3rd Congressional District Candidate: Dan Lipinski

Democrat Dan Lipinski is running for 3rd Congressional District seat. On the ballot, you will be able to vote for one of four candidates: Lipinski, Charles Hughes, Rush Darwish and Marie Newman. You can find Hughes’ answers to the Patch candidate questionnaire below:

Incumbent Daniel Lipinski is running U.S. House seat in the 3rd Congressional District.

Age (as of Election Day)

53

Town/City of Residence

Western Springs

Office Sought

U.S. House 3rd Congressional District

Party Affiliation

Democrat

Family

Wife - Judy, Father - Bill, Mother- Rose Marie, Sister - Laura

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

My father, William Lipinski, is a former Congressman. He's a State lobbyist for CTA, Metra, and Bedford Park

Education

B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Northwestern University; M.S. in Engineering-Economic Systems from Stanford University; Ph.D. in Political Science from Duke University

Occupation

U.S. Representative (8th term), former university professor, former congressional staff member

Campaign website

lipinskiforcongress.com

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

U.S. Congressman

The single most pressing issue facing the 3rd District and what I intend to do about it.

The high and rising cost of healthcare is a major burden for many Americans. I have made it a priority since I was first elected to work on making healthcare more affordable. We need a thoughtful, multi-faceted approach to healthcare reform that addresses costs while protecting access and coverage choices. Balancing these priorities while working to lower insurance premiums and bring down hospital, doctor, and prescription drug costs is achievable, but there’s no easy solution.

The Affordable Care Act is flawed, but I’ve fought against attempts to repeal it and worked extensively to make improvements so that insurance through the exchanges would be truly affordable. One action the federal government can take to lower premiums in the ACA by 25-30% is creating a reinsurance program and guaranteeing the “cost sharing reduction” payments to insurers. I worked in the bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus to develop legislation to do this. Another action the federal government can take is permitting the 14 remaining non-Medicaid expansion states to be eligible for enhanced funding for Medicaid expansion without the initial time constraints that were originally imposed in the ACA. This will especially benefit single adults who struggle with mental illness as well as other vulnerable populations. This year I helped the House pass H.R. 987, the Strengthening Health Care and Lowering Prescription Drug Costs Act, which helps states set up their own insurance marketplaces, expands funding for marketing/public awareness efforts for the ACA, and rescinds an Administration rule promoting junk plans. I will continue to work on these and other provisions to make the ACA more affordable.

For working families and seniors in my district and across the country, the skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs remains a real crisis. In 2019, I introduced legislation (H.R. 5039) to lower the cost of life-sustaining drugs for seniors and others on Medicare by allowing the Secretary of Health and Human Services to leverage the purchasing power of the federal government along with prescription drug pricing data from other developed nations to ensure patients receive better pricing and are not being excessively charged for vital life-sustaining medications like insulin, EpiPens, and anti-seizure medications. Recently, I helped pass H.R. 3, the Lower Drug Costs Now Act, to make prescription drugs more affordable for working families and seniors by stopping Americans from having to pay more for their medications than what pharmaceutical companies charge for the same drugs in other countries. And there is more that Congress can do to fight high drug prices.

There are many other ways to bring down the cost of healthcare. We need to put an end to expensive surprise medical billing practices through proposals that maximize healthcare savings for patients, lower insurance premiums, and provide meaningful deficit reduction to the federal government at the same time. Recently I led an organized effort with other House members to call on House and Senate leadership to allow a vote on legislation to protect patients from surprise billing. Ending this practice will take the patient out of the middle of payment disputes between insurers and out-of-network providers in situations where there is no real opportunity for the patient to choose in-network care. This could save taxpayers anywhere from $9 billion to $25 billion, according to Congressional Budget Office estimates.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I am a problem solver who cooperatively develops commonsense solutions to problems faced by my constituents and our nation, enabling me to deliver results. My opponents offer unworkable, harmful schemes and would only add to the divisive extremism and gridlock in Washington that is hurting our nation.

I’ve been able to accomplish so much for my constituents and America’s middle class because I’m not afraid to roll up my sleeves and work with others regardless of party or ideology and get things done. I’m a workhorse, not a show horse, who listens to all sides, studies issues thoroughly, and develops workable solutions. Through my top-notch staff, I have helped thousands of constituents from all communities in the district solve problems they have faced, from getting a senior her proper Social Security benefit, to getting a veteran his service medals, to getting an immigrant her citizenship. Just in the past two years I helped deliver $150 million for a long-awaited rail underpass in Chicago and $6 million for an air traffic control tower in Romeoville, helped improve Metra service in the western suburbs and CTA service on Archer Avenue, helped end cancer-causing EtO emissions from Sterigenics, helped solve flooding issues in La Grange, helped protect a Bridgeview community, helped improve safety on a downtown Lockport rail line, and helped get new, heated Metra commuter shelters in Summit and Beverly.

