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Bill Owens

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Bill Owens
Image of Bill Owens

Democratic Party

Prior offices
U.S. House New York District 21
Successor: Elise Stefanik
Predecessor: Paul Tonko

Compensation

Net worth

(2012) $1,831,004.50

Education

Bachelor's

Manhattan College

Law

Fordham University

Military

Service / branch

U.S. Air Force

Personal
Religion
Christian: Catholic
Profession
Lawyer, Businessperson

William L. "Bill" Owens (b. January 20, 1949, in Brooklyn, NY) was a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives representing New York's 21st Congressional District. Prior to redistricting in 2012, Owens had previously served in New York's 23rd Congressional District. Owens was first elected to the House in 2009 and served two consecutive terms.

On January 14, 2014, Owens announced that he would not seek re-election to New York's 21st Congressional District in 2014.[1]

Before entering politics, Owens served as a Captain in the U.S. Air Force and built a private law practice in New York.

Biography

Owens was born in Brooklyn, New York. He earned a B.A. from Manhattan College in 1971 and an M.A. from Fordham University in 1974.[2]

Career

Below is an abbreviated outline of Owens' professional and political career:[3][2]

Committee assignments

U.S. House

2013-2014

Owens served on the following committees:[4]

2011-2012

Owens served on the following committees:[5]

Key votes

113th Congress

The second session of the 113th Congress enacted into law 224 out of the 3215 introduced bills (7 percent). Comparatively, the 112th Congress had 4.2 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the second session.[6] For more information pertaining to Owens's voting record in the 113th Congress, please see the below sections.[7]

National security

NDAA

Yea3.png Owens voted in support of HR 1960 - the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014. The bill passed the House on June 14, 2013, with a vote of 315 - 108. Both parties were somewhat divided on the vote.[8]

DHS Appropriations

Yea3.png Owens voted in support of HR 2217 - the DHS Appropriations Act of 2014. The bill passed the House on June 6, 2013, with a vote of 245 - 182 and was largely along party lines.[8]

Keystone Pipeline Amendment

Nay3.png Owens voted in opposition of House Amendment 69, which would have amended HR 3 to "require that the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, in consultation with the Department of Homeland Security, conduct a study of the vulnerabilities of the Keystone XL pipeline to a terrorist attack and certify that necessary protections have been put in place." The amendment failed on May 22, 2013, with a vote of 176 - 239 and was largely along party lines.[8]

CISPA (2013)

Yea3.png Owens voted in support of HR 624 - the CISPA (2013). The bill passed the House on April 18, 2013, with a vote of 288 - 127. The bill permitted federal intelligence agencies to share cybersecurity intelligence and information with private entities and utilities.[9] The bill was largely supported by Republicans, but divided the Democratic Party.[8]

Economy

2013 Farm Bill

See also: United States Farm Bill 2013

Nay3.png The comprehensive farm bill failed in the House due largely in part to the votes of 8 Democratic House members who joined the Republican majority to vote down the measure.[10] Reps. Collin Peterson, John Barrow, Bishop, Cheri Bustos, Sean Maloney, Mike McIntyre, Owens, and Tim Walz were the 8 Democratic members who voted to reject the bill.[10] According to analysis by OpenSecrets.org, many of these Democratic members have received significant political contributions from agricultural organizations that benefit from crop insurance subsidies.[10]

Government shutdown

See also: United States budget debate, 2013

Nay3.png On September 30, 2013, the House passed a final stopgap spending bill before the shutdown went into effect. The bill included a one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate and would have also stripped the bill of federal subsidies for congressional members and staff. It passed through the House with a vote of 228-201.[11] At 1 a.m. on October 1, 2013, one hour after the shutdown officially began, the House voted to move forward with going to a conference. In short order, Sen. Harry Reid rejected the call to conference.[12] Owens voted against the stopgap spending bill that would have delayed the individual mandate.[13]

Yea3.png The shutdown ended on October 16, 2013, when the House took a vote on HR 2775 after it was approved by the Senate. The bill to reopen the government lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies.[14] The House passed the legislation shortly after the Senate, by a vote of 285-144, with all 144 votes against the legislation coming from Republican members. Owens voted for HR 2775.[15]

