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Bonnie Watson Coleman (I)
DWon the General, 2013 New Jersey State Assembly District 15
New Jersey U.S. House, District 12 (2014 - Present)
To be claimed
Co-Founder, Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls, United States House of Representatives, 2016-present
Member, Congressional Black Caucus, United States Congress, present
Member, Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, United States Congress, present
Member, Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus, United States Congress, present
Member, Congressional Progressive Caucus, United States Congress, present
Ranking Member, Homeland Security Committee, United States House of Representatives, present
Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security, United States House of Representatives, present
Ranking Member, Task Force on Denying Terrorist Entry into the United States, United States House of Representatives, present
Former Member, Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Communications Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Government Operations Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Healthcare, Benefits, and Administrative Rules Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Oversight and Management Efficiency Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Oversight and Reform Committee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Subcommittee on Oversight, Management, and Accountability, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Subcommittee on Transportation and Public Assets, United States House of Representatives
Former Ranking Member, Transportation and Protective Security Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Co-Founder, Congressional Caucus on Black Women and Girls, United States House of Representatives, 2016-present
Member, Congressional Black Caucus, United States Congress, present
Member, Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, United States Congress, present
Member, Congressional LGBT Equality Caucus, United States Congress, present
Member, Congressional Progressive Caucus, United States Congress, present
Ranking Member, Homeland Security Committee, United States House of Representatives, present
Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Transportation and Protective Security, United States House of Representatives, present
Ranking Member, Task Force on Denying Terrorist Entry into the United States, United States House of Representatives, present
Former Member, Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Communications Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Government Operations Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Healthcare, Benefits, and Administrative Rules Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Oversight and Management Efficiency Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Former Member, Oversight and Reform Committee, United States House of Representatives
Former Ranking Member, Transportation and Protective Security Subcommittee, United States House of Representatives
Member, Committee on Appropriations
Member, Committee on Homeland Security
Member, Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Recovery
Member, Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies
Member, Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Chair, Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security
Member, Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies
Names of Grandchildren:
William, Kamryn
— Number of Grandchildren:
Reason for Seeking Public Office:
Now more than ever, we need bold progressive leaders to stand up to Koch brother-backed Tea Party obstructionists as they spend millions of dollars to combat progressive causes to spread gridlock and animosity.
I will work with President Obama to advance his agenda for civil rights; on increasing a minimum wage so it represents a living wage; on supporting gun safety measure and on fighting for strong education funding. For our future - we need policies that lift us up for the better, whether that's ensuring a sustainable energy plan, secure access for women's healthcare, and protecting Social Security and Medicare.
We need principled Democrats leaders in Congress to accomplish that.
I truly believe that today must be better than yesterday, and tomorrow must better than today.
I humbly ask for and hope I can earn your support.
1. Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
- Pro-choice
1. In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket?
- Yes
2. Do you support expanding federal funding to support entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare?
- Unknown Position
1. Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions?
- Yes
1. Do you support the protection of government officials, including law enforcement officers, from personal liability in civil lawsuits concerning alleged misconduct?
- No
Do you support increasing defense spending?
- Unknown Position
1. Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
- Yes
2. Do you support lowering corporate taxes as a means of promoting economic growth?
- No
3. Do you support providing financial relief to businesses AND/OR corporations negatively impacted by the state of national emergency for COVID-19?
- Yes
1. Do you support requiring states to adopt federal education standards?
- Yes
1. Do you support government funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, geo-thermal)?
- Yes
2. Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions?
- Yes
1. Do you generally support gun-control legislation?
- Yes
1. Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")?
- No
2. Do you support requiring businesses to provide paid medical leave during public health crises, such as COVID-19?
- Yes
1. Do you support the construction of a wall along the Mexican border?
- No
2. Do you support requiring immigrants who are unlawfully present to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship?
- No
1. Should the United States use military force to prevent governments hostile to the U.S. from possessing a weapon of mass destruction (for example: nuclear, biological, chemical)?
- No
2. Do you support reducing military intervention in Middle East conflicts?
- Unknown Position
Do you generally support removing barriers to international trade (for example: tariffs, quotas, etc.)?
