Allen Boyd
Encyclopedia
Fred Allen Boyd Jr. is the former U.S. Representative
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 for , serving from 1997 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He currently works for a lobbying firm, the Twenty-First Century Group.

Early life, education and career

Boyd was born in Valdosta, Georgia
Valdosta, Georgia
Valdosta is the county seat of Lowndes County, Georgia, United States. It is the principal city of the Valdosta Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total population of 54,518. The Valdosta metropolitan area, according to the 2010 estimate, has a population of 139,588...

 to Margaret Elizabeth Finlayson and Fred Allen Boyd. He was educated at Florida State University
Florida State University
The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...

, where he was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is the only one founded in the Antebellum South...

 fraternity. After graduating in 1969, Boyd served as an infantry officer in Vietnam
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

 with the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

.

Florida House of Representatives

Boyd served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives
Florida House of Representatives
The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida. The House is composed of 120 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 156,677.The House convenes at...

 from 1989 to 1997.

Committee assignments

  • Committee on Appropriations
    United States House Committee on Appropriations
    The Committee on Appropriations is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. It is in charge of setting the specific expenditures of money by the government of the United States...

    • Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies
    • Subcommittee on Defense
      United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense
      The House Subcommittee on Defense is a standing subcommittee within the United States House Committee on Appropriations.-Members, 112th Congress:-External links:* Official page...

    • Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies
  • Committee on the Budget
    United States House Committee on the Budget
    The U.S. House Committee on the Budget, commonly known as the House Budget Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives, the lower house of Congress...



Boyd is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition.

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill

  • On June 14, Boyd held the Joint Oil Spill-Hurricane Planning conference at Florida State University Panama City campus to examine the potential threat of a Gulf of Mexico hurricane colliding with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Federal and state emergency response agenices, representatives from the Coast Guard, Air Force and Navy, and members of the local tourism industry all participated in the day long event.
  • On June 11, Boyd sent a letter to the President of the United States asking him to create a Gulf seafood safety task force to counter growing public perception that all seafood harvested in the Gulf of Mexico is contaminated by oil.
  • In April the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling platform exploded, killing 11 individuals and leaking thousands of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. On May 5, 2010, Boyd introduced legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives that would raise the liability cap on economic damages in oil spills from $75 million to $10 billion. The legislation would alter the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, which was passed after the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill and requires companies to pay for all cleanup costs of spills but only up to $75 million in economic damages.

Health care

  • On March 19, 2010, Boyd announced his support for the Health Care Reform Bill under consideration in the House and Senate.
  • In November 2009, Boyd voted along with 39 other Democrats against the Affordable Health Care for America Act
    Affordable Health Care for America Act
    The Affordable Health Care for America Act was a bill that was crafted by the United States House of Representatives in November 2009. At the encouragement of the Obama administration, the 111th Congress devoted much of its time to enacting reform of the United States' health care system...

    .

2008 financial crisis

  • On December 11, 2009, Boyd voted for the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2009
  • On October 3, 2008, Boyd voted for the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
    Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
    The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (Division A of , commonly referred to as a bailout of the U.S. financial system, is a law enacted in response to the subprime mortgage crisis...

    . He later voted against the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
    American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
    The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, abbreviated ARRA and commonly referred to as the Stimulus or The Recovery Act, is an economic stimulus package enacted by the 111th United States Congress in February 2009 and signed into law on February 17, 2009, by President Barack Obama.To...

    .

Iraq War

  • On October 10, 2002, Allen Boyd was among the 81 House Democrats who voted in favor of authorizing the invasion of Iraq
    2003 invasion of Iraq
    The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...

    .

Drug War

  • On Sep 25, 2001, Boyd voted for HR 2586, an amendment to set up a task force on counter-terrorism and drug interdiction and allow military personnel to help patrol U.S. borders.
  • Voted on Jun 10, 2008 for the Mérida Initiative to Combat Illicit Narcotics and Reduce Organized Crime Authorization Act, providing funding for Mexico to spend on drug prohibition related contracts. Opponents at the time complained this would increase the availability of military trained hit men to the drug cartels.

