Anna Eshoo
202-225-8104
205 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-0514
650-328-3700
555 Bryant Street
PMB 335
Palo Alto, CA 94301
205 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515-0514
650-328-3700
555 Bryant Street
PMB 335
Palo Alto, CA 94301
Biography
ESHOO, Anna Georges, a Representative from California; born in New Britain, Hartford County, Conn., December 13, 1942; A.A., Canada College, Redwood City, Calif., 1975; Democratic National Committeewoman from California, 1980-1992; administrative assistant to the speaker pro tempore of the California state assembly, 1981-1982; member of the San Mateo County, Calif., board of supervisors, 1983-1992, president, 1986; member, California Democratic State Central Executive Committee; member, Democratic National Commission on Presidential Nominations, 1982; unsuccessful candidate for election to the One Hundred First Congress in 1988; elected as a Democrat to the One Hundred Third and to the six succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1993-present).
Committees
- Member, House Committee on Energy and Commerce
- Member, Subcommittee on Health
- Member, Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet
- Member, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
- Chairman, Subcommittee on Intelligence Community Management
CANDIDATE QUESTIONNAIRE
Compare Innovation & the Elections 2008 responses for CA-14.
SEA and eighteen other science organizations have come together to ask the 2008 congressional candidates seven questions on science and technology policy. See what Anna Eshoo has said:
Innovation
Science and technology have been responsible for half of the growth of the American economy since World War II. But several recent reports question America’s continued leadership in these vital areas. What policies would you support to ensure that America remains the world leader in innovation?
In November 2005 I joined with House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and other colleagues to launch the Innovation Agenda: A Commitment to Competitiveness to Keep America #1. This agenda was developed after consultation with America's leaders in high-technology, biotechnology, venture capital, and academia. It was launched in my Congressional District at Stanford University. Subsequent meetings were held around the country with private-sector leaders to develop a plan for our nation to remain competitive. Many policies outlined by the Innovation Agenda were authorized by the America COMPETES Act (P.L 110-289). I support fully funding the priorities set by this landmark legislation.
The cornerstone of innovation is science education. We must maintain a robust pipeline of talent to ensure that the United States will continue to lead in technology development.
The research and development tax credit is an important incentive for private investment in research and helps drive innovation. I have consistently fought to make the R&D tax credit permanent. Companies need certainty on this tax benefit to plan their long term research strategies.
Immigration reform is an important step to ensure that America maintains its leadership in innovation. Attracting the world’s most talented scientists is vital to academic and industrial research. We must increase the H-1B visa cap and provide a pathway to citizenship.
We must continue to invest in basic research and provide policies to foster public/private partnerships. Basic research provides the fundamental knowledge that leads to new discoveries, but the private sector’s expertise in bringing new technologies to market is equally important. We must continue to foster these mutually beneficial relationships. Google recently partnered with NASA for a research facility at Ames Research Center. I support policies that will encourage these types of partnerships and take research and development in creative new directions.
The cornerstone of innovation is science education. We must maintain a robust pipeline of talent to ensure that the United States will continue to lead in technology development.
The research and development tax credit is an important incentive for private investment in research and helps drive innovation. I have consistently fought to make the R&D tax credit permanent. Companies need certainty on this tax benefit to plan their long term research strategies.
Immigration reform is an important step to ensure that America maintains its leadership in innovation. Attracting the world’s most talented scientists is vital to academic and industrial research. We must increase the H-1B visa cap and provide a pathway to citizenship.
We must continue to invest in basic research and provide policies to foster public/private partnerships. Basic research provides the fundamental knowledge that leads to new discoveries, but the private sector’s expertise in bringing new technologies to market is equally important. We must continue to foster these mutually beneficial relationships. Google recently partnered with NASA for a research facility at Ames Research Center. I support policies that will encourage these types of partnerships and take research and development in creative new directions.
Climate Change
The Earth’s climate is changing and there is concern about the potentially adverse effects of these changes on life on the planet. What is your position on the following measures that have been proposed to address global climate change—a cap-and-trade system, a carbon tax, increased fuel-economy standards, and research? Are there other policies you would support?
As an original cosponsor of H.R. 1590, the Safe Climate Act, I am a strong supporter of legislation to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate climate change. Implementing a robust cap-and-trade system will not only reduce emissions but provide incentives for the development of clean energy technologies and practices.
I strongly support increasing fuel-economy standards and have consistently voted to increase EPA requirements during my tenure in Congress. Improving efficiency is the fastest way to reduce our fuel consumption and corresponding emissions, and increasing CAFE standards was a significant accomplishment by this Congress. The transportation sector is responsible for almost a third of greenhouse gas emissions, so raising the fuel-economy standards to 35 miles per gallon will go a long way to reduce harmful emissions from the transportation sector.