- Yes
1. Abortions should always be illegal.
- No Answer
2. Abortions should always be legal.
- X
3. Abortions should be legal only within the first trimester of pregnancy.
- No Answer
4. Abortions should be legal when the pregnancy resulted from incest or rape.
- No Answer
5. Abortions should be legal when the life of the woman is endangered.
- No Answer
6. Prohibit public funding of abortions and of organizations that advocate or perform abortions.
- No Answer
7. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Education (higher)
- Slightly Increase
2. Education (K-12)
- Slightly Increase
3. Environment
- Maintain Status
4. Health care
- Greatly Increase
5. Law enforcement
- Maintain Status
6. Transportation and highway infrastructure
- Slightly Increase
7. Welfare
- Maintain Status
8. Other or expanded categories
- No Answer
9. Alcohol taxes
- Maintain Status
10. Capital gains taxes
- No Answer
11. Cigarette taxes
- Greatly Increase
12. Corporate taxes
- Maintain Status
13. Income taxes (incomes below $75,000)
- Maintain Status
14. Income taxes (incomes above $75,000)
- Slightly Increase
15. Inheritance taxes
- No Answer
16. Property taxes
- Greatly Decrease
17. Sales taxes
- Maintain Status
18. Vehicle taxes
- Maintain Status
19. Should Internet sales be taxed?
- Yes
20. Do you support raising the gasoline tax to help balance the state budget?
- No
21. Do you support raising the gasoline tax to finance road improvements?
- Undecided
22. Do you support installing video lottery terminals at the Meadowlands horse track to increase state revenue?
- Undecided
23. Should New Jersey convene a constitutional convention to address its property tax system?
- Yes
24. Should New Jersey convene a special session of the state legislature to address its property tax system?
- No Answer
25. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Do you support the current limit of two consecutive four-year terms for New Jersey governors?
- Yes
2. Do you support limiting the number of terms for New Jersey state senators and representatives?
- No
3. Individual
- No
4. PAC
- Yes
5. Corporate
- Yes
6. Political Parties
- Yes
7. Do you support requiring full and timely disclosure of campaign finance information?
- Yes
8. Do you support imposing spending limits on state level political campaigns?
- Yes
9. Do you support adopting statewide standards for counting, verifying, and ensuring accuracy of votes?
- Yes
10. Do you support prohibiting the reporting of media exit polling results until all polling locations in New Jersey are closed?
- No
11. Should New Jersey prohibit ?wheeling,? the practice of funneling funds into a local campaign from various entities across the state in order to circumvent contribution limits?
- No Answer
12. Should New Jersey prohibit contributors to municipal level campaigns from being awarded state contracts worth more than $17,500?
- No Answer
13. Should New Jersey prohibit elected officials from holding more than one office at the same time?
- No Answer
14. Should New Jersey amend its constitution to create the office of lieutenant governor?
- Yes
15. Should New Jersey recognize civil unions between same-sex couples?
- Yes
16. Should New Jersey restrict marriage to a union only between a man and a woman?
- No Answer
17. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Increase state funds for construction of state prisons and for hiring of additional prison staff.
- No Answer
2. Support the death penalty in New Jersey.
- No Answer
3. Support programs to provide prison inmates with vocational and job-related skills and job-placement assistance when released.
- X
4. End parole for repeat violent offenders.
- No Answer
5. Implement penalties other than incarceration for certain non-violent offenders.
- X
6. Decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.
- X
7. Strengthen penalties and sentences for drug-related crimes.
- X
8. Minors accused of a violent crime should be prosecuted as adults.
- No Answer
9. Increase state funding for community centers and other social agencies in areas with at-risk youth.
- X
10. Increase funding for state and local emergency agencies to prevent and to respond to terrorist attacks.
- X
11. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Support national standards and testing of public school students.
