sherrod brown committee and caucus assignments

  Sen. Sherrod Brown

Senator for Ohio

pronounced SHEH-rud // brown

Brown is the senior senator from Ohio and is a Democrat. He has served since Jan 4, 2007. Brown is next up for reelection in 2024 and serves until Jan 3, 2025. He is 71 years old.

He was previously the representative for Ohio ’s 13 th congressional district as a Democrat from 1993 to 2006.

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Legislative Metrics

Read our 2022 Report Card for Brown .

Ideology–Leadership Chart

Brown is shown as a purple triangle ▲ in our ideology-leadership chart below. Each dot is a member of the Senate positioned according to our ideology score (left to right) and our leadership score (leaders are toward the top).

The chart is based on the bills Brown has sponsored and cosponsored from Jan 3, 2019 to Apr 23, 2024. See full analysis methodology .

Committee Membership

Sherrod Brown sits on the following committees:

• Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Chair Economic Policy , Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection , Housing, Transportation, and Community Development , National Security and International Trade and Finance , Securities, Insurance, and Investment subcommittees
• Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy subcommittee Chair
• Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Food and Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Organics, and Research , Livestock, Dairy, Poultry, Local Food Systems, and Food Safety and Security subcommittees
• Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs

Enacted Legislation

Brown was the primary sponsor of 30 bills that were enacted. The most recent include:

• S. 4646 (117th): Faster Payments to Veterans’ Survivors Act of 2022
• S. 2049 (117th): Trafficking Survivors Housing Act of 2021
• S. 1817 (117th): Bridge Investment Act of 2021
• S. 1303 (117th): Build America, Buy America Act
• S. 1568 (117th): TRAIN Act
• S. 4870 (116th): A bill to rename the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation.
• S. 3049 (116th): LAB Act

View All »

Does 30 not sound like a lot? Very few bills are ever enacted — most legislators sponsor only a handful that are signed into law. But there are other legislative activities that we don’t track that are also important, including offering amendments, committee work and oversight of the other branches, and constituent services.

We consider a bill enacted if one of the following is true: a) it is enacted itself, b) it has a companion bill in the other chamber (as identified by Congress) which was enacted, or c) if at least about half of its provisions were incorporated into bills that were enacted (as determined by an automated text analysis, applicable beginning with bills in the 110 th Congress).

Bills Sponsored

Issue areas.

Brown sponsors bills primarily in these issue areas:

Health (36%) Taxation (15%) Labor and Employment (10%) Armed Forces and National Security (10%) Agriculture and Food (8%) Finance and Financial Sector (8%) Education (7%) Housing and Community Development (7%)

Recently Introduced Bills

Brown recently introduced the following legislation:

• S. 4137: Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act of 2024
• S. 4099: Food Supply Chain Capacity and Resiliency Act
• S.Res. 636: A resolution designating February 29, 2024, as “Rare Disease Day”.
• S.Res. 625: A resolution recognizing the week of March 17 through March 23, 2024, as …
• S. 4046: A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to modify authorities relating …
• S. 3931: Affordable Housing Preservation and Protection Act of 2024
• S. 3928: Housing Supply Fund Act of 2024

Most legislation has no activity after being introduced.

Voting Record

Brown voted yea, brown voted nay, missed votes.

From Jan 2007 to May 2024, Brown missed 76 of 5,764 roll call votes, which is 1.3%. This is better than the median of 2.8% among the lifetime records of senators currently serving. The chart below reports missed votes over time.

We don’t track why legislators miss votes, but it’s often due to medical absenses, major life events, and running for higher office.

Show the numbers...

Primary Sources

The information on this page is originally sourced from a variety of materials, including:

• unitedstates/congress-legislators , a community project gathering congressional information
• The House and Senate websites, for committee membership and voting records
• GPO Member Guide for the photo
• GovInfo.gov , for sponsored bills

Pronunciation Guide

Sherrod Brown is pronounced:

SHEH-rud // brown

The letters stand for sounds according to the following table:

Capital letters indicate a stressed syllable.

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Sherrod brown.

• Democratic Party

Candidate, U.S. Senate Ohio

2007 - Present

Compensation

(2012) $639,003.50

November 6, 2018

November 5, 2024

Russian Studies, Yale University, 1974

Education, Ohio State University, 1981

Official website

Official Facebook

Official Twitter

Official Instagram

Official YouTube

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

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Campaign YouTube

Sherrod Brown ( Democratic Party ) is a member of the U.S. Senate from Ohio. He assumed office on January 3, 2007. His current term ends on January 3, 2025.

