Hank Johnson

Henry C. Johnson Jr.
U.S. House, Georgia, District 4
Incumbent
Tenure
January 3, 2007-Present
Term ends
January 3, 2017
Years in position 19
Party	Democratic
Predecessor	Cynthia McKinney (D)
Leadership
Chair, DeKalb County Budget Committee
2002-2005
Report an officeholder change
Compensation
Base salary	$174,000/year
Elections and appointments
Last election	November 4, 2014
First elected	2006
Election date	November 8, 2016
Campaign $	$2,208,111
Term limits	N/A
Prior offices
DeKalb County Commission
2000-2005
Education
Bachelor's	Clark Atlanta University
J.D.	Texas Southern University's Thurgood Marshall School of Law
Personal
Date of birth	October 2, 1954
Place of birth	Washington, D.C.
Profession	Attorney
Net worth	(2012) $8,000.50
Religion	Buddhist
Websites
Office website
Campaign website

Henry C. "Hank" Johnson Jr. (b. October 2, 1954, in Washington, D.C.) is a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives. Johnson was elected by voters from Georgia's 4th Congressional District. He was first elected to the U.S. House in 2006.

He ran for re-election to the U.S. House in 2014. He won an uncontested general election. He defeated challenger Thomas Brown the Democratic primary election on May 20, 2014.

As of a 2014 analysis of multiple outside rankings, Johnson is an average Democratic member of Congress, meaning he will vote with the Democratic Party on the majority of bills.

Biography

Johnson was born in Washington, D.C. He graduated from Clark College (now Clark Atlanta University) in 1976, and Texas Southern University's Thurgood Marshall School of Law in Houston in 1979. Johnson practiced law in Decatur, Georgia, for more than 25 years.

Career

Below is an abbreviated outline of Johnson's academic, professional and political career:

• 2007-Present: U.S. Representative from Georgia's 4th Congressional District
• 2000-2005: DeKalb County Commissioner
  • 2002-2005: Chair, DeKalb County Budget Committee.

Committee assignments

U.S. House

2015-2016

Johnson serves on the following committees:

• Armed Services Committee
• Judiciary Committee

2013-2014

Johnson served on the following committees:

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Seapower & Projection Forces
  • Subcommittee on Strategic Forces
  • Subcommittee on Intelligence, Emerging Threats and Capabilities
• Committee on Judiciary
  • Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet
  • Subcommittee on Regulatory Reform, Commercial, and Antitrust Law

2011-2012

Johnson served on the following committees:

• Committee on Armed Services
  • Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces
  • Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
• Committee on Judiciary
  • Subcommittee on Courts, Commercial and Administrative Law
  • Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition, and the Internet
  • Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security

Key votes

113th Congress

The second session of the 113th Congress enacted into law 224 out of the 3215 introduced bills (7 percent). Comparatively, the 112th Congress had 4.2 percent of introduced bills enacted into law in the second session. For more information pertaining to Johnson's voting record in the 113th Congress, please see the below sections.

National security

DHS Appropriations

Johnson voted against HR 2217 - the DHS Appropriations Act (2014) Act of 2014. The bill passed the House on June 6, 2013, with a vote of 245 - 182 and was largely along party lines.

Keystone Pipeline Amendment

Johnson voted in support of House Amendment 69, which would have amended HR 3 to "require that the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, in consultation with the Department of Homeland Security, conduct a study of the vulnerabilities of the Keystone XL pipeline to a terrorist attack and certify that necessary protections have been put in place." The amendment failed on May 22, 2013, with a vote of 176 - 239 and was largely along party lines.

CISPA (2013)

Johnson voted against HR 624 - the CISPA (2013). The bill passed the House on April 18, 2013, with a vote of 288 - 127. The bill permitted federal intelligence agencies to share cybersecurity intelligence and information with private entities and utilities. The bill was largely supported by Republicans, but divided the Democratic Party.

NDAA

Johnson voted in support of HR 1960 - the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014. The bill passed the House on June 14, 2013, with a vote of 315 - 108. Both parties were somewhat divided on the vote.

Economy

Farm bill

On January 29, 2014, the U.S. House approved the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, H.R. 2642, also known as the Farm Bill. The bill passed by a vote of 251-166. The nearly 1,000-page bill reformed and continued various programs of the Department of Agriculture through 2018. The $1 trillion bill expanded crop insurance for farmers by $7 billion over the next decade and created new subsidies for rice and peanut growers that would kick in when prices drop. However, cuts to the food stamp program cut an average of $90 per month for 1.7 million people in 15 states. Johnson voted with 88 other Democratic representatives in favor of the bill.

