Julia Brownley was first elected to Congress in 2012 to serve as the Representative for California’s 26th District, which encompasses most of Ventura County and a portion of Los Angeles County, including the cities of Ventura, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Ojai, Santa Paula, Fillmore, Camarillo, Moorpark, Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, along with some areas of Simi Valley.
As her first committee assignment, Congresswoman Brownley requested to serve on the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, where she works closely with Ventura County’s veterans community and Naval Base Ventura County, making sure we provide the services and care our servicemembers, veterans, and their families have earned and deserve. Brownley was elected as Chairwoman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Health. Brownley is also the founder and Chairwoman of the Committee’s Women Veterans Task Force.
Agriculture is the cornerstone of Ventura County’s economy that supports thousands of jobs throughout our region. It is also a proud part of our heritage, giving our community its unique beauty. In Congress, I have worked hard to support our local agricultural producers, workers, and businesses.
Congress must balance our budget, reduce our debt, and invest in our future in a way that will grow our economy by strengthening the middle class, protect the promise we’ve made to our seniors, and that ultimately reflects the values of the American people.
Our campaign finance system is broken and must be fixed to restore the levers of democracy to the people. Citizens also have the right to know who is seeking to influence their votes and their legislators. I strongly support legislation to require more disclosure of campaign spending by shadowy outside special interest groups. I also strongly support amending the U.S. Constitution to overturn the flawed Supreme Court decisions in the Citizens United and McCutcheon cases.
Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) is a strategic asset to our national security and will play an even greater role in our national defense as the Department of Defense continues to refocus and shift attention towards the Asia-Pacific region. As the proud representative of NBVC, I have been working in Congress to bring new commands to NBVC and to support the over 19,000 active-duty servicemembers and civilians who work hard there every day to serve our nation.
The best way to ensure the long-term growth and strength of our community is to create an environment where our students can thrive. We must invest in education in order to equip our youth with the skills necessary to secure jobs and remain competitive in the global workforce. We must continue to strengthen our school system from early to higher education to ensure we prepare Americans of all ages, incomes, and backgrounds for high-paying, high-skilled jobs. I am committed to ensuring every student receives a first-class education by improving our K-12 public schools, supporting our teachers, expanding access to early education programs, and making college affordable for every student.
We must take meaningful steps to fight climate change, which threatens Ventura County’s economic productivity, public health, and the environment. As a member of the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis, I support strategic investments in clean, renewable, and sustainable energy to counterbalance the effects of climate change on our economy and in our communities. I am also a strong supporter of federal laws like the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, National Environmental Policy Act, and the Endangered Species Act. Not only must we clean up contaminated sites that resulted from past mistakes, but we must also protect and preserve our environment and natural resources, and promote the conservation of wildlife and public lands for future generations to enjoy.
There is no doubt that our immigration system is broken, and we need commonsense, comprehensive reform. I am committed to reforming our immigration system to better reflect our shared values as a nation, especially keeping families and communities together, securing our border, and promoting economic vitality and global competitiveness.
As Ventura County’s representative in Congress, I view everything I do through the lens of how it will create jobs and grow our economy. From our ports, to our large and small businesses, to our naval base, to our agricultural community, I strive to advance federal policy that will support our diverse job creators.
Small businesses are the backbone of our local economy and engines for jobs and economic growth. Supporting small businesses is critically important for our prosperity, not only in our communities, but across the nation. In Congress, I am a strong supporter of Small Business Administration programs that help small businesses get started and grow. I have also supported legislation to reduce bureaucratic red tape and to make our tax code more fair to all businesses that create jobs here at home.
Social Security is an American success story and part of the fabric that safeguards economic security and independence for seniors and people with disabilities. In Congress, I am absolutely committed to protecting Social Security and Medicare, and addressing the high cost of prescription drugs.
We must invest in our nation’s infrastructure including our airports, roads, bridges, and waterways that are vital to the movements of people and goods across our country. As a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I have been working to address the infrastructure challenges facing Ventura County.
We have a sacred responsibility to those who have served our country in uniform. As a daughter, sister, and niece of veterans, I take no responsibility more personally and seriously. When I came to Congress, the very first committee I asked to serve on was the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. Both here in Ventura County and at the national level, I have made it my priority to put our nation’s veterans first.
That means helping our servicemembers transition back into civilian life and caring for our veterans by ensuring they all receive timely, high-quality healthcare and benefits they have earned and deserve. It also means tackling veterans homelessness and unemployment and addressing high suicide rates that continue to plague our nation’s heroes.
Expanding homeownership and ensuring that homeownership remains affordable are critical priorities. We must also work to end homelessness and expand access to affordable housing for all Americans, especially for our veterans and their families.
As a member of the Congressional Animal Protection Caucus, I am committed to the safe and humane treatment of animals. I strongly believe in the strict enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act, which includes critical protections for animals and criminal and civil penalties for those who violate the law. I have and will continue to support legislation that prevents cruelty towards and promotes humane treatment of animals.
It is my duty to honor, respect, and protect the Constitutional rights of all Americans. In Congress, I have supported legislation to protect the civil rights of all our citizens, and have fought against backwards policies that seek to allow discrimination against members of our community.
I support an all-of-the-above approach to solving our energy needs. While our nation is overly dependent on fossil fuels, we need to look at new technologies that support the development and expansion of clean, renewable, alternative energy resources, like wind, biomass, and solar. Reducing our reliance on foreign oil will have multiple benefits for our national security and our environment, and will help to create and sustain good jobs in new high-tech sectors.
Americans are 25 times more likely to be killed by a gun than residents in any other developed nation. No single policy is going to stop every shooting – but there are clearly ways to prevent gun violence that can save lives.
As a member of the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force, I share the deep disappointment of many of my constituents that common-sense gun safety legislation has failed to pass Congress.
Congress must improve our nation’s gun safety laws. I support strengthening background checks on gun purchases, reinstating the assault weapons ban, and prohibiting high-capacity magazines, as well as so-called ‘bump stocks.’ We also need better mental health laws to ensure that people with a severe mental illness and criminals do not have easy access to deadly weapons. That is why I also support legislation to allow family members to seek a court order to prevent a loved one from purchasing firearms, if the court finds the individual poses a risk of injury to themselves or others.
As a nation, we still have much work to do to ensure equal access to high-quality, affordable healthcare for all our citizens. However, we cannot roll-back the clock and permit discrimination against those with preexisting conditions, or eliminate important coverage for cancer screenings, birth control, or preventative health. In Congress, I am working to advance policies that expand coverage and make health insurance more affordable for working families.
Districts drawn by incumbents to protect their jobs make politicians less accountable to their constituents and more accountable to the special interests. This eroded public trust and contributed to a deep and intractable dysfunction in Congress. California’s citizen-driven redistricting process proved “that government of the people, by the people, for the people” is not only possible, but its success makes it an example for the nation. In Congress, I am working to create independent redistricting commissions in all 50 states.