’ Second Amendment rights; and many others.
Tax reform is one of the most pressing issues that Congress must confront. Nearly every year, our federal tax code grows larger and more complicated. Just since 2004, there have been over 4,100 changes made to the tax code – an average of more than one a day. Furthermore, at nearly 4 million words, the federal tax code is now more than five times longer than the King James Bible. Clearly, this is a problem that only continues to get worse.
In order to thrive in the global economy of the 21st Century, we must make our tax code simple and competitive. America currently has one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world, creating a massive disincentive for both domestic and foreign companies to invest here in the United States. Across-the-board tax code simplification and rate reductions will bring about certainty and prosperity, giving our economy the boost we so desperately need.
Congressman Hice is a strong supporter of the Fair Tax Act, H.R. 25. As a cosponsor of this important legislation, he fully believes that the Fair Tax will simplify the tax code by eliminating the income tax, employment tax, and estate tax – and the need for the Internal Revenue Service – by creating a simple consumption tax in its place. Until we achieve the implementation of the Fair Tax, Congressman Hice will continue to support efforts in Congress to reform – and shorten – the tax code to lower rates across the board and return more dollars to American taxpayers.
With over 1,200 miles of interstate highways, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and our ports in Savannah and Brunswick, Georgia has distinguished itself as an international transportation hub for which Georgia’s 10th District plays a major role. 51,155 jobs in the 10th District are directly tied to our ports, which facilitate the flow of goods all around the world. Additionally, I-20 runs right through the heart of our District, and our residents rely heavily upon it every single day.
Given the fundamental importance of our roads, bridges, railways, ports, and airports, it is critical that we implement long-term federal surface transportation legislation as part of a comprehensive transportation approach that empowers state and local transportation agencies. We need to ensure that our transportation assets are in good working condition and keep up with the growth of our population and economy. Our policy should be to return transportation decisions to the states to best determine how to apply our limited resources in the most efficient and effective fashion. Further, we must continue to innovate and rely on private-public partnerships as opposed to tax increases to solve the issues facing our transportation system.
Georgia’s 10th Congressional District is home to over 24,000 veterans, and Congressman Hice believes that those brave men and women who sacrificed for our freedoms deserve our fullest support. Our Nation's servicemen and women represent the best our country has to offer, and they must be treated with the honor and respect they deserve. As a member of the Veterans Jobs Caucus, Rural Veterans Caucus, and the Congressional United Service Organization Caucus, Congressman Hice is committed to providing for our veterans.
One of the most important services we must provide for our Nation’s veterans is access to quality care from the facilities built to serve them. The veterans in Georgia’s 10th Congressional District have access to the VA Medical Centers in Dublin, Augusta, and Atlanta. Unfortunately, the VA has lost sight of its true mission – helping veterans – at facilities across the country. Congressman Hice continues to support commonsense and long-overdue reforms that will improve the quality and response times of veteran care while increasing accountability at the VA.
Additionally, Congressman Hice is a strong advocate for improving programs that ease the transition of veterans back to civilian life. Congressman Hice's introduced legislation - H.R. 5047, the Protecting Veterans Education Choice Act- to protect veterans’ Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, and he continues to strive to provide veterans with the tools and opportunities necessary for success at home after they return from service. H.R. 5047 was signed into law during the 114th Congress as part of a comprehensive veterans reform package - H.R. 6416, the Jeff Miller and Richard Blumenthal Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act.
If you are a veteran who is having trouble with the VA, Congressman Hice’s office can help. Please call the Monroe District Office at (770) 207-1776.