2014 Budget

On January 15, 2014, the Republican-run House approved H.R. 3547, a $1.1 trillion spending bill to fund the government through September 30, 2014. The House voted 359-67 for the 1,582 page bill, with 64 Republicans and three Democrats voting against the bill. The omnibus package included 12 annual spending bills to fund federal operations. It included a 1 percent increase in the paychecks of federal workers and military personnel, a $1 billion increase in Head Start funding for early childhood education, reduced funding to the Internal Revenue Service and the Environmental Protection Agency, and the protection of the Affordable Care Act from any drastic cuts. Johnson joined with the majority of the Democratic party and voted in favor of the bill.

Government shutdown

See also: United States budget debate, 2013

On September 30, 2013, the House passed a final stopgap spending bill before the shutdown went into effect. The bill included a one-year delay of the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate and would have also stripped the bill of federal subsidies for congressional members and staff. It passed through the House with a vote of 228-201. At 1 a.m. on October 1, 2013, one hour after the shutdown officially began, the House voted to move forward with going to a conference. In short order, Sen. Harry Reid rejected the call to conference. Johnson voted against the stopgap spending bill that would have delayed the individual mandate.

The shutdown ended on October 16, 2013, when the House took a vote on HR 2775 after it was approved by the Senate. The bill to reopen the government lifted the $16.7 trillion debt limit and funded the government through January 15, 2014. Federal employees also received retroactive pay for the shutdown period. The only concession made by Senate Democrats was to require income verification for Obamacare subsidies. The House passed the legislation shortly after the Senate, by a vote of 285-144, with all 144 votes against the legislation coming from Republican members. Johnson voted for HR 2775.

Federal Pay Adjustment Act

Johnson voted against HR 273 - Eliminates the 2013 Statutory Pay Adjustment for Federal Employees. The bill passed the House on February 15, 2013, with a vote of 261 - 154. The bill called for a stop to a 0.5 percent pay increase for all federal workers from taking effect, saving the federal government $11 billion over 10 years.

Immigration

Morton Memos Prohibition

Johnson voted against House Amendment 136 - Prohibits the Enforcement of the Immigration Executive Order. The amendment was adopted by the House on June 6, 2013, with a vote of 224 - 201. The purpose of the amendment as stated on the official text is to "prohibit the use of funds to finalize, implement, administer, or enforce the Morton Memos." These memos would have granted administrative amnesty to certain illegal aliens residing in the United States. The vote largely followed party lines.

Healthcare

Healthcare Reform Rules

Johnson voted against House Amendment 450 - Requires Congressional Approval for Any Rules Under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The amendment was adopted by the House on August 2, 2013, with a vote of 227-185. The amendment requires all changes to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act be approved by Congress before taking effect. The vote was largely along party lines.

Keep the IRS Off Your Healthcare Act

Johnson voted against HR 2009 - Keep the IRS Off Your Healthcare Act of 2013. The bill passed through the House on August 2, 2013, with a vote of 232-185. The bill would prevent the IRS and Treasury Secretary from enforcing the powers provided to them in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The vote largely followed party lines.

Social issues

Amash amendment

Johnson voted against House Amendment 413 - Prohibits the National Security Agency from Collecting Records Under the Patriot Act. The amendment failed on July 4, 2013, by a vote of 205-217. The amendment would have prohibited the collection of records by the National Security Agency under the Patriot Act. Both parties were split on the vote.

SNAP challenge

See also: United States Farm Bill 2013

In June 2013, more than two dozen House Democrats, including Johnson, took part in a SNAP challenge, feeding themselves for a week on the average benefit level of a SNAP recipient. Participants agreed to eat all meals from a limited food budget comparable to that of a SNAP participant, approximately $1.50 per meal, or $4.50 a day.

Previous congressional sessions

Fiscal Cliff

Johnson voted for the fiscal cliff compromise bill, which made permanent most of the Bush tax cuts originally passed in 2001 and 2003 while also raising tax rates on the highest income levels. He was one of 172 Democrats who voted in favor of the bill. The bill was passed in the House by a 257 - 167 vote on January 1, 2013.

Issues

On The Issues Vote Match

Hank Johnson's Vote Match results from On The Issues.

See also: On The Issues Vote Match

On The Issues conducts a VoteMatch analysis of elected officials based on 20 issue areas. Rather than relying on incumbents to complete the quiz themselves, the VoteMatch analysis was conducted using voting records, statements to the media, debate transcripts or citations from books authored by or about the candidate. Based on the results of the quiz, Johnson is a Populist-Leaning Liberal. Johnson received a score of 67 percent on social issues and 4 percent on economic issues.