Brown ( Democratic Party ) is running for re-election to the U.S. Senate to represent Ohio. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 5, 2024 . He advanced from the Democratic primary on March 19, 2024 .

• 2.1.1 2017-2018
• 2.1.2 2015-2016
• 2.1.3 2013-2014
• 2.1.4 2011-2012
• 3.1 Key votes: 118th Congress, 2023
• 3.2 Key votes: Previous sessions of Congress
• 3.3 Key votes: 117th Congress, 2021-2023
• 3.4 Key votes: 116th Congress, 2019-2020
• 3.5.1.1 Trade Act of 2015
• 3.5.1.2 2016 Budget proposal
• 3.5.1.3 Defense spending authorization
• 3.5.1.4 2015 budget
• 3.5.2.1 Iran nuclear deal
• 3.5.3.1 USA FREEDOM Act of 2015
• 3.5.3.2 Cyber security
• 3.5.4 Immigration
• 3.6 113th Congress
• 3.7.1 John Brennan CIA nomination
• 3.8.1 No Budget, No Pay Act of 2013
• 3.8.2 Government shutdown
• 3.9.1 Mexico-U.S. border
• 3.10.1 Violence Against Women (2013)
• 3.11.1 Fiscal Cliff
• 4.1 Possible 2016 Democratic vice presidential candidate
• 4.2.1 WWII Memorial
• 5.1.1 Endorsements
• 5.4 Full history
• 6.2.1 Campaign website
• 6.2.2 Campaign advertisements
• 7 Notable endorsements
• 8 Campaign finance summary
• 9.1.1 October 2012
• 9.1.2 November 2011 - September 2012
• 10.1 PGI: Change in net worth
• 10.2 PGI: Donation Concentration Metric
• 11.1 Ideology and leadership
• 11.2 Like-minded colleagues
• 11.3 Lifetime voting record
• 11.4 Congressional staff salaries
• 11.5.1 2013
• 11.5.2 2012
• 11.5.3 2011
• 11.6.1 2014
• 11.6.2 2013
• 12 Ballot measure activity
• 13 Personal
• 14 See also
• 15 External links
• 16 Footnotes

Below is an abbreviated outline of Brown's academic, professional, and political career: [1]

• 2007-Present: U.S. Senator from Ohio
• 1993-2007: Served as Democrat to U.S. Congress from Ohio
• 1983-1991: Served as Ohio Secretary of State
• 1979-1981: Worked as a member of the faculty, Ohio State University, Mansfield, Ohio
• 1975-1982: Served as member of the Ohio House of Representatives
• 1981: Graduated from Ohio State University, Ohio
• 1974: Graduated from Yale University, New Haven, Conn.

Committee assignments

U.s. senate.

Brown was assigned to the following committees: [Source]

• Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
• Subcommittee on Food and Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Organics, and Research
• Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, Poultry, Local Food Systems, and Food Safety and Security
• Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs , Chairman
• Subcommittee on Economic Policy , Ex Officio
• Committee on Finance
• International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness
• Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy , Chairman
• Commodities, Risk Management and Trade
• Subcommittee on Rural Development and Energy
• Subcommittee on Conservation, Climate, Forestry, and Natural Resources
• Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs , Chair
• Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs
• Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy , Chair
• Taxation and IRS Oversight
• Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs , Ranking Member

At the beginning of the 115th Congress , Brown was assigned to the following committees: [2]

• Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
• Committee on Veterans' Affairs

Brown served on the following committees: [3]

• Subcommittee on Commodities, Risk Management and Trade
• Subcommittee on Nutrition, Specialty Crops and Agricultural Research
• Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee , Ranking Member
• Subcommittee on Health Care
• Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy , Ranking Member
• Veterans' Affairs Committee

Brown served on the following committees: [4]

• Subcommittee on Nutrition, Specialty Crops, Food and Agricultural Research
• Subcommittee on Jobs, Rural Economic Growth and Energy Innovation
• Subcommittee on Commodities, Markets, Trade and Risk Management
• Subcommittee on National Security and International Trade and Finance
• Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection Members Chairman
• Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation and Community Development
• Veterans' Affairs
• The Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions and Family Policy Chairman
• The Subcommittee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth
• The Subcommittee on International Trade, Customs, and Global Competitiveness

Brown served on the following Senate committees: [5]

• Subcommittee on Nutrition and Food Assistance, Sustainable and Organic Agriculture, and General Legislation
• Subcommittee on Energy, Science and Technology
• Subcommittee on Hunger, Nutrition, and Family Farms
• Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs
• Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
• Subcommittee on Legislative Branch
• Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
• Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
• Subcommittee on Economic Policy
• Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment
• Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development

Ballotpedia monitors legislation that receives a vote and highlights the ones that we consider to be key to understanding where elected officials stand on the issues. To read more about how we identify key votes, click here .