- X
2. Provide parents with state-funded vouchers to send their children to any public school.
- No Answer
3. Provide parents with state-funded vouchers to send their children to any private or religious school.
- No Answer
4. Increase state funds for school capital improvements (e.g. buildings and infrastructure).
- X
5. Increase state funds for hiring additional teachers.
- X
6. Support teacher testing and reward with merit pay.
- X
7. Endorse voluntary prayer in public schools.
- X
8. Require public schools to administer high school exit exams.
- X
9. Provide state funding to increase teacher salaries.
- X
10. Increase funding for Head Start programs.
- X
11. Provide state funding for tax incentives and financial aid to help make college more affordable.
- X
12. Support sexual education programs that include information on abstinence, contraceptives, and HIV/STD prevention methods.
- X
13. Support abstinence-only sexual education programs.
- No Answer
14. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Increase funding for state job-training programs that re-train displaced workers and teach skills needed in today's job market.
- X
2. Reduce state government regulations on the private sector in order to encourage investment and economic expansion.
- No Answer
3. Provide low interest loans and tax credits for starting, expanding, or relocating businesses.
- X
4. Provide tax credits for businesses that provide child care for children in low-income working families.
- X
5. Increase state funds to provide child care for children in low-income working families.
- X
6. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
7. Public employment
- Yes
8. State college and university admissions
- Yes
9. State contracting
- Yes
1. Promote increased use of alternative fuel technology.
- X
2. Support increased production of traditional domestic energy sources (e.g. coal, natural gas, and oil).
- No Answer
3. Use state funds to clean up former industrial and commercial sites that are contaminated, unused, or abandoned.
- X
4. Support funding for open space preservation.
- X
5. Enact environmental regulations even if they are stricter than federal law.
- X
6. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Maintain and strengthen the enforcement of existing state restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
- X
2. Ease state restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
- No Answer
3. Repeal state restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns.
- No Answer
4. Allow citizens to carry concealed guns.
- No Answer
5. Require manufacturers to provide child-safety locks on guns.
- X
6. Require background checks on gun sales between private citizens at gun shows.
- X
7. Support current licensing requirements for gun possession.
- X
8. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Ensure that citizens have access to basic health care through managed care, insurance reforms, or state-funded care where necessary.
- X
2. Transfer more existing Medicaid recipients into managed care programs.
- X
3. Limit the amount of punitive damages that can be awarded in medical malpractice lawsuits.
- No Answer
4. Support patients' right to sue their HMOs.
- X
5. Support patients' right to appeal to an administrative board of specialists when services are denied.
- X
6. Guaranteed medical care to all citizens is not a responsibility of state government.
- No Answer
7. Legalize physician assisted suicide in New Jersey.
- No Answer
8. Allow doctors to prescribe marijuana to their patients for medicinal purposes.
- X
9. Support a $200 million housing trust fund for individuals with mental illness or other disabilities.
- X
10. Forgive up to $20,000 in student loans for New Jersey residents who work in a state, county, or non-profit mental health or social service agency.
- X
11. Allocate $150 million in capital funds to build a stem cell institute in New Jersey.
- X
12. Support a $230 million bond referendum to increase funding for stem cell research.
- X
13. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Support increased work requirements for able-bodied welfare recipients.
- No Answer
2. Increase funding for employment and job training programs for welfare recipients.
- X
3. Increase access to public transportation for welfare recipients who work.
- X
4. Support current limits on benefits given to recipients if they have additional children while on welfare.
- No Answer
5. Redirect welfare funding to faith-based and community-based private organizations.
- No Answer
6. Use federal TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) funds to extend health and child care subsidies to the working poor.