I am also a strong supporter of investing in research that will deliver new energy and conservation technologies to help mitigate global warming. While I believe that we need to transition to 100% renewable energy, technologies such as carbon capture will have a place in the near term to help reduce our emissions.
I strongly support increasing fuel-economy standards and have consistently voted to increase EPA requirements during my tenure in Congress. Improving efficiency is the fastest way to reduce our fuel consumption and corresponding emissions, and increasing CAFE standards was a significant accomplishment by this Congress. The transportation sector is responsible for almost a third of greenhouse gas emissions, so raising the fuel-economy standards to 35 miles per gallon will go a long way to reduce harmful emissions from the transportation sector.
I am also a strong supporter of investing in research that will deliver new energy and conservation technologies to help mitigate global warming. While I believe that we need to transition to 100% renewable energy, technologies such as carbon capture will have a place in the near term to help reduce our emissions.
Energy
Many scientists and policymakers say energy security and sustainability are major problems facing the United States this century. What policies would you support to meet the demand for energy while ensuring an economically and environmentally sustainable future?
We need to aggressively pursue renewable energy technologies. Solar, wind, geothermal, biofuels, fuel cells, plug-in hybrid vehicles, cellulosic biofuels and many other technologies will all play important roles in breaking our dependence on oil and other fossil fuels. Many of these technologies are ready today, but we lack federal policies to encourage their adoption. We must provide long term renewable energy tax credits to accelerate the development of this growing industry.
We know we cannot drill our way to independence from oil. Opening up the Outer Continental Shelf and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to new drilling will not address our current energy needs and would do little in the future. Oil and gas companies should utilize the 68 million acres of unused land that is already leased, rather than authorizing new leases in environmentally sensitive regions.
I support policies to improve energy efficiency across all sectors to quickly and significantly reduce our energy consumption. We need to continue to fund research in this area to improve lighting, building technologies, and other innovations that will reduce our energy use. This will ease the pressure on our energy supplies while we expand our utilization of renewable energy sources.
We must continue to invest in energy research. I strongly supported the authorization for the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) in the America COMPETES Act (P.L. 110-289). The creative research that ARPA-E will support promises major breakthrough energy technologies.
We know we cannot drill our way to independence from oil. Opening up the Outer Continental Shelf and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to new drilling will not address our current energy needs and would do little in the future. Oil and gas companies should utilize the 68 million acres of unused land that is already leased, rather than authorizing new leases in environmentally sensitive regions.
I support policies to improve energy efficiency across all sectors to quickly and significantly reduce our energy consumption. We need to continue to fund research in this area to improve lighting, building technologies, and other innovations that will reduce our energy use. This will ease the pressure on our energy supplies while we expand our utilization of renewable energy sources.
We must continue to invest in energy research. I strongly supported the authorization for the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) in the America COMPETES Act (P.L. 110-289). The creative research that ARPA-E will support promises major breakthrough energy technologies.
Education
A comparison of 15-year-olds in 30 wealthy nations found that average science scores among U.S. students ranked 17th, while average U.S. math scores ranked 24th. What role do you think the federal government should play in preparing K-12 students for the science and technology driven 21st Century?
The federal government must play a major role to ensure that American students are competitive in the global economy of the 21st Century. I’ve been a leader in the development of the Innovation Agenda, a plan put forward by House Democrats to prepare students to excel in the math and science fields.
The agenda calls for educating 100,000 new scientists, engineers, and mathematicians in the next four years by proposing a new initiative, working with states, businesses, and universities, to provide scholarships to qualified students who commit to working in the fields of innovation. It places a highly qualified teacher in every math and science K-12 classroom by offering upfront tuition assistance to talented undergraduates and by paying competitive salaries to established teachers working in the fields of math and science; institute a "call to action" to professional engineers and scientists, including those who have retired, to join the ranks of our nation's teachers.
The agenda calls for educating 100,000 new scientists, engineers, and mathematicians in the next four years by proposing a new initiative, working with states, businesses, and universities, to provide scholarships to qualified students who commit to working in the fields of innovation. It places a highly qualified teacher in every math and science K-12 classroom by offering upfront tuition assistance to talented undergraduates and by paying competitive salaries to established teachers working in the fields of math and science; institute a "call to action" to professional engineers and scientists, including those who have retired, to join the ranks of our nation's teachers.
Water
Thirty-nine states expect some level of water shortage over the next decade, and scientific studies suggest that a majority of our water resources are at risk. What policies would you support to meet demand for water resources?