Key votes: 118th Congress, 2023

The 118th United States Congress began on January 3, 2023, at which point Republicans held the majority in the U.S. House of Representatives (222-212), and Democrats held the majority in the U.S. Senate (51-49). Joe Biden (D) was the president and Kamala Harris (D) was the vice president. We identified the key votes below using Congress' top-viewed bills list and through marquee coverage of certain votes on Ballotpedia.

Key votes: Previous sessions of Congress

Key votes: 116th congress, 2019-2020.

• 114th Congress

The first session of the 114th Congress enacted into law six out of the 2,616 introduced bills (0.2 percent). Comparatively, the 113th Congress had 1.3 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the first session. In the second session, the 114th Congress enacted 133 out of 3,159 introduced bills (4.2 percent). Comparatively, the 113th Congress had 7.0 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the second session. [33] [34] The Senate confirmed 18,117 out of 21,815 executive nominations received (83 percent). For more information pertaining to Brown's voting record in the 114th Congress, please see the below sections. [35]

Economic and fiscal

Trade act of 2015.

2016 Budget proposal

Defense spending authorization.

2015 budget

Foreign affairs, iran nuclear deal, usa freedom act of 2015, cyber security, immigration.

• 113th Congress

The second session of the 113th Congress enacted into law 224 out of the 3215 introduced bills (7 percent). Comparatively, the 112th Congress had 4.2 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the second session. [69] The Senate confirmed 13,949 out of 18,323 executive nominations received (76.1 percent). For more information pertaining to Brown's voting record in the 113th Congress, please see the below sections. [70]

National security

John brennan cia nomination, no budget, no pay act of 2013, government shutdown.

Brown donated his salary to the Honor Flight Network while the government was shutdown. [75]

Mexico-U.S. border

Social issues, violence against women (2013), previous congressional sessions, fiscal cliff, possible 2016 democratic vice presidential candidate.

Brown was mentioned as a possible Democratic vice presidential candidate. On July 22, 2016, Hillary Clinton announced that she had selected U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) as her running mate. [79]

Political positions

Wwii memorial.

A group of World War II veterans, associated with the Mississippi Gulf Coast Honor Flight, wanting to pay their respects at the WWII Memorial were met with signs and barriers upon their arrival. They refused to let their trip be affected by the government shutdown and made their way through the barriers. Many congressional members from both parties spoke their approval of the move, including Sen. Sherrod Brown and Rep. Michele Bachmann , who was in attendance. Rep. Steve King and Rep. Steve Palazzo aided the veterans by distracting park police and helping move the gates. [75]

See also:  United States Senate election in Ohio, 2024

General election

The candidate list in this election may not be complete.

General election for U.S. Senate Ohio

Incumbent Sherrod Brown and Bernie Moreno are running in the general election for U.S. Senate Ohio on November 5, 2024.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for u.s. senate ohio.

Incumbent Sherrod Brown advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Ohio on March 19, 2024.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for u.s. senate ohio.

Bernie Moreno defeated Matt Dolan and Frank LaRose in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Ohio on March 19, 2024.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Doug Stuart (R)
• Joel Mutchler (R)

Endorsements

Ballotpedia is gathering information about candidate endorsements. To send us an endorsement, click here .

Incumbent Sherrod Brown defeated Jim Renacci in the general election for U.S. Senate Ohio on November 6, 2018.

• Bruce Jaynes (L)

Incumbent Sherrod Brown advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Ohio on May 8, 2018.

Jim Renacci defeated Mike Gibbons , Melissa Ackison , Dan Kiley , and Don Eckhart in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Ohio on May 8, 2018.

• Josh Mandel (R)

Full history

Campaign themes, ballotpedia survey responses.

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

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Brown's campaign website stated the following:

Campaign advertisements

The following is an example of an ad from Brown's 2018 election campaign.