On The Issues organization logo

The table below contains the results of analysis compiled by staff at On The Issues.

On The Issues Vote Quiz
Economic Issues		Social Issues
Issue	Stance	Issue	Stance
Legally require hiring women & minorities	Strongly Favors	Abortion is a woman's unrestricted right	Strongly Favors
Expand Obamacare	Strongly Favors	Comfortable with same-sex marriage	Strongly Favors
Vouchers for school choice	Strongly Opposes	Keep God in the public sphere	Opposes
Absolute right to gun ownership	Strongly Opposes	No "rights" to clean air and water	{{{Environment}}}
Higher taxes on the wealthy	Favors	Stricter punishment reduces crime	Strongly Opposes
Support & expand free trade	Opposes	Pathway to citizenship for illegal aliens	Unknown
More enforcement of the right to vote	Strongly Favors	Maintain U.S. sovereignty from UN	Strongly Opposes
Prioritize green energy	Strongly Favors	Expand the military	Opposes
Stimulus better than market-led recovery	Strongly Favors	Stay out of Iran	Favors
Privatize Social Security	Strongly Opposes	Never legalize marijuana	Opposes
Note: Information last updated: 2014. If you notice the rating has changed, email us.

National security

American response in Syria

See also: United States involvement in Syria

Johnson released a statement following President Obama’s remarks on Syria on August 31, 2013. “I don’t believe the President needs Congressional approval to conduct limited strikes in Syria, however I respect his decision to seek authorization. At this time, I am deeply skeptical that use of force is in our national interest” Johnson said.

Elections

2014

See also: Georgia's 4th Congressional District elections, 2014

Johnson ran for re-election to the U.S. House in 2014. He won the Democratic nomination in the primary election on May 20, 2014. He ran uncontested in the general election on November 4, 2014.

U.S. House, Georgia District 4 General Election, 2014

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Hank Johnson Incumbent	100%	161,211
Total Votes				161,211
Source: Georgia Secretary of State

U.S. House, Georgia District 4 Democratic Primary, 2014

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Hank Johnson Incumbent	54.8%	26,514
Thomas Brown	45.2%	21,909
Total Votes		48,423
Source: Georgia Secretary of State

2012

See also: Georgia's 4th Congressional District elections, 2012

Johnson won re-election in the 2012 election for the U.S. House, representing Georgia's 4th District.

U.S. House, Georgia District 4 General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Henry C. Johnson Incumbent	73.6%	208,861
	Republican	J. Chris Vaughn	26.4%	75,041
Total Votes				283,902
Source: Georgia Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

U.S. House, Georgia District 4 Democratic Primary, 2012

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Henry "Hank" Johnson Incumbent	77%	52,982
Courtney L. Dillard	19.1%	13,130
Lincoln Nunnally	4%	2,728
Total Votes		68,840

Full history

To view the full congressional electoral history for Henry C. Johnson, Jr., click [show] to expand the section.

2010 On November 2, 2010, Henry C. Johnson, Jr. won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Lisbeth "Liz" Carter (R) in the general election. U.S. House, Georgia District 4 General Election, 2010 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. incumbent 74.7% 131,760      Republican Lisbeth "Liz" Carter 25.3% 44,707 Total Votes 176,467 2008 On November 4, 2008, Henry C. Johnson, Jr. won re-election to the United States House. He defeated Loren Christopher Collins (Write-in), Faye Coffield (Write-in) and Jacob Perasso (Write-in) in the general election. U.S. House, Georgia District 4 General Election, 2008 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. incumbent 99.9% 224,494      Write-in Loren Christopher Collins 0.1% 159      Write-in Faye Coffield 0% 35      Write-in Jacob Perasso 0% 6 Total Votes 224,694 2006 On November 7, 2006, Henry C. Johnson, Jr. won election to the United States House. He defeated Catherine Davis (R) in the general election. U.S. House, Georgia District 4 General Election, 2006 Party Candidate Vote % Votes      Democratic Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. 75.4% 106,352      Republican Catherine Davis 24.6% 34,778 Total Votes 141,130

Campaign donors

Fundraising events

The below chart from Find The Best tracks the fundraising events Johnson attends.

