Pete Aguilar represents the 31st Congressional District of California. He was most recently re-elected in 2020 and serves on the House Appropriations Committee. In the 117th Congress, Rep. Aguilar holds the leadership position of Vice Chair of the House Democratic Caucus.
Raising his family in the community his family has called home for four generations, Representative Aguilar understands the challenges that Inland Empire families face today. He started his first job at the age of twelve, working with his grandfather at the San Bernardino County Courthouse cafeteria. He then put himself through college with the assistance of student loans and federal grants, and later established a life in public service to give back to his community.
As a member of Congress, protecting our national security and keeping Americans safe is my top priority. Since the 2015 terrorist attack in San Bernardino, I’ve been fighting to give first responders the support they need to fight crime and prevent future acts of domestic terrorism.
Last year, I helped secure over $1 million in funding that helps San Bernardino County prepare for, prevent and respond to terrorist attacks and I wrote a bill to increase coordination and streamline reporting to Congress among the national intelligence and law enforcement agencies so we can better prepare for and prevent future acts of domestic terrorism.
I also helped secure millions of dollars for local police and fire departments to ensure they have the resources to do their jobs and I spearheaded the effort to restart a national cybersecurity scholarship program that has provided Cal State San Bernardino students with the opportunity to work for the Department of Defense, protecting our country from international cyber attacks.
I’ve also been working to make our communities safer from gun violence by supporting universe background checks, banning assault weapons, high-capacity ammunition magazines and bump stocks, and preventing criminals, domestic abusers, terrorists, or the criminally mentally ill from purchasing guns.