Brown's campaign website listed the following issues: [83]

• Fiscal Responsibility
• Standing Up for Seniors
• A Family Doctor for Every Family
• Agriculture and Ohio’s Rural Economy

Notable endorsements

This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage and endorsements scopes.

Campaign finance summary

2012 election, october 2012, november 2011 - september 2012.

A Rasmussen Reports poll, conducted August 13, 2012, showed Brown running even with Republican challenger Josh Mandel . [84]

A Quinnipiac University poll, conducted July 24-30, 2012, showed Brown leading Republican challenger Josh Mandel by double digits. [85]

A Rasmussen Reports poll, conducted July 18, 2012, showed Brown with a slight lead over Republican challenger Josh Mandel (R). [86]

Personal Gain Index

The Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress) is a two-part measurement that illustrates the extent to which members of the U.S. Congress have prospered during their tenure as public servants. It consists of two different metrics:

• Changes in Net Worth
• The Donation Concentration Metric

PGI: Change in net worth

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org , Brown's net worth as of 2012 was estimated between $383,007 to $895,000. That averages to $639,003.50 , which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic Senate members in 2012 of $13,566,333.90. Brown ranked as the 77th most wealthy senator in 2012. [87] Between 2004 and 2012, Brown's calculated net worth [88] increased by an average of 9 percent per year. Between 2004 and 2012, the average annual percentage increase for a member of Congress was 15.4 percent. [89]

The data used to calculate changes in net worth may include changes resulting from assets gained through marriage, inheritance, changes in family estates and/or trusts, changes in family business ownership, and many other variables unrelated to a member's behavior in Congress.

PGI: Donation Concentration Metric

Filings required by the Federal Election Commission report on the industries that give to each candidate. Using campaign filings and information calculated by OpenSecrets.org , Ballotpedia calculated the percentage of donations by industry received by each incumbent over the course of his or her career (or 1989 and later, if elected prior to 1988). Brown received the most donations from individuals and PACs employed by the Lawyers/Law Firms industry.

From 1991-2014, 22.92 percent of Brown's career contributions came from the top five industries as listed below. [92]

Ideology and leadership

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack , Brown was a far-left Democratic leader as of July 2014. [93] Brown was rated as a " far-left Democrat " in June 2013.

Like-minded colleagues

The website OpenCongress tracks the voting records of each member to determine with whom he or she votes most and least often. The results include a member from each party. [94]

Lifetime voting record

According to the website GovTrack, Brown missed 38 of 2,765 roll call votes from January 2007 to September 2015. This amounts to 1.4 percent, which is better than the median of 1.6 percent among current senators as of September 2015. [95]

Congressional staff salaries

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Brown paid his congressional staff a total of $,3027,608 in 2011. He ranked 10th on the list of the highest paid Democratic senatorial staff salaries and ranked 12th overall of the highest paid senatorial staff salaries in 2011. Overall, Ohio ranked 8th in average salary for senatorial staff. The average U.S. Senate congressional staff was paid $2,529,141.70 in fiscal year 2011. [96]

National Journal vote ratings

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted in the previous year. Click the link above for the full ratings of all members of Congress.

Brown ranked 13th in the liberal rankings in 2013. [97]

Brown ranked seventh in the liberal rankings in 2012. [98]

Brown ranked fifth in the liberal rankings in 2011. [99]

Voting with party

The website OpenCongress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus.

Brown voted with the Democratic Party 95.6 percent of the time, which ranked 24th among the 53 Senate Democratic members as of July 2014. [100]

Brown voted with the Democratic Party 95.5 percent of the time, which ranked 24th among the 52 Senate Democratic members as of June 2013. [101]

Ballot measure activity

The following table details Brown's ballot measure stances available on Ballotpedia:

Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.

Brown and his wife, Connie Schultz, have three daughters and a son. [105]

