Congressman Don Beyer is serving his fourth term as the U.S. Representative from Virginia’s 8th District, representing Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, and parts of Fairfax County. He serves as the Chairman of Congress' Joint Economic Committee, and also serves on the House Committee on Ways and Means, and on the House Committee on Science Space and Technology, where he chairs the Space Subcommittee. He is a Co-Chair of the New Democrat Coalition's Climate Change Task Force.
He was the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia from 1990 to 1998, and was Ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein under President Obama. Rep. Beyer’s signature work as lieutenant governor included advocacy for Virginians with disabilities and ensuring protections for Virginia’s most vulnerable populations as the Commonwealth reformed its welfare system in the mid-1990s. Rep. Beyer was Virginia’s Democratic nominee for governor in 1997.
Stopping the harmful consequences of global climate change is the existential crisis of our generation. We cannot continue pumping pollutants into our air at no economic cost.
Fourteen of the fifteen hottest years on record have been in this century. Global temperature changes are causing prolonged droughts, extreme weather events, and rising sea levels.
On the House Committees on Ways and Means and Science, Space, and Technology, I continue to advocate to fulfill our responsibility to leave this world better than we inherited it. In the 117th Congress I am also serving as Co-Chair of the Safe Climate Caucus.
America must continue to be an innovative leader in the fight against global climate change. We need intelligent conservation policies that preserve our natural resources and an energy policy that is not solely focused on drilling, but makes smart investments in clean and renewable energy to lower costs to the American taxpayer while protecting the air, land, and water.