26 Facts About Pete Aguilar

Peter Rey Aguilar is an American politician who has been chair of the House Democratic Caucus since 2023.

Pete Aguilar has been the US representative for California's 33rd congressional district since 2015.

Pete Aguilar served as mayor of Redlands, California, from 2010 to 2014, and as the president of the Inland Empire Division of the League of California Cities.

Pete Aguilar was born in Fontana, California, and grew up in a working-class family in San Bernardino, California.

Pete Aguilar graduated from the University of Redlands, where he studied government and business administration.

Pete Aguilar began his career in public service in 2001 when then-California Governor Gray Davis appointed him Deputy Director of the Inland Empire Regional Office of the governor, eventually becoming the Interim Director.

In 2006, Pete Aguilar became the youngest member of the Redlands City Council in the city's history when five council members, Democrat and Republican, picked him out of 11 candidates to fill an open seat.

In January 2012, Pete Aguilar announced he would run for the seat held by incumbent Republican Gary Miller.

Pete Aguilar was elected Vice chair of the House Democratic Caucus.

Pete Aguilar defeated Republican John Mark Porter and won re-eletion during the 2022 election cycle.

Pete Aguilar was elected as House Democratic Caucus Chairman, becoming the highest ranking latino-American in congress, in congressional history.

Pete Aguilar has supported legislation to attract individuals in the cybersecurity field to join the military; prevent discrimination against LGBT people by government contractors; provide funding for homeless veterans; and provide funding for research into opioid addiction.

Pete Aguilar has introduced the Grace Period Alleviation Act, which would give college graduates an optional grace period before beginning to repay certain types of loans.

Pete Aguilar has vowed to fight the repeal of the Affordable Care Act and to protect women's reproductive rights.

Pete Aguilar introduced the Academic Success Centers and Education Networks for Dreamers Act, which would establish grants for college and university programs and services to benefit undocumented students.

In 2018, with Representative Will Hurd, Pete Aguilar authored legislation that would provide a path to citizenship for DACA recipients and address border protection concerns.

Pete Aguilar released a job-creation initiative for his district that includes cutting taxes on small businesses, investing in infrastructure, expanding job-training programs, expanding Pell Grants, increasing the minimum wage, and equal pay for women.

Pete Aguilar has introduced a number of bills focusing on small businesses, including legislation to provide tax credits to small businesses for on-the-job training expenses, tax credits for small business for full-time newly hired employees, legislation to make it easier for small businesses to repay loans, and legislation making it easier for small businesses to advertise job openings.

In 2017, Pete Aguilar introduced a bill that would provide active-duty service members and reservists access to training for commercial drivers' licenses granted by the FAST Act.

Pete Aguilar authored the Active Duty Voluntary Acquisition of Necessary Credentials for Employment Act and the OPPORTUNITY Act, both of which Trump signed into law in 2018.

Pete Aguilar introduced the Displaced Jobs Relief Act, which increases authorization of funds for the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Firms program to help businesses that have been negatively affected by trade.

Pete Aguilar has urged the United States International Trade Commission to find that imported steel subsidized by Korea, Mexico and Turkey creates unfair competition and hurts steel manufacturers in his district.

Pete Aguilar has advocated for reforms to curb gun violence by closing loopholes that terrorists have used to obtain guns and banning assault weapons.

Pete Aguilar then became vice chair in the 117th Congress and voted in as Chair in the 118th Congress.

Pete Aguilar has obtained nearly $5.3 million in contributions from individuals.

In 2022, Pete Aguilar was one of 16 Democrats to vote against the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022, an antitrust package that would crack down on corporations' anti-competitive behavior.