Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard is the first Mexican-American woman elected to Congress and represents California’s 40th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. A political pioneer, she is the first Latina to serve on the House Appropriations Committee, and first Latina to serve as a chair or ranking member on a House Appropriations Subcommittee.
As the ranking Democrat on the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, the congresswoman fights to ensure our homeland security personnel have the resources they need to keep our country safe. Congresswoman Roybal-Allard also serves on two other Appropriations Subcommittees: the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Subcommittee, which oversees federal funding for public education, workforce training, and health care initiatives; and the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee, which oversees federal funding for water and energy infrastructure projects.
Congresswoman Roybal-Allard is an original co-author of the DREAM Act, a bill to ensure undocumented students can get on a path to citizenship, attend college in the United States, and qualify for in-state tuition. The DREAM Act is part of the congresswoman’s larger “Immigration Fairness Agenda”—a package of measures intended to safeguard the rights and dignity of individuals and families impacted by our broken immigration system. Congresswoman Roybal-Allard is also the founder of the Congressional Women’s Working Group on Immigration Reform and a leader in the fight to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation.
As the former Health Task Force Chair for the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, Congresswoman Roybal-Allard championed efforts to pass health care reform, with a focus on improving the quality and affordability of health services. She authored and passed original legislation in 2008—The Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act—to test newborns for treatable genetic disorders. This law has helped to save the lives of thousands of babies and was reauthorized in 2014.
Dedicated to protecting children and teenagers across the country, Congresswoman Roybal-Allard authored the Children’s Act for Responsible Employment (CARE) to address abusive and exploitive child labor practices in agriculture. She also authored the STOP (Sober Truth on Preventing) Underage Drinking Act of 2006 and the Security and Financial Empowerment (SAFE) Act of 2008. The STOP Act creates an interagency coordinating committee to address underage drinking; federal research on underage drinking prevention; and community grants to fight underage drinking. The SAFE Act promotes financial stability and personal security for survivors of domestic violence by establishing emergency leave and employment nondiscrimination provisions.
As one of South Los Angeles’ representatives in Congress, Congresswoman Roybal-Allard worked with the South Los Angeles Transit Empowerment Zone (SLATE-Z) collaborative, and other local leaders for nearly two years to advocate for a Promise Zone designation for South LA. On June 6, 2016, South Los Angeles received the federal designation which means that the federal government will help South LA leaders implement a comprehensive strategy to create jobs and educational opportunities, reduce violent crime, and strengthen the local economy. This help will be provided through access to grantee networks, preference points, technical assistance, and additional benefits from a range of federal programs.