Immigration

Morton Memos Prohibition

Nay3.png Owens voted against House Amendment 136 - Prohibits the Enforcement of the Immigration Executive Order. The amendment was adopted by the House on June 6, 2013, with a vote of 224 - 201. The purpose of the amendment as stated on the official text is to "prohibit the use of funds to finalize, implement, administer, or enforce the Morton Memos." These memos would have granted administrative amnesty to certain individuals residing in the United States without legal status.[16] The vote largely followed party lines.[17]

Healthcare

Repealing Obamacare

Nay3.png Owens has voted against all attempts to repeal or delay the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.[18]

Social issues

Abortion

Nay3.png Owens voted against HR 1797 - Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. The resolution passed the House on June 18, 2013, with a vote of 228 - 196. The purpose of the bill was to ban abortions that would take place 20 or more weeks after fertilization.[19]

Previous congressional sessions

Fiscal Cliff

Yea3.png Owens voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. He was one of 172 Democrats who voted in favor of the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257 - 167 vote on January 1, 2013.[20]

Campaign themes

2009

During his 2009 special election campaign for Congress, Owens stated his opinions regarding potential healthcare bills. According to the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), Owens said that "the public option had no place in the health care reform bill" and that "he was firmly opposed to cutting Medicare benefits, taxing health care benefits, and increased taxes on the middle class."[21][22]

After making these promises on his campaign website, Owens voted for HR 3962 as one of his first official acts in Congress. He received criticism from groups such as the NRCC, who claimed that HR 3962 had a public option, cut Medicare benefits, taxed health care benefits and increased taxes on the middle class.[23]

Owens voted in favor of the health care reform bill.[24] A total of 57 percent of likely voters at least somewhat favored repeal of the health care reform bill, including 46 percent who strongly favored repeal. Only 35 percent of likely voters opposed repeal. A total of 51 percent of likely voters believed the health care reform bill would be bad for the country, while 36 percent believed it would be beneficial.[25]

Elections

2014

BattlegroundRace.jpg
See also: New York's 21st Congressional District elections, 2014

On January 14, 2014, Owen's announced that he would not seek re-election in 2014. New York's 21st Congressional District was considered a swing-district in the 2014 midterm elections. Owens won election in 2012 by less than 5,000 votes and questions arose about a 2011 trip to Taiwan which may have violated House Ethics rules.[1]

Prior to his announcement, Owens was a member of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Frontline Program. The program was designed to help protect vulnerable Democratic incumbents during the 2014 election cycle.[26]

2012

See also: New York's 21st Congressional District elections, 2012

Owens won re-election in 2012, but due to New York's redistricting, he ran in the newly redrawn 21st District.[27] He was unopposed in the Democratic primary and defeated Matt Doheny (R) and Donald Hassig (G) in the general election on November 6, 2012.[28][29]

U.S. House, New York District 21 General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngBill Owens Incumbent 50.1% 126,631
     Republican Matthew Doheny 48.2% 121,646
     Green Donald Hassig 1.7% 4,174
     N/A Write-in votes 0% 105
Total Votes 252,556
Source: New York State Board of Elections, "NYS Board of Elections Rep. in Congress Election Returns Nov. 6, 2012," accessed September 1, 2021

Full history


Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

Bill Owens campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2012U.S. House (New York, District 21)Won $1,968,478 N/A**
2010U.S. House (New York, District 23)Won $2,829,090 N/A**
Grand total$4,797,568 N/A**
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only availabale data.

Personal Gain Index

Congressional Personal Gain Index graphic.png
See also: Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress)

The Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress) is a two-part measurement that illustrates the extent to which members of the U.S. Congress have prospered during their tenure as public servants.
It consists of two different metrics:

PGI: Change in net worth

See also: Changes in Net Worth of U.S. Senators and Representatives (Personal Gain Index) and Net worth of United States Senators and Representatives
Net Worth Metric graphic.png

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Owens' net worth as of 2012 was estimated between $1,182,009 and $2,480,000. That averages to $1,831,004.50, which is lower than the average net worth of Democratic representatives in 2012 of $5,700,168.36. Owens ranked as the 156th most wealthy representative in 2012.[31] Between 2009 and 2012, Owens' calculated net worth[32] decreased by an average of 18 percent per year. Between 2004 and 2012, the average annual percentage increase for a member of Congress was 15.4 percent.[33]

Bill Owens Yearly Net Worth
YearAverage Net Worth
2009$3,917,956
2012$1,831,004
Growth from 2009 to 2012:−53%
Average annual growth:−18%[34]
Comparatively, the American citizen experienced a median yearly decline in net worth of -0.94%.[35]

The data used to calculate changes in net worth may include changes resulting from assets gained through marriage, inheritance, changes in family estates and/or trusts, changes in family business ownership, and many other variables unrelated to a member's behavior in Congress.