Managing water resources has been an ongoing challenge for California and other parts of the country. Climate change will make resource management and conservation even more important worldwide. A major emphasis on conservation and implementing new technologies to assist in those efforts is needed.
I support policies that promote reusing water, such as the Bay Area Regional Water Recycling Program. One of the participating projects in my district, the Moffett Area Reclaimed Water Pipeline, will provide recycled water for irrigation in the cities of Palo Alto and Mountain View. We need to encourage more projects of this type that will ease the burden on our water supplies.
Low water levels and poor river conditions were contributing factors to this year’s catastrophic collapse of the Sacramento River salmon. We need to look closely at our dam and other water management practices to ensure that our water supplies will meet our needs in the future, especially with possible changes in annual precipitation due to climate change.
I support policies that promote reusing water, such as the Bay Area Regional Water Recycling Program. One of the participating projects in my district, the Moffett Area Reclaimed Water Pipeline, will provide recycled water for irrigation in the cities of Palo Alto and Mountain View. We need to encourage more projects of this type that will ease the burden on our water supplies.
Low water levels and poor river conditions were contributing factors to this year’s catastrophic collapse of the Sacramento River salmon. We need to look closely at our dam and other water management practices to ensure that our water supplies will meet our needs in the future, especially with possible changes in annual precipitation due to climate change.
Research
For many years, Congress has recognized the importance of science and engineering research to realizing our national goals. Given that the next Congress will likely face spending constraints, what priority would you give to investment in basic research in upcoming budgets?
Basic research is a critical investment for our nation that I strongly support. Basic research gives us the fundamental science and knowledge that leads to new treatments for diseases and new technologies. I have consistently supported funding increases for research programs at federal agencies including the NIH, NSF, DOE, and NIST. All of our research agencies have gone under-funded by the Bush Administration and I will work with the next administration to boost the research budgets.
Health
Americans are increasingly concerned with the cost, quality, and availability of health care. How do you see science, research, and technology contributing to improved health and quality of life?
Like other sciences, medicine depends on research and innovation to move forward. Despite the critical need, the National Institutes of Health have been flat-funded or cut since FY2003. I support not only increasing funding for the NIH, but doubling its budget.
With 47 million Americans uninsured and healthcare costs far exceeding inflation, the only way to bring costs down is to insure every American. That’s why I’m an original cosponsor of the bipartisan Healthy Americans Act (H.R. 6444). The bill ensures that everyone has health insurance while reducing costs and giving companies incentive to invest in prevention and disease management. Research is particularly important to deliver treatments that cure disease and prevent illnesses.
I’ve also worked hard on Health Information Technology (HIT) legislation to update the medical records system and protect patient privacy. On July 23rd, the Energy and Commerce Committee passed landmark HIT legislation based largely on a bill I introduced last year. H.R. 6357, the Protecting Records, Optimizing Treatment, and Easing Communication through Healthcare Technology Act of 2008 will strengthen healthcare quality, reduce medical errors and costs and protect the privacy and security of patient information in the electronic age. The bill promotes nationwide adoption of HIT infrastructure and establishes incentives for doctors, hospitals, insurers, and the government to exchange health information electronically.
I am an original cosponsor of H.R. 3, the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act, which allows federal support of research utilizing human embryonic stem cells regardless of the date on which the cells were derived. This bill also ensures that this research will be conducted according to strict ethical standards set by the NIH. This critical legislation passed both houses of Congress but was vetoed by President Bush. I look forward to the 111th Congress passing the legislation again and a new President signing it into law.
With 47 million Americans uninsured and healthcare costs far exceeding inflation, the only way to bring costs down is to insure every American. That’s why I’m an original cosponsor of the bipartisan Healthy Americans Act (H.R. 6444). The bill ensures that everyone has health insurance while reducing costs and giving companies incentive to invest in prevention and disease management. Research is particularly important to deliver treatments that cure disease and prevent illnesses.
I’ve also worked hard on Health Information Technology (HIT) legislation to update the medical records system and protect patient privacy. On July 23rd, the Energy and Commerce Committee passed landmark HIT legislation based largely on a bill I introduced last year. H.R. 6357, the Protecting Records, Optimizing Treatment, and Easing Communication through Healthcare Technology Act of 2008 will strengthen healthcare quality, reduce medical errors and costs and protect the privacy and security of patient information in the electronic age. The bill promotes nationwide adoption of HIT infrastructure and establishes incentives for doctors, hospitals, insurers, and the government to exchange health information electronically.
