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John Zerwas
| John Zerwas | ||
 | ||
| Texas State House, District 28 | ||
| Incumbent | ||
| In office | ||
| 2007 - Present | ||
| Term ends | ||
| January 13, 2015 | ||
| Years in position | 6 | |
| Party | Republican | |
| Compensation | ||
| Base salary | $7,200/year | |
| Per diem | $150/day | |
| Elections and appointments | ||
| Last election | November 6, 2012 | |
| First elected | 2006 | |
| Next election | November 4, 2014 | |
| Term limits | N/A | |
| Websites | ||
| Office website | ||
| Campaign website | ||
 | ||
Contents |
Zerwas is the Chief Medical Officer for the Memorial Hermann Healthcare System and is a physician.
He is an Initiator for the Boy Scouts of America, Troop 1656, Deacon/Founder of the First Colony Church of Christ, and President of a homeowners association.[1]
Biography
After graduating the University of Houston, Zerwas earned his doctorate in medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in 1980 and started a full-time private practice in 1985.
Committee assignments
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Zerwas served on the following committees:
| Texas Committee Assignments, 2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Appropriations | ||||
| • General Investigating & Ethics, Chair | ||||
| • Human Services | ||||
2011-2012
Zerwas served on the following Texas House of Representatives committees:
| Texas Committee Assignments, 2011 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Appropriations | ||||
| • Calendars | ||||
| • Public Health | ||||
Sponsored legislation
- HB 276 - Relating to the requirement that state agencies report the cost of services and benefits provided to undocumented immigrants.
- HB 492 - Relating to the expansion of faith- and community-based health and human services and social services initiatives.
- HB 497 - Relating to a study to determine the effect on the health care infrastructure in this state if the state Medicaid program is abolished or a severe reduction in federal matching money under the program occurs.
- HB 641 - Relating to the abolition of the Texas Transportation Commission and the creation of a commissioner of transportation as an elected statutory state officer.[2]
Issues
On his website, Zerwas provides a brief overview of his positions on five issues:[3]
- Lower Property taxes - "I will work to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot that will limit [property tax] increases to 5 percent a year."
- Quality Education - "I will press for further reform to ensure that additional money goes into the classroom, not the bureaucracy, and that students are taught the basics."
- Immigration Control - "Due to the federal government's failure to secure our border, we expanded state efforts to cut off common crossing areas, implemented new technology to identify where the leaks are and increased penalties on employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants. I support increased efforts in all these areas and more, including laws that require photo ID at the polls and prevent illegal immigrants from getting Texas driver's licenses."
- Property rights - "I strongly supported the Republican-led efforts that limited the government's power under eminent domain to take a person's property for private development and enacted a Landowner's Bill of Rights that protects land owners from abusive government practices."
- Government spending - "We must limit government's ability to grow faster than the combined rates of inflation and population growth, ensure greater transparency in budgeting and spending, and prevent revenue raised from a specific tax from being used on anything other than its intended purpose."
Elections
2012
Zerwas ran in the 2012 election for Texas House of Representatives, District 28. Zerwas ran unopposed in the May 29 primary election. He was unchallenged in the general election which took place on November 6, 2012.[4][5]
2010
Zerwas won re-election to the 28th District seat, defeating Democratic candidate Wayne Raasch in the general election on November 6, 2012.[6] He had no opposition in the March 2nd primary.
| Texas House of Representatives, District 28 2010 General election results | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
 John Zerwas (R)
|
44,094 | 71.43% | ||
| Wayne Raasch (D) | 17,628 | 28.56% | ||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Zerwas won re-election to the Texas House of Representatives from Texas's 28th District, defeating Dorothy Bottos (D) and M. Stephen Lucas (L).[7]
Zerwas raised $345,950 for his campaign while Bottos raised $12,531 and Lucas raised $0.[8]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 28 (2008) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| John Zerwas (R)
|
50,824 | |||
| Dorothy Bottos (D) | 32,089 | |||
| M. Stephen Lucas (L) | 1,484 | |||
2006
On November 4, 2006, Zerwas won election to the Texas House of Representatives from Texas's 28th District, defeating Dorothy Bottos (D). [9]
Zerwas raised $476,035 for his campaign while Bottos raised $23,370.[10]
| Texas House of Representatives, District 28 (2006) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| John Zerwas (R)
|
50,824 | |||
| Dorothy Bottos (D) | 32,089 | |||
Campaign donors
2012
Campaign donor information is not yet available for this year.
