Congressman Mark DeSaulnier (DE-SOWN-YAY) proudly represents California’s 11th Congressional District, which includes the majority of Contra Costa County. For more than 30 years in public service and as a small business owner, Mark has been a leader for working families. During his time in U.S. House, most of which Republicans were in charge, Mark passed more than 60 legislative efforts. He is an effective legislator who knows how to get things done.
Mark is one of only a few Members of Congress to serve on four committees. He currently sits on the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, the Committee on Education and Labor, where he serves as Chairman of Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), and the Committee on Oversight and Reform. He also is a Member of the House Committee on Rules, where he has the opportunity to weigh in on major pieces of legislation before they are brought to the House Floor and where he was chosen by his colleagues to serve as Vice Chair of the Committee. Mark is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.
Since its founding, the United States has stood as a beacon of freedom and a land of opportunity. The ancestors of every American citizen, barring those of Native American descent, came to this country in search of a better life for themselves and their families. Since then, immigrants have remained a vital part of our communities and strengthened our economy in California and across the nation. While Congressman DeSaulnier agrees that reforms to our immigration system are needed, he does not accept the scapegoating, fearmongering, and xenophobia that has characterized the Trump Administration and precluded meaningful progress on the issue. Congressman DeSaulnier believes that the greatest nation in the history of humankind is capable of ensuring the well-being of its own citizens while simultaneously extending its arms to asylum-seekers, refugees, and immigrants seeking a better life.
By the Numbers
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Working for You
Led Effort to #SaveIsabel
Isabel Bueso came to the United States with her family legally from Guatemala to receive treatment for a rare genetic condition. Her participation in medical trials helped identify an effective, life-saving treatment, which the drug manufacturer says Isabel cannot receive in her home country of Guatemala. In 2019, the Trump Administration arbitrarily canceled deferred action, creating fear and anxiety for Isabel and others in similar situations that they would be deported. Congressman DeSaulnier led the effort to get the Administration to reinstate deferred action has actively worked to protect them from similar action by the Administration, including by introducing a private bill to provide Isabel and her family permanent legal status (H.R. 4225), which passed the House of Representatives on December 8, 2020 and now awaits consideration by the Senate.
Relief for Dreamers
Dreamers and their families voluntarily registered themselves with the promise that if they followed the rules laid out, they would be safe. President Trump unilaterally changed the terms of that agreement and put hundreds of thousands of Dreamers at risk of deportation. To help restore their faith in the United States, Congressman DeSaulnier is proud to sponsor several bills that support Dreamers, including the Dream and Promise Act (H.R. 6), the BRIDGE Act (H.R. 496), and the American Hope Act (H.R. 3591), which would each provide a permanent solution for Dreamers and their families.
Supporting Asylum Seekers
After the Trump Administration implemented its family separation policy, Congressman DeSaulnier made several trips to the Southern border to see firsthand how asylum seekers were being treated. With that firsthand knowledge, he has sponsored dozens of bills to reunite families who were separated and provide permanent protection for people seeking a better life in the United States.