2024 Elections

• Newsletters

External links

• Search Google News for this topic
• ↑ Biographical Directory of the United States Congress , "Sherrod Brown," accessed October 24, 2011
• ↑ United States Senate , "Committee Assignments of the 115th Congress," accessed January 19, 2017
• ↑ United States Senate , "Committee Assignments of the 114th Congress," accessed February 17, 2015
• ↑ Congressional Quarterly , "Senate Committees List," accessed January 18, 2013
• ↑ Project Vote Smart , "Sherrod Brown's Biography," accessed April 2, 2014
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.2670 - National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024," accessed February 27, 2024
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.6363 - Further Continuing Appropriations and Other Extensions Act, 2024," accessed February 27, 2024
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.5860 - Continuing Appropriations Act, 2024 and Other Extensions Act," accessed February 27, 2024
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.3746 - Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023," accessed February 27, 2024
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.J.Res.7 - Relating to a national emergency declared by the President on March 13, 2020." accessed February 23, 2024
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.J.Res.44 - Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives relating to "Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached 'Stabilizing Braces'"" accessed February 28, 2024
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.J.Res.30 - Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to 'Prudence and Loyalty in Selecting Plan Investments and Exercising Shareholder Rights'." accessed February 23, 2024
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.3684 - Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act," accessed April 15, 2022
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.1319 - American Rescue Plan Act of 2021," accessed April 15, 2022
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.5376 - Inflation Reduction Act of 2022," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S.1605 - National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022," accessed April 15, 2022
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.7776 - James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S.3373 - Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act of 2022," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.4346 - Chips and Science Act," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.3755 - Women's Health Protection Act of 2021," accessed April 15, 2022
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.2471 - Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.8404 - Respect for Marriage Act," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.6833 - Continuing Appropriations and Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2023," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S.937 - COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act," accessed April 15, 2022
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.3076 - Postal Service Reform Act of 2022," accessed January 23, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S.2938 - Bipartisan Safer Communities Act," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.5305 - Extending Government Funding and Delivering Emergency Assistance Act," accessed January 23, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.Res.24 - Impeaching Donald John Trump, President of the United States, for high crimes and misdemeanors.," accessed April 15, 2022
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.350 - Domestic Terrorism Prevention Act of 2022," accessed January 23, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S.Con.Res.14 - A concurrent resolution setting forth the congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2022 and setting forth the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2023 through 2031.," accessed April 15, 2022
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.5746 - Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.2617 - Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023," accessed January 20, 2023
• ↑ Congressional Record , "Resume of Congressional Activity, First Session of the 113th Congress," accessed April 29, 2015
• ↑ Congressional Record , "Resume of Congressional Activity, Second Session of the 114th Congress," accessed January 5, 2017
• ↑ Congressional Record , "Resume of Congressional Activity, First Session of the One Hundred Fourteenth Congress," April 13, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "HR 1314," accessed May 25, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "H.R. 1314 (Ensuring Tax Exempt Organizations the Right to Appeal Act)," accessed May 25, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "Roll Call for HR 2146," June 24, 2015
• ↑ The Hill , "Senate approves fast-track, sending trade bill to White House," June 24, 2015
• ↑ The Hill , "Obama signs trade bills," June 29, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S.Con.Res.11," accessed May 5, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On the Conference Report (Conference Report to Accompany S. Con. Res. 11)," accessed May 5, 2015
• ↑ The Hill , "Republicans pass a budget, flexing power of majority," accessed May 5, 2015
• ↑ The Hill , "Redone defense policy bill sails through House," accessed November 12, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S. 1356," accessed November 12, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to S. 1356)," accessed November 12, 2015
• ↑ Clerk.House.gov , "Final Vote Results for Roll Call 618," accessed November 12, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture Re: Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 1735)," accessed October 6, 2015