- X
7. Support marriage promotion programs for welfare recipients.
- No Answer
8. Eliminate government-funded welfare programs.
- No Answer
9. Other or expanded principles
- No Answer
1. Do you generally support pro-choice or pro-life legislation?
- Pro-choice
1. In order to balance the budget, do you support an income tax increase on any tax bracket?
- Yes
2. In order to balance the budget, do you support reducing defense spending?
- Yes
1. Do you support the regulation of indirect campaign contributions from corporations and unions?
- Yes
1. Do you support federal spending as a means of promoting economic growth?
- Yes
2. Do you support lowering corporate taxes as a means of promoting economic growth?
- Yes
1. Do you support requiring states to adopt federal education standards?
- Yes
1. Do you support government funding for the development of renewable energy (e.g. solar, wind, thermal)?
- Yes
2. Do you support the federal regulation of greenhouse gas emissions?
- Yes
1. Do you generally support gun-control legislation?
- Yes
1. Do you support repealing the 2010 Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare")?
- No
1. Do you support the construction of a wall along the Mexican border?
- No
2. Do you support requiring immigrants who are unlawfully present to return to their country of origin before they are eligible for citizenship?
- No
Do you support the legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes?
- Yes
1. Should the United States use military force in order to prevent governments hostile to the U.S. from possessing a nuclear weapon?
- Unknown Position
2. Do you support increased American intervention in Middle Eastern conflicts beyond air support?
- Unknown Position
Latest Action: House - 06/20/2019 Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Tracker:Latest Action: House - 06/19/2019 Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform.
Tracker:Latest Action: House - 06/18/2019 Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.
Tracker:By Bonnie Watson ColemanOver the past day, a lot of people have asked me how I feel. They are usually referring to my covid-19 diagnosis and my symptoms. I feel like I have a mild cold. But even more than that, I am angry. I am angry that after I spent months carefully isolating myself, a single chaotic day likely got me sick. I am angry that several of our nation's leaders were unwilling to deal with the small annoyance of a mask for a few hours. I am angry that the attack on the Capitol and my subsequent illness have the same cause: my Republican colleagues' inability to accept facts. When I left for Washington last week, it was my first trip there in several months. I had a list of things to accomplish, including getting my picture taken for the card I use when voting on the House floor. For the past two years, I appeared on that card completely bald as a result of the chemotherapy I underwent to eliminate the cancer in my right lung. It was because of that preexisting condition that I relied so heavily on the proxy voting the House agreed to last year, when we first began to understand the danger of covid-19. I was nervous about spending a week among so many people who regularly flout social distancing and mask guidelines, but I could not have imagined the horror of what happened on Jan. 6. To isolate as much as possible, I planned to spend much of my day in my apartment, shuttling to the House floor to vote. But the building shares an alley with the Republican National Committee, where, we'd later learn, law enforcement found a pipe bomb. I was evacuated from that location early in the afternoon. The next best option would have been my office in the Cannon House Office Building, where just three of my staffers worked at their desks to ensure safe distancing. Before I arrived, security evacuated that building as well, forcing us to linger in the hallways and cafeteria spaces of the House complex. As I'm sure you can imagine, pushing the occupants of an entire building into a few public spaces doesn't make for great social distancing. Twice, I admonished groups of congressional staff to put on their masks. Some of these staffers gave me looks of derision, but slowly complied. My staff and I then decided that the Capitol building would likely be the safest place to go, since it would be the most secure and least likely to be crowded. I've spent a lot of time since in utter disbelief at how wrong those assumptions turned out to be. Everyone knows what happened next: A mob broke through windows and doors and beat a U.S. Capitol Police officer, then went on a rampage. Members and staff took cover wherever we could, ducking into offices throughout the building, then were told to move to a safer holding location. I use "safer" because, while we might have been protected from the insurrectionists, we were not safe from the callousness of members of Congress who, having encouraged the sentiments that inspired the riot, now ignored requests to wear masks. I've been asked if I will share the names of those members. You've probably seen video of some of them laughing at my colleague and friend Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.) as she tries to distribute masks. But it's not their names that matter. What matters are facts, both about the covid-19 pandemic and the conduct of the 2020 election: You can, in fact, breathe through a mask. Doctors have been doing it for decades. It is occasionally annoying -- my glasses tend to fog, and when I wear makeup and a mask, I end up with smudged lipstick. That is a small price to pay for the safety of those around me. You can, in fact, count on a mask to reduce the chances of spreading the virus. Studies of how many droplets escape into the air and the rates of infection following the implementation of mask mandates both prove effectiveness. Refusing to wear a mask is not, in fact, an act of self-expression. It's an act of public endangerment. The chaos you create in exercising your so-called freedom can cause permanent, deadly damage. I only hope that won't be the case for me and my colleagues, Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Brad Schneider (D-Ill.), who have also tested positive for the coronavirus. When I say that many Republicans are responsible for what happened to me, to others and to the country last week, I mean their essential failure to accept facts led us here. Much like they should be able to accept the results of an election, elected leaders should be able to accept facts like the efficacy of masks. It's clearly time for a congressional campuswide mask requirement, enforced by the House and Senate sergeants at arms. Facts really do matter. I hope to get back to work soon to make sure we respect them.