Much of the disastrous gridlock in our country can be attributed to a hyper-partisan system in Washington that rewards party loyalty and punishes bipartisan cooperation as well as a national political system that rewards extremism over compromise. The public suffers most when the parties antagonize one another and commonsense policies are immediately dismissed just because they originated in the opposition party. I’m a proud member of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus and the work we’ve done to begin opening up the legislative process and empowering rank-and-file members to make lawmaking less top-down driven and more representative of the American people.

The high and continually rising cost of healthcare is a burden for most Americans, especially working-class families. I have fought to defend the vital provisions of the ACA, jettison the harmful pieces, and make it work better for middle-class families through bipartisan legislation that would bring down premiums. I have fought to bring down the cost of prescription drugs including introducing a bill to lower the cost of life-sustaining medications and helping the House pass H.R. 3 to stop Americans from having to pay more for their medications than what pharmaceutical companies charge for the same drugs in other countries. I have also worked to eliminate surprise billing at hospitals that would save tens of billions of dollars. These are some of the ways that we will realistically begin to make healthcare more affordable for Americans and I will continue to work with my Democratic colleagues - and Republican colleagues willing to help - to make it happen.

My opponent who gets the most attention, Marie Newman, favors a plan which would abolish private insurance and have the government take over that role. All of the 177 million Americans who have private insurance would lose their plan and Medicare would be eliminated for seniors. This extreme plan would require a doubling of every federal tax, not just income tax, to pay the cost which is estimated at $32.6 trillion over ten years. The impact on the entire system of providers including doctors, hospitals, and other healthcare facilities would be severe.

I have also long been a leader on sensible climate change issues in Congress and am an active member of the House Climate Solutions Caucus. In 2007, the first two bills I authored that became law both addressed climate change. One required the federal government to install energy efficient lightbulbs and light fixtures in federal office buildings and the other created the H-Prize to promote the development of hydrogen as a clean fuel for transportation. In 2009, I helped introduce the first bipartisan bill to institute a fee on carbon emissions to fight climate change and earlier this year I introduced with bipartisan support H.R. 3966, the Raise Wages, Cut Carbon Act, which establishes a fee on greenhouse gas emissions and returns all the revenue generated to the American people. You can read more in Question 9 about my leadership on the issue of climate change.

My opponents instead offer a plan that would cost American taxpayers between $50 and $93 trillion over ten years. Since the federal government currently raises about $3.2 trillion dollars a year in taxes, this would mean every federal tax would have to triple to pay for this plan. Climate change is a serious issue that demands serious solutions.

These are two examples of critical issues that we face and the differences between my commonsense, problem-solver approach and the unworkable extremist approaches of my opponents that would simply create more gridlock and division in our nation as the problems grew and Americans suffered.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Improving Local Transportation

Our region is a transportation hub for the nation but we have some of the country’s worst congestion on our roads, rails, and airports, which means lost time with friends and family and a less competitive economy. As the most senior member from Illinois on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and Chair of the Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, I am in a good position to continue my leadership improving our local transportation system. Over the years I have brought back over $600 million in federal funds for local transportation projects for roads, bridges, public transit, rail, and bikes/pedestrians. After serving as a co-chair of Governor Pritzker’s Infrastructure transition team, I was able to work with state and local officials to get $150 million to build a long-awaited underpass at rail crossings at Harlem Avenue and 63rd and/or 65th Street and $6 million to build an air traffic control tower at Lewis University Airport in Romeoville. In January, the House will begin its work on a new long-term federal road, transit, and rail funding bill and my key position on the Transportation Committee will give me the opportunity to provide more federal help to fix and expand our local surface transportation system.

I have been a tireless advocate for public transit in our region, helping to increase federal funding for public transportation infrastructure. As Chair of the Subcommittee on Rail, I will build upon the work I have already done for commuter rail such as provision in a transportation funding bill that directs the Federal Railroad Administration to identify potential issues contributing to the frequency and length of delays on Metra trains, and develop recommendations on addressing these challenges. I will continue to hold hearings to call out and pressure Metra, freight railroads, and Amtrak to provide better commuter rail service.

