House

Diane Black named interim Budget chair

Rep. Diane Black (R-Tenn.) on Tuesday was named the interim House Budget Committee chair.

Black will assume the role in place of Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.), whom President-elect Donald Trump has picked to lead the Department of Health and Human Services.

Black said in a statement that the passage of ObamaCare is the reason she ran for Congress.

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“As interim Chairman for the House Budget Committee, I am ready to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to repeal this law that has burdened families and businesses and turn the page to a new healthcare system that lowers costs, spurs free market competition, and ultimately empowers patients — not Washington bureaucrats,” she said.

“I look forward to bringing my decades in healthcare as a registered nurse, my insight as a Member of the Ways and Means Committee, and my unique experience navigating Tennessee’s own health reform crisis to this role.”
 
Black is one of few women atop House panels in the new Congress, joining Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.), the incoming Education and Workforce Committee chair, and Rep. Susan Brooks (R-Ind.), who is helming the Ethics Committee.
 
If Price is confirmed, the Republican Steering Committee would then choose someone to permanently serve in the position.
 
A report last month said Black was a leading candidate to chair the House Budget Committee.
 
The committee is charged with producing an annual budget resolution and will play a critical role this year as Republicans look to enact an ambitious agenda with control of the White House and Congress.
 
The next chairman will oversee what’s expected to be one of the most productive and most complex budget years in recent memory.