I am an original cosponsor of H.R. 3, the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act, which allows federal support of research utilizing human embryonic stem cells regardless of the date on which the cells were derived. This bill also ensures that this research will be conducted according to strict ethical standards set by the NIH. This critical legislation passed both houses of Congress but was vetoed by President Bush. I look forward to the 111th Congress passing the legislation again and a new President signing it into law.
Login/Register to EditANNA ESHOO ON SCIENCE
Education
- Educational Training
- With a vote of 416-0 the House of Representative approved the Green Energy Education Act of 2007 (H.R. 1716) in June of 2007. The bill will allow the Secretary of Energy to contribute research and development funds to the National Science Foundation for the purpose of supporting graduate education that is related to energy technology. It also authorizes the Secretary to provide funds for the improvement of undergraduate and graduate engineering and architecture curriculum on the design and construction of "high performance buildings." Representative Eshoo voted for this bill. H.R. 1716 was ultimately integrated into the America COMPETES Act (H.R. 2272) which is now law, but was not fully funded in the budget.
- Educational Funding
- Representative Eshoo voted for the 10,000 Teachers, 10 Million Minds Science and Math Scholarship Act (H.R. 362). The legislation will require the National Science Foundation to increase its funding of the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship program with the goal of increasing the number of math and science teachers by up to 10,000 per year. The Noyce program provides scholarships to math, science, technology, and engineering students who commit to becoming teachers upon graduation. The legislation passed with a vote of 389-22.
- Teaching Evolution/Intelligent Design
- Nothing posted to date
Energy
- Fuel Economy Standards
- See discussion of CLEAN Energy Act under Renewable Energy section.
- Nuclear Power
- Nothing posted to date
- Renewable Energy
- In January of 2007, the House of Representatives passed the CLEAN Energy Act of 2007 (H.R. 6). This legislation is intended to address a royalties oversight that occurred when the Department of the Interior issued leases for off-shore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico from 1998 to 1999. The bill would also deny income tax deductions for oil and gas companies. Revenues generated from these provisions would be used for the development of alternative fuels and renewable energy sources. Opponents of the bill claimed that the legislation would raise costs for the domestic production of oil and could increase foreign oil imports. Representative Eshoo voted for this legislation, which passed with a vote of 264-163.
During consideration of H.R. 6 in June of 2007, the Senate changed the focus of the legislation into developing a more comprehensive energy bill that focused on the development of renewable fuels, energy conservation, and increased Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards. In the face of a veto threat from President Bush, the House passed the Senate version of H.R. 6 with amendments by a vote of 235-181 on December 6, 2007. Representative Eshoo voted for this bill. The final Senate rendering of the bill, which passed with a vote of 86-8, still included language raising CAFE standards to 35 mpg by 2020. The final version of the bill passed in the House with a vote of 314-100 and was signed into law by President Bush on December 19, 2007. - In August 2007, Representative Eshoo voted for the final passage of the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2007 (H.R. 3221). The legislation would provide tax incentives to promote the development of renewable energy and energy efficiency, including guaranteeing up to $1 billion in loans for the development of biorefineries and biofuel production facilities. The measure also would repeal tax deductions to income attributed to the domestic production of oil and natural gas. It passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 241-172 and was sent to the Senate.
A controversial amendment to the bill was H. Amdt. 748 sponsored by Representative Udall. This amendment would require retail electric suppliers to provide 15% of their electricity through a renewable energy portfolio standard (RPS) by 2020. Representative Eshoo voted for the amendment, which was adopted with a vote of 220 to 190.
- In January of 2007, the House of Representatives passed the CLEAN Energy Act of 2007 (H.R. 6). This legislation is intended to address a royalties oversight that occurred when the Department of the Interior issued leases for off-shore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico from 1998 to 1999. The bill would also deny income tax deductions for oil and gas companies. Revenues generated from these provisions would be used for the development of alternative fuels and renewable energy sources. Opponents of the bill claimed that the legislation would raise costs for the domestic production of oil and could increase foreign oil imports. Representative Eshoo voted for this legislation, which passed with a vote of 264-163.
Environment
- Nothing posted to date
Climate Change
- Nothing posted to date
Health
- Healthcare
- In April of 2007, the House of Representatives passed the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2007 (H.R. 493) with a vote of 420-3. Representative Eshoo voted for this bill. If enacted, GINA will prevent health insurance companies from adjusting premiums on the basis of genetic information and forbid requiring individuals to undergo genetic tests. The bill will also prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of genetic information. This legislation was passed by the Senate in a vote of 95-0. The House passed the Senate amended version of the bill on May 1, 2008, by a vote of 415-1. Rep Ron Paul was the only representative to vote against the bill. President Bush signed GINA into law on May 21, 2008.