2010
Zerwas raised a total of $428,668 in 2010. Below are Zerwas's top 5 campaign contributors in the 2010 election:[11]
| Contributor | 2010 total |
|---|---|
| Texas Society of Anesthesiologists | $20,017 |
| Plowman, Glenn | $13,750 |
| Texas Association for Home Care & Hospice | $12,500 |
| Border Health | $7,500 |
| Texas Health & Science Pac | $5,500 |
2008
In the 2008 election, Zerwas raised a total of $345,950.[12]
His five largest contributors in 2008 were:
| Donor | Amount |
|---|---|
| Texas Society Of Anesthesiologists | $17,500 |
| Perry, Bob J | $17,500 |
| Winne, James | $14,500 |
| Greater Houston Anesthesiology | $12,000 |
| Texas Medical Association | $10,000 |
2006
In the 2006 election, Zerwas raised a total of $476,035. [13]
His five largest contributors in 2006 were:
| Donor | Amount |
|---|---|
| Texas Society Of Anesthesiologists | $33,750 |
| Texas Medical Association | $25,274 |
| Zerwas, John | $25,000 |
| Greater Houston Anesthesiology | $20,000 |
| John Zerwas Campaign | $16,356 |
Recent news
This section displays the most recent stories in a google news search for the term John + Zerwas + Texas + House
- All stories may not be relevant to this legislator due to the nature of the search engine.
John Zerwas News Feed
- Texas House narrowly rejects effort to reinforce opposition to Medicaid expansion - Dallas Morning News
- TEXAS LEGISLATURE: Mental health put at forefront - San Angelo Standard-Times
- Agenda Texas: An Update on Medicaid Expansion - Texas Tribune
- Texas House passes measure to prevent Medicaid expansion - Yahoo! News
- Zerwas: Bill to push ?Texas solution? on Medicaid is dead - Dallas Morning News (blog)
- House OKs Bill to Expand Mental Health in Managed Care - Texas Tribune
- Roundup: Okla. governor pushes funding fix to cover 9000 on Medicaid; Texas ... - News-Medical.net
- Texas lawmakers find funds for mental health, women's care in budget talks - Dallas Morning News
- Business Association Endorses Zerwas' Medicaid Plan - Texas Tribune
- Update: Designer Of GOP Medicaid Expansion Plan Says Bill Is Dead - Texas Public Radio
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Scorecards
Empower Texans Fiscal Responsibility Index
Empower Texans produces the Fiscal Responsibility Index as "a measurement of how lawmakers perform on size and role of government issues." The index uses "exemplar votes on core budget and free enterprise issues that demonstrate legislators' governing philosophy."[14] Legislators are graded along a standard grading scale, receiving grades A through F based on their performance during the legislative session.
2011
John Zerwas received a grade of C+ on the 2011 Fiscal Responsibility Index.
Personal
John and his wife, Cindy, graduated from Bellaire High School in 1973 and were married in 1978. They have four children, John Jr., Joseph, Brandon, Sherry, and a son-in-law Matthew.
External links
- John Zerwas campaign website
- Texas House of Representatives - Rep. Zerwas
- Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Official Campaign Contributions-Personal
- Official Campaign Contributions-Committee
- Follow the Money, Campaign Contributions: 20102008, 2006
- Freedom Speaks profile
- Texas State Directory profile
- Texas Political Almanac profile
- Texas Tribune profile & bio
- Vote-TX.org profile
- State Surge profile
- Texas Conservative Coalition profile
- John Zerwas on Facebook
References
- ↑ Project Vote Smart - Rep. Zerwas
- ↑ Texas Legislature - Bills Authored/Joint Authored by Rep. Zerwas
- ↑ John Zerwas Working for Texas
- ↑ Texas GOP list of candidates for 2012 Elections
- ↑ Texas Secretary of State Election History
- ↑ Official Texas Election Results
- ↑ Texas House official election results for 2008
- ↑ District 28 Texas House candidate funds, 2008
- ↑ Texas House official election results for 2006
- ↑ District 28 Texas House candidate funds, 2006
- ↑ Follow the Money - 2010 Campaign contributions
- ↑ Follow the Money - 2008 Campaign contributions
- ↑ Follow the Money - 2006 Campaign contributions
- ↑ Empower Texans, "Fiscal Responsibility Index"
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