By Bonnie Watson ColemanNationwide, cities and municipalities are stretched in ways they could never have imagined nor planned for. With dimming hopes for federal aid in the pipeline, it's forcing them to make difficult choices. Hudson County, not far from my own congressional district, has had to make just such a choice: extend its contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement in order to keep people on the payroll or stay true to the promises it made to end it. This crisis is the quintessential example of what happens when our justice system, and prisons in particular, operate with a profit incentive. It's also an important illustration of why it has to stop. Our national history, and particularly the stories of African Americans and other marginalized groups, are proof that where there is a financial incentive for incarceration there is always an equal drive to ensure people fill prison cells. From Ferguson to Parchman Farm, history is replete with examples of the insidious ties between the use of incarceration and corrupt profit motives. Whether we're talking about the War on Drugs or the war on people who've come here seeking a better life, we've proven over and over that allowing profit into the equation creates a situation where what is right, or logical, or even most efficient is replaced by what will bring financial gain. That profit margin begets an addiction that eventually controls decision making, whether that's about mandatory minimums, or a local prison contract, as evidenced by Hudson County's current dilemma. There has to be a demarcation between the dispensation of justice, and the revenue of a business or budget lines of local governments. Anytime you allow them to blur, you don't just end up with the potential for corrupt motivations, you risk undermining faith in the system itself. As we continue to have a national conversation about what justice means, about the impact of mass incarceration not just on the individuals who serve time but within the communities they leave behind, we have to consider the removal of profit from the scales. Public polling suggests that Americans overwhelmingly support banning private prisons, and I'm proud to have authored legislation that would do just that. While it seems like a lifetime ago, there was recognition of this problem back in 2016, when then-President Obama directed the Department of Justice to reduce the use of private prisons after a DOJ study revealed such facilities had significantly higher instances of violence, contraband and the use of force. Efforts to back away from for-profit prisons ended when President Trump took office, and it is worth noting that his campaign and transition received big donations from this industry. It is my hope that President-elect Biden restores these efforts, ensuring we take the steps necessary to get profit incentives out of every part of our justice system. Whether it's a private prison contract that eventually influences local arrest rates, or a county so financially addicted to a federal reimbursement that it turns a blind eye to reports of abuse and human rights violations, we cannot condone the monetization of justice. We have to stop it where it already exists and prevent it from creeping further. Further calls for criminal justice reform will be inherently incomplete, and our efforts to provide second chances and heal the wounds of old policy failures will be hollow if we don't take profit off the table.
Coronavirus pandemic Select a topic from the dropdown below to learn more.Political responses overviewState reopening plansDocumenting America's Path to RecoveryDaily updatesElection changesChanges to vote-by-mail and absentee voting proceduresFederal responsesState responsesState executive ordersStay-at-home ordersMultistate agreementsNon-governmental reopening plansEvictions and foreclosures policiesTravel restrictionsEnacted state legislationState legislative session changesSchool closuresState court closuresInmate releasesLocal government responsesDiagnosed or quarantined politiciansBallot measure changesArguments about government responsesThe 1918 influenza pandemicPandemic Response Accountability CommitteeUnemployment filingsLawsuitsSubmit On January 11, 2021, Coleman announced that she had tested positive for coronavirus.
Thur 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM EDT
Tue 12:00 PM – 12:30 PM EDT