PGI: Donation Concentration Metric

See also: The Donation Concentration Metric (U.S. Congress Personal Gain Index)

Filings required by the Federal Election Commission report on the industries that give to each candidate. Using campaign filings and information calculated by OpenSecrets.org, Ballotpedia calculated the percentage of donations by industry received by each incumbent over the course of his or her career (or 1989 and later, if elected prior to 1988). Owens received the most donations from individuals and PACs employed by the Leadership PACs industry.

From 2009-2014, 26.53 percent of Owens' career contributions came from the top five industries as listed below.[36]

Donation Concentration Metric graphic.png
Bill Owens Campaign Contributions
Total Raised $5,406,808
Total Spent $4,928,877
Top five industries that contributed to campaign committee
Leadership PACs$444,900
Lawyers/Law Firms$350,208
Candidate Committees$238,250
Public Sector Unions$207,000
Real Estate$194,329
% total in top industry8.23%
% total in top two industries14.71%
% total in top five industries26.53%

Analysis

Ideology and leadership

See also: GovTrack's Political Spectrum & Legislative Leadership ranking

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Owens was a centrist Democrat as of August 2014.[37] Owens was rated as a "centrist Democratic follower" in June 2013.

Like-minded colleagues

The website OpenCongress tracks the voting records of each member to determine with whom he or she votes most and least often. The results include a member from each party.[38]

Owens most often voted with:

Owens least often voted with:


Lifetime voting record

See also: Lifetime voting records of United States Senators and Representatives

According to the website GovTrack, Owens missed 67 of 3,515 roll call votes from November 2009 to August 2014. This amounts to 1.9 percent, which is better than the median of 2.5 percent among current congressional representatives as of August 2014.[37]

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Owens paid his congressional staff a total of $799,365 in 2011. Overall, New York ranked 28th in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.[39]

Staff bonuses

According to an analysis by CNN, Owens was one of nearly 25 percent of House members who gave their staff bonuses in 2012. Owens's staff was given an apparent $31,000.00 in bonus money.[40]

National Journal vote ratings

See also: National Journal vote ratings

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted in the previous year. Click the link above for the full ratings of all members of Congress.

2013

Owens ranked 195th in the liberal rankings in 2013.[41]

2012

Owens ranked 169th in the liberal rankings in 2012.[42]

2011

Owens ranked 170th in the liberal rankings in 2011.[43]

Voting with party

The website OpenCongress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus.

2014

Owens voted with the Democratic Party 73.7 percent of the time, which ranked 194th among the 204 House Democratic members as of August 2014.[44]

2013

Owens voted with the Democratic Party 73.7 percent of the time, which ranked 199th among the 201 House Democratic members as of June 2013.[45]

Personal

Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Owens and his wife Jane reside in Plattsburgh, New York. They have three grown children and four grandchildren.[3]

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term Bill + Owens + New York + House


