Bill Nelson

Clarence William "Bill" Nelson, a Democrat, has represented Florida in the U.S. Senate since 2000.

Iraq War
Nelson voted for the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq in Oct. 2002.

Environmental record
For more information on environmental legislation, see the Energy and Environment Policy Portal

Bill Nelson posts his schedule online
Starting in the 110th Congress, Nelson began posting his schedule online here. Congresspedia archives this schedule here.

Election reform
On February 13, 2007, Sen. Nelson introduced the Vote Integrity and Verification Act of 2007 (S.559), that would amend the Help America Vote Act to require a paper trail. Specifically, it would:


 * Require the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology to study, test, and develop best practices to enhance the accessibility of ballot verification mechanisms for individuals with disabilities, voters whose primary language is not English, and voters with difficulties in literacy.
 * Require laboratories to meet standards prohibiting conflicts of interest as a condition of accreditation for the testing of voting system hardware and software.
 * Outline additional voting system requirements and prohibitions.
 * Extend the authorization of the Election Assistance Commission (EAC).
 * Provide for complaints to the Attorney General by persons affected by violations of HAVA.
 * Make available additional funding to enable states to meet the costs of the requirements imposed by the Act.
 * Direct the chief auditor of each state to appoint an Election Audit Board to administer, without advance notice to the precincts selected, random hand counts of the voter-verified paper ballots required to be produced and preserved for each such election held in the state.
 * Repeal the exemption of the EAC from certain government contracting requirements.

Biography
Nelson was born September 29, 1942 in Miami, Florida. He attended the University of Florida and Yale University, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in 1965, and later served in the U.S. Army Reserves from 1965 to 1971. During this time, Nelson studied at the University of Virginia, where he received his Juris Doctor degree in 1968.

Nelson worked as a fire marshal and later as a lawyer before beginning his political career in the Florida House of Representatives. Nelson served in the state house from 1972 to 1979, when he left the state house following his election to the U.S. House of Representatives. Nelson served in the U.S. House from 1979 to 1991. In 1986, he became the second sitting member of congress (first from the House) to travel into space; Nelson flew aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia on the STS-61-C mission with six other astronauts from January 12-18, where he was the payload specialist.

Nelson ran an unsuccessful campaign to the Democratic nominee for Governor of Florida in 1990. He lost to former U.S. Senator Lawton Chiles, who went on to win the general election. During the campaign, he tried to make an issue out of Chiles' health and age, a strategy that backfired on him in a state with a large population of retirees and senior citizens. From 1995 to 2000, Nelson was the Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner of Florida.

In 2000, Nelson won the election for Florida senator, beating then-Representative Bill McCollum, the Republican candidate in an open seat election to replace retiring Republican incumbent Connie Mack.

Nelson has been a vocal opponent of oil drilling off Florida's coast. He has fought for benefits and health care for veterans and their spouses, and he has fought for a Medicare prescription drug benefit that allows the government to negotiate for lower drug prices from pharmaceutical companies. He is generally regarded as a moderate, and was among the few Democrats to vote in favor of CAFTA. He has also voted in favor of bankruptcy reform and abolishing the estate tax.

2006 elections
In 2006, the Republicans nominated Katherine Harris to face Nelson in his November 2006 bid for reelection. (See U.S. congressional elections in 2006) Nelson retained his seat.

Riscorp scandal: illegal campaign contributions
In July 2006, during his campaign for the U.S. Senate, incumbent Sen. Nelson was accused of taking $80,000 in illegal campaign contributions from Riscorp, Inc. According the Orlando Sentinel, Nelson did receive $62,000 from the company during the mid-1990s. Unlike his senatorial opponent (Rep. Katherine Harris), Sen. Nelson has never repaid the funds he received and used in his campaign.

Mr. Bill Griffin, CEO of Riscorp, pleaded guilty to felony counts involving illegal campaign donations and conspiracy and served prison time. The Riscorp scandal involved dozens of Florida state legislators and was among the largest scandals in recent Florida history.

Money in politics
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Committees in the 110th Congress (2007-2008)

 * Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
 * Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security
 * Subcommittee on Space, Aeronautics, and Related Sciences - Chairman
 * Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard
 * Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
 * Senate Special Committee on Aging
 * Senate Committee on Armed Services
 * Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
 * Subcommittee on Seapower
 * Subcommittee on Strategic Forces - Chairman
 * Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
 * Subcommittee on African Affairs
 * Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps, and Narcotics Affairs
 * Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations, Democracy and Human Rights
 * Senate Committee on the Budget

Committee assignments in the 109th Congress (2005-2006)

 * Senate Special Committee on Aging
 * Senate Committee on Armed Services
 * Subcommittee on Airland
 * Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
 * Subcommittee on Strategic Forces - Ranking Minority Member
 * Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
 * Senate Committee on the Budget
 * Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
 * Subcommittee on Aviation
 * Subcommittee on Disaster Prevention and Prediction
 * Subcommittee on Science and Space - Ranking Minority Member
 * Subcommittee on Technology Innovation and Competitiveness
 * Subcommittee on Trade Tourism and Economic Development
 * Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
 * Subcommittee on International Operations and Terrorism - Ranking Minority Member
 * Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs
 * Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere Peace Corps and Narcotics Affairs

Coalitions and Caucuses

 * Democratic Policy Committee
 * Vice Chair, Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee
 * Senate Centrist Coalition
 * Senate New Democrat Coalition.

Articles and resources

 * Official website
 * Daily Schedule on Offical Website
 * The Congresspedia archive of Sen. Nelson's schedule.
 * Campaign website
 * Open Secrets - 2006 congressional races database
 * See how you compare to Bill Nelson
 * Dan Shapiro -- Nelson's former deputy chief of staff and legislative advisor

Local blogs and discussion sites

 * Pensacola Beach Blog