• ↑ Clerk.House.gov , "Final Vote Results for Roll Call 239," accessed May 27, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R. 1735," accessed May 27, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "HR 1314 - Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015," accessed November 1, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On the Motion (Motion to Concur in the House Amendment to the Senate Amendment to H.R. 1314)," accessed November 1, 2015
• ↑ Clerk.House.gov , "Final Vote Results for Roll Call 579," accessed November 1, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "HR 1191," accessed May 8, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "H.R. 1191," accessed May 8, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on McConnell Amdt. No. 2640 )," accessed September 10, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "HJ Res 61," accessed September 10, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on McConnell Amdt. No. 2640 )," accessed September 16, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on McConnell Amdt. No. 2640 )," accessed September 17, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S.Amdt.2656 to S.Amdt.2640," accessed September 17, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On the Cloture Motion (Motion to Invoke Cloture on McConnell Amdt. No. 2656)," accessed September 17, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "H.R.2048," accessed May 26, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On Passage of the Bill (H.R. 2048)," accessed June 2, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S 754," accessed November 1, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On Passage of the Bill (S. 754, As Amended)," accessed November 1, 2015
• ↑ Congress.gov , "S 2146," accessed November 2, 2015
• ↑ Senate.gov , "On Cloture on the Motion to Proceed (Motion to Invoke Cloture on the Motion to Proceed to S. 2146)," accessed November 2, 2015
• ↑ Congressional Record , "Resume of Congressional Activity, First Session of the 112th Congress," accessed September 5, 2013
• ↑ Congressional Record , "Resume of Congressional Activity, Second Session of the 113th Congress," accessed March 4, 2014
• ↑ Project Vote Smart , "PN 48 - Nomination of John Brennan to be Director of the Central Intelligence Agency - Voting Record," accessed September 25, 2013
• ↑ Project Vote Smart , "HR 325 - To Ensure the Complete and Timely Payment of the Obligations of the United States Government Until May 19, 2013 - Voting Record," accessed September 25, 2013
• ↑ The Washington Post , "Reid, McConnell propose bipartisan Senate bill to end shutdown, extend borrowing," accessed October 16, 2013
• ↑ Senate.gov , "H.R. 2775 As Amended," accessed October 31, 2013
• ↑ 75.0 75.1 Huffington Post , "Badass WWII veterans storm memorial on National Mall, defy government shutdown closure," accessed October 1, 2013
• ↑ Project Vote Smart , "S Amdt 1197 - Requires the Completion of the Fence Along the United States-Mexico Border - Voting Record," accessed September 25, 2013
• ↑ Project Vote Smart , "S 47 - Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 - Voting Record," accessed September 25, 2013
• ↑ U.S. Senate , "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff," accessed January 4, 2013
• ↑ The New York Times , "Hillary Clinton selects Tim Kaine, a popular senator from a swing state, as running mate," July 22, 2016
• ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk , "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 7, 2006," accessed June 5, 2013
• ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
• ↑ "Issues," accessed September 25, 2018
• ↑ SherrodBrown.com , "Issues," accessed August 10, 2012
• ↑ Rasmussen Reports , "Election 2012: Ohio Senate," accessed August 15, 2012
• ↑ Cleveland Plain Dealer , "Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown leads challenger Josh Mandel by 12 points in new poll," accessed August 7, 2012
• ↑ Rasmussen Reports , "Election 2012: Ohio Senate," accessed July 23, 2012
• ↑ Open Secrets , "Brown, 2012," accessed January 14, 2014
• ↑ This figure represents the average annual percentage growth from either 2004 (if the member entered office in 2004 or earlier) or their first year in office (as noted in the chart below) to 2012, divided by the number of years calculated.
• ↑ This number was found by dividing each member's total net worth growth percentage by the number of years included in the calculation.
• ↑ This figure represents the total percentage growth divided by the number of years for which there are net worth figures for each member.
• ↑ This figure was calculated using median asset data from the Census Bureau. Please see the Congressional Net Worth data for Ballotpedia spreadsheet for more information on this calculation.
• ↑ OpenSecrets.org , "Sen. Sherrod Brown," accessed September 23, 2014
• ↑ GovTrack , "Sherrod Brown," accessed July 28, 2014
• ↑ OpenCongress , "Sherrod Brown," archived February 28, 2016
• ↑ GovTrack , "Sherrod Brown," accessed September 23, 2015
• ↑ LegiStorm , "Sherrod Brown," accessed August 17, 2012
• ↑ National Journal , "2013 Congressional Vote Ratings," accessed July 28, 2014
• ↑ National Journal , "2012 Congressional Vote Ratings," accessed March 7, 2013
• ↑ National Journal , "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House," accessed February 23, 2012
• ↑ OpenCongress , "Voting With Party," accessed July 2014
• ↑ Twitter , "Sherrod Brown," October 27, 2023
• ↑ Twitter , "Sherrod Brown," accessed December 21, 2023
• ↑ The Portager , "Ohio’s August Special Election explained: What is Issue 1?" July 7, 2023
• ↑ Senate.gov , "Biography," accessed April 2, 2014
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How Sen. Sherrod Brown Will Lead a Powerful Senate Committee