Sitting on the Aviation Subcommittee, over the years I have been able to help deliver tens of millions of dollars for safety improvements and other projects at Midway Airport which sits in the heart of the Third District. It is critical that Midway continue to be an economic engine in the region and that the safety of passengers and the surrounding neighborhood is protected. I will also continue to work to keep the modernization of O’Hare Airport moving forward. While the Chicago Ship and Sanitary Canal and the Cal-Sag Channel are often unnoticed, they are vital inland waterways in the Third District. I continue to work to provide funding for infrastructure to stop Asian Carp from proceeding up the Canal so that we can keep commerce that is important for local jobs flowing on the waterway.

Growing Good-Paying Jobs

Throughout my time in Congress I have been focused on growing American manufacturing jobs. Manufacturing built America and the middle class, and if we’re going to rebuild the middle class we need to boost American manufacturing. That’s why I authored the American Manufacturing Competitiveness Act, which required the establishment of a comprehensive manufacturing strategy for the first time since Alexander Hamilton. The first plan was published in 2018, and every four years a revised plan will be created. Manufacturing is no longer only old-style heavy manufacturing but also advanced manufacturing where America can use cutting edge technology and our innovative spirit to make the products of the future. We can also promote the creation of good-paying manufacturing jobs through the promotion of Buy American policies, which assure that when the federal government spends taxpayer money it is investing in American-made goods and American workers. I have been successful in adding Buy American provisions to numerous pieces of legislation and have introduced the Buy American Improvement Act to expand made-in-America requirements to more federal programs and to close loopholes in current policy.

We also must continue to invest in research that will help produce continued technological advancement and prepare and train our workforce so that we have the skilled employees to keep America at the forefront of innovation. To help with this important issue, I helped create the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program and have helped expand this highly successful initiative that bridges the divide between the research and start-up sector by educating scientists and engineers about how to turn their laboratory research into new products and services. This helps to drive innovation, spur small business development, and create new jobs to increase America’s competitiveness. Since 2012, I-Corps has trained over 1,300 teams, led to the formation of 644 startup companies, and resulted in over $300 million in follow-on funding raised.

The manufacturing sector needs a new model for trade that protects American workers. Middle-class Americans have suffered from bad trade deals made over the past 25 years and manufacturing has been particularly hard hit. These agreements have contributed significantly to stagnant wages. I helped lead the fight that killed the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), which would have been the biggest trade deal in history and would have led to more disastrous job losses. Last month I helped the House pass the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to replace NAFTA. This was a tough vote for me, but I ultimately decided to support the agreement because, while it has flaws, it is an improvement over the disastrous NAFTA and establishes a floor plan to build from that protects American workers and tries to force Mexico to uphold labor standards that won’t undercut American workers. I joined with my House Democratic colleagues to apply the pressure that helped make this agreement much better from what was originally negotiated. While I do not have confidence in how President Trump is approaching China on the trade issue, I am happy that he is addressing the issue of China’s unfair trading practices and will support good policy that helps American workers against further outsourcing of jobs.

There is significant work that needs to be done to ensure we have effective systems in place to help new graduates, unemployed adults, and returning military veterans choose and succeed in careers. Identifying and promoting available opportunities for real-life job training, especially for in-demand careers, is important. We need to prioritize the creation of new pathways to careers with an emphasis on providing students with job skills before they graduate from high school. The federal government needs to continue working collaboratively with businesses, education leaders, and state and local policymakers to build upon the existing programs and conduct outreach about opportunities. I have been active in promoting apprenticeships in fields that have not traditionally provided such opportunities.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I've authored almost 20 laws including initiatives that boost American manufacturing jobs, protect the environment and fight climate change, empower victims of sexual assault, spur American technological innovation, honor veterans, and safeguard consumers. I've done this by bringing people together to develop solutions, including through my membership on the bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus. I've brought home over $600 million in federal money to improve local transportation including funding for roads, bridges, public transportation, bike/ped, and airports. These projects improved local quality of life by creating jobs and helping ease congestion. I've also been able to get Metra service added to the Heritage Corridor and Southwest Service Lines, as well as getting additional CTA bus service for constituents.

As chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials, I've worked tirelessly to improve America’s transportation system and led efforts to increase funding for roads, mass transit, bike/ped, and airports. I have helped to maintain the vitality and safety of Midway Airport by securing more than $30 million for safety enhancements at the airport. I've also been the leading advocate for the CREATE rail modernization program, a public-private partnership to reduce rail and road congestion throughout the Chicago region. To fight for better funding for public transit, I founded the Congressional Public Transit Caucus.

If you win this position, what accomplishment would make your term in office as a success?

