Steve Austria (R-Ohio)

U.S. Representative (since January 2009)

(Official photo)

Why He Matters

Austria made history in 2008 when he became the first son of Filipino immigrants elected to the House. The Ohio Republican succeeded veteran Rep. Dave Hobson (R-Ohio), who had retired and endorsed Austria's candidacy.

Austria came to Washington from the Ohio legislature, where he served for a decade and championed lower taxes, tort reform and child-safety laws. He campaigned as a fiscal and social conservative, highlighting his support for border security and his opposition to abortion rights and gun control.

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Background

At a Glance

Career History: Ohio state Senate (2000-2008); Ohio House of Representatives (1998-2000); financial adviser, American Express (1982-1998)
Birthday: October 12, 1958
Hometown: Xenia, Ohio
Alma Mater: Marquette University, B.A. 1981
Spouse: Eileen
Religion: Catholic

Committees: Budget; Homeland Security
DC Office: 1641 Longworth House Office Building, 202-225-4324
State/District Office: Springfield, 937-325-0474; Lancaster, 740-654-5149
Email
Website

Path To Power

Born in Cincinnati in 1958 and the eldest of nine children, Austria is the son of Clement Austria, who moved from the Philippines to attend medical school. In 1952, the elder Austria became a naturalized U.S. citizen after approaching his congressman to change the immigration laws at the time, according to Steve Austria.

Austria was raised in Xenia, Ohio, where his father practiced medicine until his death in 1986 and once served as the president of the area Chamber of Commerce and as a member of the Greene County Republican Central Committee.

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Steve Austria graduated from Marquette University in 1981, returning home to run a financial-planning business. In 1984, his father stepped down from the local GOP committee, passing the seat on to his son.

State Politics

In 1998, Austria challenged incumbent state Rep. Marilyn Reid (R), who was facing ethics charges for providing legal services for a sports bar. Austria defeated Reid by a nearly two-to-one margin. He went on to win the seat before moving to the state Senate in 2000.

Austria served as the state Senate's majority whip from 2004 to 2008.

2008 House Race

In October 2007, a day after Hobson announced he would retire from his House seat, Austria announced he planned to replace his mentor.

The Dayton Daily News reluctantly backed Austria for the nomination over former state Rep. Ron Hood and Clark County Republican Party Chairman Dan Harkins. "A Congressman Austria is not likely to crash and burn in Washington, any more than he did in Columbus," according to the editorial. "In fact, what he's most likely to do is settle into a long, long career of keeping people back home happy, while remaining on the congressional back benches."

Austria won the GOP nomination. He faced Democratic attorney Sharen Neuhardt in the general election.

The race was riddled with scandals. In September 2008, Austria was accused of plagiarism by blogger Jeff Coryell for a column he wrote that ran in the Xenia Gazette on Labor Day. Coryell compared passages to a Department of Labor publication on his site. Austria's campaign responded that he had paraphrased from a document intended for public use.

Weeks later, Neuhardt was stung by a Dayton Daily News article reporting that she had allowed a Rwandan refugee to live on her farm illegally and without asylum status. The man had also been changed and arrested for various traffic and intoxication cases.

Austria won the election 58 to 42 percent, becoming "the first, first-generation Filipino to be elected to the United States Congress," according to his office. Rep. Robert Scott (D-Va.) and Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) have Filipino ancestors.

The Issues

Through August 2010, Austria voted with the majority of his House GOP colleagues 96.8 percent of the time.

During his first term, Austria didn't seek earmarks for his district. While he didn't rule out seeking earmarks in the future, he has sought a new systemin which "deserving" requests, particularly those related to national security, "can be fairly reviewed and debated."

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In the Ohio legislature, Austria sponsored a 2000 bill that toughened penalties against those soliciting sex from minors on the Internet. Austria was also one of the key supporters of a 2004 bill that granted concealed handgun rights to most law-abiding people within the state.

Austria commissioned a report released in July 2010 aimed at aiding local businesses land a bigger share of the more than $21 billion awarded annually in Air Force-related contracts. In 2009, the local Wright-Patterson Air Force Base awarded only two percent of its $21 billion in contracts to local businesses.

2009 Stimulus

During the early planning stages for what would become the $787-billion economic stimulus bill that passed in February 2009, Austria said he would be open to such a proposal but backed off support due to concerns about the budget deficit and national debt.

In February 2009, Austria drew criticism for linking the stimulus with President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal policies, which he told The Columbus Dispatch editorial board caused the Great Depression.

"He tried to borrow and spend, he tried to use the Keynesian approach, and our country ended up in a Great Depression. That's just history," Austria told the board.

Austria clarified his statement in an email to the paper the following day, saying "Roosevelt did not put us into the Depression, but rather his policies could not pull the nation out of the recession."

Homeland Security

Austria opposes the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility that houses suspected terrorist detainees.

In 2009, the House Republican introduced legislation "to prevent the enemy combatants currently housed at Guantanamo Bay from being relocated to Ohio."

Following a January 2010 fact-finding trip to the facility, Austria said bringing detainees to U.S. prisons "will actually bring more risk to our nation."

Health-Care Reform

Austria joined all of his House Republican colleagues in opposing the health-care reform bill that was enacted in March 2010. While he said "the current health care system must be reformed," he disagreed with the bill that would create "a huge expansion of government with less individual choice and will push additional unfunded mandates on states."

The Network

After Hobson endorsed Austria to take his House seat, Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) quickly backed Austria by organizing two Washington fundraisers for him.

Additional Resources