John Boehner’s ascent to Majority Leader could mean San Bernardino County gets a third House
Chairman: Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (pictured right). This would be in addition to Rules Chairman David Dreier and Appropriations Chairman Jerry Lewis.
Boehner is the current chairman of the Education and Workforce Committee. The post would have come up in ’07 or ’08, but is now open. The current Vice Chair of Education is Tom Petri of Wisconsin, who is the Ranking Member of Transportation and Infrastructure, and who is in line to take over that committee in the next Congress.
The Education and Workforce Committee is important because it oversees the Department of Education and the Department of Labor. It will continue to be a key committee because, among other reasons, it will have oversight over "No Child Left Behind" when provisions kick in during 2008 possibly resulting in takeover of failing schools by states, charter schools, or ultimately the federal government.
A former school board member from Santa Clarita in Los Angeles County, McKeon is currently Chairman of the Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness, whose legislative and oversight turf includes the Workforce Investment Act. That Act was largely responsible for ending welfare as we know it. First elected in 1992, McKeon is a popular, active member and a conservative.