In this term, I have been able to get many local projects for communities across the district completed or funded by working collaboratively with elected officials at all levels, as well as local organizations and community members. In the past year alone, I helped deliver $150 million for a long-awaited rail underpass in Chicago and $6 million for an air traffic control tower in Romeoville, end cancer-causing EtO emissions from Sterigenics, improve Metra service in the western suburbs and CTA service on Archer Avenue, solve flooding issues in La Grange, protect a Bridgeview community with a new wall next to a railroad and highway, improve safety on a downtown Lockport rail line, and get new, heated Metra commuter shelters in Summit and Beverly.

With regard to legislative work, one of my proudest accomplishments was being part of a small group of members who were able to get changes made to House rules so that for the first time in many decades some power was moved away from the Speaker to rank-and-file members. The changes were based on the “Break the Gridlock” package I worked on with the bipartisan House Problem Solvers Caucus and adopted after a group of us made clear that we would base our support for Speaker candidates on willingness to enact reforms.

One change was the creation of the House Consensus Calendar. Sometimes popular bills get stuck in committee because a committee chair or House leadership don’t support it. Under the new rule, if a bill reaches 290 cosponsors it is placed onto the Consensus Calendar. Simply having the Consensus Calendar available has given rank-and-file members the threat of bringing a bill to the floor without the Speaker’s consent. Thanks to this change, my colleagues and I ensured a House vote on the repeal of an onerous 40% excise tax on certain job-based health plans enacted in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). As many as 25% of workers with job-based health plans could have been affected by this tax by 2025. After the House vote, repeal of this tax was included in a 2019 year-end legislative package and enacted into law.

Continuing to deliver for my constituents and making government more representative of the American people would make my next term a success.

Why should voters trust you?

The value of serving others was instilled in me from an early age. At home, in school, and at church, I was inspired toward public service. That is why I became a teacher and then ran for Congress. As a member of Congress my job is very complex, but it is guided by the simple principle of doing what I can to help others.

I’ve always made it a top priority to provide the best possible casework for my constituents and my staff has helped thousands of district residents with issues related to Social Security, Medicare, veterans benefits, immigration, low-income heating assistance, and myriad other issues. My staff holds regular hours at 4 different offices throughout the expansive Third Congressional District to ensure every community has the access they need to have their issues addressed.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

Since I was first elected to Congress, I have been a leader in the fight to take action against climate change. In 2007, the first two bills I authored that became law both addressed climate change. One required the federal government to install energy efficient light bulbs and light fixtures in federal office buildings, and the other created the H-Prize to promote the development of hydrogen as a clean fuel for transportation. In 2007, I was also a strong backer of the Department of Energy's ARPA-E program (Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy) modeled after the Department of Defense’s ARPA program that funds cutting edge research. The successful ARPA-E program is currently funding research across the country, including a program at Argonne Lab working to produce a breakthrough in innovative battery technology to enable exponential growth in the use of renewable energy. In this Congress, I am co-sponsoring H.R. 4091, which would significantly expand ARPA-E.

In 2009, I helped to introduce the first bipartisan bill to institute a fee on carbon emissions to fight climate change. As an active member of the House Climate Solutions Caucus, I brought a bipartisan group of members of Congress to the House floor to speak on merits of carbon fee legislation. Earlier this year I introduced with bipartisan support H.R. 3966, the Raise Wages, Cut Carbon Act, which establishes a fee on greenhouse gas emissions and returns all the revenue generated by cutting payroll taxes, increasing Social Security benefits, and increasing funding for weatherization programs and low-income home energy assistance. According to the IMF, a fee on carbon is the most powerful and efficient way to fight climate change.

Additionally, in the current Congress, I am leading H.R. 3100 directing the Department of Energy to establish a prize challenge competition to address climate change, as well as co-sponsoring a number of climate-change related bills including H.R. 1166, the USE IT Act, to promote carbon emissions capture and H.R. 978, the Clean and Efficient Cars Act, to reduce transportation emissions. I believe that the U.S. should recommit to international emissions reduction goals as outlined in the Paris Agreement and was proud to vote for H.R. 9 and support its passage in the House of Representatives.

Addressing climate change requires long-term and sustained global action. The United States must take a leading role in addressing climate change and reaffirm its commitment to the Paris Climate Change agreement as well as move ahead with the Clean Power Plan. I support the 100% Clean Economy Act (H.R. 5221), which directs the federal government to develop a plan to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030. Technology developments that help existing industries transition to lower emissions have the added benefit of stimulating our economy and creating new jobs.