Chairman Lou Barletta

Born and raised in Hazleton, Representative Barletta started a line-painting business with his wife for $29.95 which they grew to the largest of its kind in Pennsylvania within 5 years. Seeing how difficult it could be for small businesses, Barletta decided to get involved to try and help fix the problems. After first being elected to City Council Barletta was then elected Mayor of Hazleton, a position he held for nearly 10 years.

During his time as mayor, Barletta turned a massive budget shortfall into a surplus and became a leader on the issue of illegal immigration. Barletta gained statewide and national attention as a mayor being voted Pennsylvania Mayor of the year by Pennsylvania State Mayors Association and an appointment by the White House to serve on the United Nations Advisory Committee of Local Authorities as the representative of the United States of America.

On his third attempt, Barletta was elected to Congress where he then won re-election three times. He served on three House committees: the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, where he served as the Chairman of the Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management Subcommittee; the House Homeland Security Committee, where he served on the Counter-Terrorism and Intelligence subcommittee; and the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, where he served on both the Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee, and the Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee.

In 2018 after being asked to run by President Trump, Barletta made the decision to run for United States Senate in Pennsylvania. Though he did not win the election, the opportunity to travel to Pennsylvania for a year meeting local elected officials and business owners was an invaluable experience.