Bill Owens News Feed

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Politico, "New York Democrat Bill Owens to retire from House," January 14, 2014
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, "OWENS, William, (1949 - )," accessed December 23, 2011
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Congressman Bill Owens, Representing New York's 23rd District, "Biography," accessed December 23, 2011
  4. ↑ CQ.com, "House Committee Rosters for the 113th Congress," accessed March 3, 2013
  5. ↑ Congressman Bill Owens, Representing New York's 23rd District, "Committees and Caucuses," accessed December 23, 2011
  6. ↑ Congressional Record, "Resume of Congressional Activity, First Session of the 112th Congress," accessed September 5, 2013
  7. ↑ Congressional Record, "Resume of Congressional Activity, Second Session of the 113th Congress," accessed March 4, 2014
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Project Vote Smart, "Representative Owens' Voting Records on National Security," accessed October 10, 2013
  9. ↑ The Library of Congress, "Bill Summary & Status - 113th Congress (2013 - 2014) - H.R.624," accessed August 27, 2013
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Open Secrets, "Agribusiness and the Farm Bill: Wayward Dems Benefit from Contributions," accessed July 19, 2013
  11. ↑ Clerk of the U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 504," accessed October 31, 2013
  12. ↑ Buzzfeed, "Government Shutdown: How We Got Here," accessed October 1, 2013
  13. ↑ Clerk of the U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 504," accessed October 31, 2013
  14. ↑ The Washington Post, "Reid, McConnell propose bipartisan Senate bill to end shutdown, extend borrowing," accessed October 16, 2013
  15. ↑ U.S. House, "Final vote results for Roll Call 550," accessed October 31, 2013
  16. ↑ The Library of Congress, "H.AMDT.136," accessed August 28, 2013
  17. ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Representative Owens' Voting Records on Immigration," accessed October 10, 2013
  18. ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Representative Owens' Voting Records on Issue: Health and Healthcare," accessed October 10, 2013
  19. ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Owens on abortion," accessed October 10, 2013
  20. ↑ U.S. House, "Roll Call Vote on the Fiscal Cliff," accessed January 4, 2013
  21. ↑ National Republican Congressional Committee, "Owens Breaks 4 Campaign Promises in First Hour in Congress," accessed November 6, 2009
  22. ↑ Politico, "Dem House candidate against public option," accessed August 11, 2009
  23. ↑ Gouverner Times, "Owens Breaks 4 Campaign Promises in first hour in Congress," accessed November 6, 2009
  24. ↑ US House Clerk, "Roll Call 165," March 21, 2010
  25. ↑ Rasmussen, "61% Favor Repeal of Healthcare Law," accessed September 20, 2010
  26. ↑ Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, "DCCC Chairman Steve Israel Announces 2013-2014 Frontline Members," accessed March 5, 2013
  27. ↑ Post Star, "GOP sues to remove Owens from third-party ballot line," May 1, 2012
  28. ↑ AP/CSPAN, "New York-Summary Vote Report," June 26, 2012
  29. ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, New York," accessed November 7, 2012
  30. ↑ U.S. Congress House Clerk, "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 2, 2010," accessed March 28, 2013
  31. ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Bill Owens (D-NY), 2012," accessed February 18, 2014
  32. ↑ This figure represents the average annual percentage growth from either 2004 (if the member entered office in 2004 or earlier) or their first year in office (as noted in the chart below) to 2012, divided by the number of years calculated.
  33. ↑ This number was found by dividing each member's total net worth growth percentage by the number of years included in the calculation.
  34. ↑ This figure represents the total percentage growth divided by the number of years for which there are net worth figures for each member.
  35. ↑ This figure was calculated using median asset data from the Census Bureau. Please see the Congressional Net Worth data for Ballotpedia spreadsheet for more information on this calculation.
  36. ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Rep. Bill Owens," accessed September 26, 2014
  37. ↑ 37.0 37.1 GovTrack, "William Owens," accessed August 11, 2014
  38. ↑ OpenCongress, "Bill Owens," accessed August 11, 2014
  39. ↑ LegiStorm, "Bill Owens," accessed October 1, 2012
  40. ↑ CNN Politics, "Congressional bonuses in a time of cuts," accessed March 8, 2013
  41. ↑ National Journal, "2013 Congressional Vote Ratings," accessed August 11, 2014
  42. ↑ National Journal, "2012 Congressional Vote Ratings," accessed March 6, 2013
  43. ↑ National Journal, "Searchable Vote Ratings Tables: House," accessed February 23, 2012
  44. ↑ OpenCongress, "Voting With Party," accessed July 2014
  45. ↑ OpenCongress, "Voting With Party," accessed July 2014
Political offices
Preceded by
Paul Tonko 		U.S. House of Representatives - New York, District 21
2013–2015 		Succeeded by
Elise Stefanik
Preceded by
John McHugh 		U.S. House of Representatives - New York, District 23
2009–2013 		Succeeded by
Tom Reed


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