1996-2008

Boyd entered the 1996 Democratic primary for the 2nd in 1996, after three-term Democratic incumbent Pete Peterson
Pete Peterson
Douglas Brian "Pete" Peterson was a U.S. Air Force pilot who spent over six years as a prisoner of the North Vietnamese Army after his plane was shot down during the Vietnam War. He returned to Hanoi in 1997 as the first United States Ambassador to Vietnam...

 announced his retirement. He led a three-way Democratic primary with 48 percent of the vote, a few thousand votes short of outright victory. He then won the runoff with 64 percent of the vote and easily won the election in November. He was reelected with no major-party opposition in 1998 and defeated an underfunded Republican in 2000.

In 2002, however, the Republican-controlled state legislature significantly altered Boyd's district. Part of Tallahassee, which has anchored the district since its formation in 1963 (as the 9th District; it was renumbered the 2nd in 1967) was shifted to the Jacksonville-based 3rd District. In its place, heavily Republican Panama City
Panama City, Florida
-Personal income:The median income for a household in the city was $31,572, and the median income for a family was $40,890. Males had a median income of $30,401 versus $21,431 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,830...

 was shifted from the Pensacola
Pensacola
Pensacola is a city in the western part of the U.S. state of Florida.Pensacola may also refer to:* Pensacola people, a group of Native Americans* A number of places in the Florida:** Pensacola Bay** Pensacola Regional Airport...

-based 1st District to the 2nd. On paper, this made the district considerably friendlier to Republicans; Al Gore
Al Gore
Albert Arnold "Al" Gore, Jr. served as the 45th Vice President of the United States , under President Bill Clinton. He was the Democratic Party's nominee for President in the 2000 U.S. presidential election....

 narrowly won the old 2nd in 2000, but George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 would have narrowly won the district under its current boundaries. However, Boyd was handily reelected with 66 percent of the vote in 2002 against another underfunded Republican. In 2004, Boyd faced his first serious test in the form of state representative Bev Kilmer, but Boyd turned back this challenge fairly easily, taking 62 percent of the vote even as George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 carried the district with 54 percent of the vote. Boyd was unopposed for reelection in 2006 and defeated a nominal Republican challenger in 2008.

2010

Boyd was defeated by Republican nominee Steve Southerland
Steve Southerland (Florida)
William Steve Southerland, II is the U.S. Representative for . The district includes most of the eastern Florida Panhandle, from Panama City to the state capital, Tallahassee. He is a member of the Republican Party.-Early life:...

 in the 2010 election, taking only 41 percent of the vote. Independent candidates Paul C. McKain
Paul C. McKain
Paul C. McKain is an inventor, author, child-safety advocate, and now congressional candidate. A retired Florida firefighter, McKain is recognized for co-inventing a swimming pool system designed to protect swimmers, particularly children, from drowning due to suction of underwater swimming pool...

 and Dianne Berryhill were also on the ballot; Ray Netherwood qualified as a write-in candidate.

In the Democratic primary, Boyd won against State Senator Alfred Lawson, Jr.
Alfred Lawson, Jr.
Alfred "Al" Lawson Jr. is a former Democratic member of the Florida Senate, who represented the 6th District from 2000 through 2010. Previously he was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1982 through 2000....


Personal life

Boyd is married and has 3 grown children (2 sons and 1 daughter). His son John was imprisoned in 2008 for transporting illegal narcotics and illegal aliens into the United States from Mexico. On September 30, 2009, it was announced that Boyd and his wife of 40 years, Cissy, had filed for divorce once before in 1997, but the couple reconciled and no additional action was taken on the divorce until 2002 when a joint dismissal of the divorce filing was submitted. There is no additional information on their recent separation other than they stated it is not connected to their previous separation

Boyd is a fifth generation farmer from Monticello, Florida
Monticello, Florida
Monticello is a city in Jefferson County, Florida, United States. The population was 2,533 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 2,572. It is the county seat of Jefferson County...

 and is the majority owner of Boyd Family Farms Inc. It is currently receiving farm subsidies appropriated by the same Appropriations Subcommittee of which Boyd is a member. Allen Boyd has received almost $1.3 million in federal farm subsidies since 1996, placing him in the top 3 percent of farmers receiving subsidies nationally, and 12th among more than 5,300 farms in his district that received subsidy money over this period.

External links

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