WASHINGTON, D.C. — It was back in October, when the results of the 2020 election were not yet known, that Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) told Spectrum News this during an interview outside his home in Cleveland.

What You Need To Know

Sen. brown is becoming chair of the senate committee on banking, housing, and urban affairs affordable housing is one of brown’s top priorities conservatives are watching to see how he approaches his new role.

“I want to be chairman of the banking and housing committee. I want to devote the rest of my career to helping people have affordable, decent, clean, safe housing,” Brown said.

Four months later, that goal is now reality.

As Democrats become the party in power in the U.S. Senate, Brown will lead the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

It means he’ll be in charge of a panel that has oversight of banks, the Federal Reserve, U.S. currency, urban development and mass transit, and a particular passion for Brown, public and private housing.

“Housing determines so much in people's lives,” Brown said in a virtual interview January 12. “It determines closeness to a grocery store, it determines your own health, it determines whether you have clean drinking water, it determines the school district your children live in, it determines how far you are from work and what kind of transportation you have.”

Brown argues the committee has spent too much time focusing on Wall Street instead of workers and on big banks instead of helping people gain access to banking.

Priority number one as he takes over as chair will be negotiating another large coronavirus relief package because Brown feels what Congress has done so far hasn’t been enough, especially for housing.

“That's only a down payment, we need to continue the eviction moratorium, we need to provide more dollars so that people can pay their landlords and stay in their homes,” Brown said Jan. 12.

Brown has never been shy about his progressive politics.

In the past, he’s called for breaking up the big banks , and he regularly criticizes Wall Street’s foundation.

George Selgin belongs to the Cato Institute , a libertarian think tank.

“The big banks, obviously, are going to feel very much under fire,” Selgin said.

Because Brown will have the ability to both call in bank CEOs to testify and work to get legislation passed that could regulate the financial world, Selgin said it’s a wait-and-see game right now.

He did encourage Brown to have an open mind to a free market approach to improve banking and housing for Americans.

“Consider as much as possible using the competitive pressures of the marketplace as one of the tools for regulating these different financial firms,” Selgin said.

But Brown has long argued more guardrails are needed to make the system fairer and more accessible.

He speaks often about how his zip code, 44105, topped the list for foreclosures in 2007.

Brown’s passion has been on full display as he’s led the effort to get his congresswoman, Marcia Fudge of Cleveland, confirmed as President Joe Biden’s secretary of housing and urban development .

It’s all part of his plan to prioritize housing that he mapped out in October.

“What better legacy for any person, any public official to have played a major role in the foundation of people’s lives?” Brown said.

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Next Senate Banking Chairman Sets Low-Income and Climate Priorities

Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio says his agenda, including an emphasis on global warming and racial justice, will focus on “the dignity of work.”

By Emily Flitter

Senator Sherrod Brown, the next chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, proposed a sweeping agenda on Tuesday, saying he would seek to improve housing and banking services for low-income Americans, fight global warming and foster racial equality when Democrats control both chambers of Congress and the White House.

The committee, which oversees housing and transportation matters as well as banks and financial regulators, has been too deferential to the financial services industry, Mr. Brown, from Ohio, said in a call with journalists.

“Wall Street doesn’t get to run this entire economy,” he said.

Mr. Brown added that he wanted to investigate the relationship among stock prices, executive compensation and workers’ wages, taking on a corporate business model that “treats workers as expendable.”

“We’re going to put the dignity of work at the center of everything we do,” he said.

Although he said he looked forward to working with Republican colleagues like Senator Patrick J. Toomey of Pennsylvania, who is set to be the committee’s ranking member, Mr. Brown also said he wanted to erase some of the committee’s earlier attitudes.

“This committee has flat-out pretended that climate change doesn’t exist,” he said. “Housing was a word left out of this committee for too long, and it won’t be left out anymore.”

In a statement on Tuesday, Mr. Toomey’s office said he “echoes the sentiment from Senator Brown about the potential for bipartisan work at the Senate Banking Committee,” adding that Mr. Toomey “will speak up in defense of free enterprise and look to advance a pro-growth agenda that expands economic opportunity for all Americans.”

It’s not clear how much of the wide-ranging agenda — which includes replacing public buses with zero-emission vehicles and expanding housing subsidies — Mr. Brown will be able to put in place. Democrats’ control of the Senate will be razor thin, and Republicans could, as Mr. Brown did when his party was in the minority, try to scuttle any changes.

But the proposals are a major shift for a committee that in Republican hands focused largely on loosening financial regulations. Democrats would reverse new rules for banks and other financial firms and seek to institute policies that Republicans have long resisted, including a public-banking option that would allow the poorest Americans to avoid high fees for simple banking services, Mr. Brown said.

He also said he wanted to see holdovers from the Trump administration purged from regulatory agencies. “We need to push aside those political people, either fire them or push them into positions of more or less irrelevance,” Mr. Brown said.