- On July 15, 2008, both Houses of Congress voted to override President Bush’s veto of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (H.R. 6331), a bill to put off an almost 11% cut of payments to doctors who care for Medicare patients. The legislation offset putting off the payment cuts for doctors by reducing reimbursements to insurance companies that include Medicare patients in their managed-care programs.[1] The House voted 383 to 41 in favor of a veto override. Representative Eshoo voted for this legislation.
- Embryonic Stem Cell Research
- In April of 2007, Congress passed the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2007 (S. 5), which would have overturned President Bush's ban on the use of federal funding for research on embryonic stem cell lines created after August 9, 2001. Representative Eshoo voted for the legislation. The bill passed the House of Representatives with a vote of 247-176 and the Senate with a vote of 63-34. President Bush vetoed both this legislation and an identical bill that was passed by Congress in 2006.
- Non-Embryonic Stem Cell Research
- In December 2005, Congress passed the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005 (H.R. 2520), which President Bush signed on December 20, 2005. The law "creates a new Federal program to collect and store cord blood, and expands the current bone marrow registry program to also include cord blood." Representative Eshoo voted for this bill. The legislation passed the House of Representatives with a vote of 431-1 and passed the Senate by unanimous consent.
- On September 25, 2007, the House passed the final version of the “Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act” (H.R. 976) with a vote of 265-169. This bill would have increased funding for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) by $50 billion dollars over five years. Opponents saw the bill as too costly and were critical of the funding methods for the program, including a cigarette tax increase (read the floor debate). Representative Eshoo voted for this legislation.
- On October 3, 2007, President Bush vetoed H.R. 976, citing that the bill moved too many children towards federally funded healthcare. The House attempted to override the President’s veto, but the measure failed to pass with a vote count of 273-156. Representative Eshoo voted for the veto override. On December 29, 2007, President Bush signed the Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (S. 2499) which extends funding for SCHIP through March of 2009, but does not significantly increase the program.
- On January 23, 2008, the House once again failed with a vote of 260-152 to pass H.R. 3963 to override President Bush’s veto of SCHIP. Representative Eshoo voted for this legislation.
Innovation
- On August 9, 2007, President Bush signed the America Creating Opportunities to Meaningfully Promote Excellence in Technology, Education, and Science (COMPETES) Act (H.R. 2272) into law. The law authorizes the doubling of funding for the National Science Foundation over the next seven years, increased funding for the National Institute of Standards and Technology and competitive grants for teachers and schools with the goal of strengthening the quality of education in science, math, and critical foreign languages. The bill was passed with unanimous consent in the Senate and was agreed to by a vote of 367-57 by the House after being reconciled in a conference committee. Representative Eshoo voted for this legislation. The America COMPETES Act was not fully funded in 2008.
Research and Research Management
- Funding
- In May of 2007, Representative Eshoo voted for the final passage of the National Science Foundation Funding Authorization Act of 2007 (H.R. 1867), which authorizes appropriations for the National Science Foundation for the fiscal years 2008, 2009 and 2010. The final vote count was 399 to 17.
During debate on this legislation, H. Amdt. 128 was offered by Rep. Honda that will allow the NSF to support the creation of K-12 curriculum focused on global warming, climate change, and actions people can take to lower greenhouse gas emissions. Rep. Sullivan of Oklahoma offered a secondary amendment, H. Amdt. 129, that would have required the education materials referenced in Rep. Honda’s amendment to "reflect the diversity of scientific opinion, including the diversity of opinion regarding the impact of human activities on climate change." Congressional Democrats criticized the Sullivan amendment as seeming "to suggest that there is an equal weight of evidence against that perspective [that humans are causing climate change] as there is in favor of it" (read the full debate). The Sullivan amendment failed by a vote of 166 to 250. The Honda Amendment passed by a vote of 252 to 165.
Representative Eshoo voted against the Sullivan amendment and voted for the Honda Amendment.
- In May of 2007, Representative Eshoo voted for the final passage of the National Science Foundation Funding Authorization Act of 2007 (H.R. 1867), which authorizes appropriations for the National Science Foundation for the fiscal years 2008, 2009 and 2010. The final vote count was 399 to 17.
Technology
- In the summer of 2008, the House met to consider the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (H.R. 6304), which would give retroactive immunity to telecommunications companies that wiretapped customers’ phones for the Bush administration shortly after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The legislation also allows the warrantless wiretapping of American citizens for up to 7 days before obtaining court approval. The House passed the bill with a vote of 293 to 129, and the legislation was signed by President Bush on July 7, 2008. Representative Eshoo voted against this legislation.