One of his targets is the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Kathleen Kraninger, whom Mr. Brown said he had advised during a phone call to resign. A bureau spokeswoman said that the two had last spoken on Dec. 10 and that Mr. Brown had thanked Ms. Kraninger for “keeping him informed of the bureau’s actions and rationale.” Ms. Kraninger, the spokeswoman said, “informed Senator Brown that she was supporting the requests from the transition team and how she would continue to carry out the bureau’s mission.”

Mr. Brown’s staff, the senator said, is also compiling a list of rules made final by Trump appointees, including Ms. Kraninger, so Democrats could try to scrap them using the Congressional Review Act, a law that lets Congress vote to reverse regulators’ actions.

Mr. Brown, who was elected to his third term in 2018, said the committee’s first order of business would be to use congressional action to keep landlords from evicting people who could not pay their rent because of the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on their finances. He said Democrats wanted to provide additional pandemic relief and work quickly to confirm President-elect Joseph R. Biden’s nominees — all while an impeachment trial of President Trump could be playing out.

In the longer term, Mr. Brown said, he wants to get the Federal Reserve to set up bank accounts for members of the public who don’t have accounts at commercial banks. The so-called public option would allow users to cash paychecks and receive government benefits, such as refunds from a new child tax credit that he and other Senate Democrats have proposed.

Big banks have long resisted the idea of a public alternative to their services and have explored ways to pre-empt the creation of such a system. Early last year, for example, JPMorgan Chase officials discussed placing the company’s banking services like A.T.M.s in some post offices, although the plan was abandoned when the pandemic hit. Bank lobbyists have argued that the responsibilities of financial services would overwhelm public institutions like the Postal Service and that banks can carry out the duties more efficiently themselves.

But millions of people still do not have access to any kind of bank account, and Mr. Brown said the fees they paid for check-cashing services and payday loans were the kinds of expenses that kept them at the lowest levels of America’s economic strata.

To help remove that burden, Mr. Brown called for a 36 percent cap on interest rates for payday loans. At the moment, rate caps vary by state.

Mr. Brown has already raised some of his agenda with his Republican colleagues. He said he and Mr. Toomey had taken advantage of an unexpected opportunity to discuss the committee’s future: They put their heads together last Wednesday, while both were locked for hours in a secure location as rioters stormed the Capitol.

Emily Flitter covers banking and Wall Street. Before joining The Times in 2017, she spent eight years at Reuters, writing about politics, financial crimes and the environment. More about Emily Flitter

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Sherrod for Ohio

Meet sherrod.

Sherrod has dedicated his life to fighting for Ohioans and the Dignity of Work — a concept inspired by the work and writings of Pope Leo XIII and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It’s the belief that hard work should pay off for everyone, no matter who you are, where you live, or what kind of work you do. Whether you punch a clock or swipe a badge, earn a salary or make tips, are raising children or caring for an aging parent, Sherrod is fighting for you.

Born and raised in Mansfield, Ohio, Sherrod saw firsthand how corporations lobbied for tax breaks and bad trade deals that shipped Ohio jobs overseas. That’s why he’s always opposed unfair trade deals that hurt Ohio workers and why he stood up to his own party to lead the opposition against NAFTA.

Sherrod believes that when you love your country, you fight for the people who make it work. He’s never been afraid to stand up to corporations and special interests to level the playing field for Ohioans — from standing up to Wall Street to taking on Big Pharma. He has worked with both parties to pass some of the most significant legislation in recent years, and he continues to work across the aisle to hold corporations accountable.

Sherrod lives in Cleveland with his wife Connie Schultz, a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and author. Sherrod and Connie drive Jeeps made by union workers in Toledo, and are blessed with a growing family, including three daughters, a son, eight grandchildren, and their beloved rescue dogs, Franklin and Walter.

Sherrod believes that when you love your country, you fight for the people who make it work.

Why i wear the canary pin.

Every day, I wear a pin on my lapel depicting a yellow canary in a birdcage.

Years ago, at a Workers’ Memorial Day rally in Lorain, Ohio, a union steelworker gave me that pin. It’s a reminder of a time when miners would bring canaries into the mines with them to check for the presence of dangerous levels of gas. If the canary died, the miners knew to get out. Those workers didn’t have a union strong enough or a government that cared enough to fight for them.

I’ve worn the canary pin ever since as a reminder of the workers who built this country and the families they support. The canary pin is an important symbol for me — and to this campaign. Protecting workers’ rights isn’t a battle that’s behind us — not by a longshot.

Together, our work continues — because when you love this country you fight for the people who make it work.