Comprehensive donor history

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The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may not represent all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer, and campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Hank Johnson campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Result	Contributions
2012	U.S. House (Georgia, District 4)		$448,223
2010	U.S. House (Georgia, District 4)		$581,545
2008	U.S. House (Georgia, District 4)		$380,346
2006	U.S. House (Georgia, District 4)		$797,997
Grand total raised			$2,208,111
Source: [ Follow the Money]

2014

Candidates for Congress were required to file up to seven main reports with the Federal Election Commission during the 2014 elections season. Below are Johnson's reports.

Henry C. Johnson, Jr. (2014) Campaign Finance Reports
Report	Date Filed	Beginning Balance	Total Contributions for Reporting Period	Expenditures	Cash on Hand
April Quarterly	April 15, 2013	$17,642.25	$53,378.90	$(25,177.35)	$45,843.80
July Quarterly	July 15, 2013	$45,843.80	$71,624.89	$(59,050.90)	$58,417.79
October Quarterly	October 13, 2013	$58,417.79	$43,907.89	$(47,994.41)	$54,331.27
Year-end	January 31, 2014	$54,331	$70,015	$(39,049)	$85,296
April Quarterly	April 15, 2014	$85,296	$156,823	$(149,581)	$92,537
July Quarterly	July 15, 2014	$53,345.00	$11,375.00	$(154,649.00)	$13,496.00
October Quarterly	October 15, 2014	$13,496	$60,991	$(51,825)	$22,662
			Running totals
			$468,115.68	$(527,326.66)

2012

Johnson won re-election to the U.S. House in 2012. During that election cycle, Johnson's campaign committee raised a total of $448,223 and spent $433,430. This is less than the average $1.5 million spent by House winners in 2012.

Cost per vote

Johnson spent $2.08 per vote received in 2012.

U.S. House, Georgia District 4, 2012 - Hank Johnson Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$448,223
Total Spent	$433,430
Total Raised by Election Runner-up	$48,902
Total Spent by Election Runner-up	$44,944
Top contributors to Hank Johnson's campaign committee
American Assn for Justice	$10,000
Bank of America	$10,000
Coca-Cola Co	$10,000
Credit Union National Assn	$10,000
Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers	$10,000
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Industrial Unions	$31,500
Building Trade Unions	$30,050
Lawyers/Law Firms	$30,050
Insurance	$21,750
Public Sector Unions	$21,000

To view the breakdown of campaign funding by type click [show] to expand the section.
Breakdown of the source of Johnson's campaign funds before the 2012 election.

2010

Henry C.son won re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2010. During that re-election cycle, Henry C.son's campaign committee raised a total of $581,545 and spent $589,780.

U.S. House, Georgia District 4, 2010 - Hank Johnson Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$581,545
Total Spent	$589,780
Total Raised by General Election Opponent	$118,102
Total Spent by General Election Opponent	$118,102
Top contributors to Hank Johnson's campaign committee
National Beer Wholesalers Assn	$11,000
Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers	$10,321
AFLAC Inc	$10,000
American Assn for Justice	$10,000
Credit Union National Assn	$10,000
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Lawyers/Law Firms	$65,050
Building Trade Unions	$34,000
Industrial Unions	$31,321
Transportation Unions	$29,500
Public Sector Unions	$26,500

To view the breakdown of campaign funding by type click [show] to expand the section.
Breakdown of the source of Henry C.son's campaign funds before the 2010 election.

Personal Gain Index

See also: Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress)

The Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress) is a two-part measurement that illustrates the extent to which members of the U.S. Congress have prospered during their tenure as public servants.
It consists of two different metrics:

• Changes in Net Worth
• The Donation Concentration Metric

PGI: Change in net worth

See also: Changes in Net Worth of U.S. Senators and Representatives (Personal Gain Index) and Net worth of United States Senators and Representatives

Based on congressional financial disclosure forms and calculations made available by OpenSecrets.org, Johnson's net worth as of 2012 was estimated between $1,001 and $15,000. That averages to $8,000.50, which was lower than the average net worth of Democratic representatives in 2012 of $5,700,168.36. Johnson ranked as the 404th most wealthy representative in 2012. Johnson's starting calculated net worth increased from 2007. Between 2004 and 2012, the average annual percentage increase for a member of Congress was 15.4 percent.

Hank Johnson Yearly Net Worth
Year	Average Net Worth
2007	$0
2012	$8,000.50
Growth from 2007 to 2012:	N/A
Average annual growth:	N/A
Comparatively, the American citizen experienced a median yearly decline in net worth of -0.94%.

The data used to calculate changes in net worth may include changes resulting from assets gained through marriage, inheritance, changes in family estates and/or trusts, changes in family business ownership, and many other variables unrelated to a member's behavior in Congress.

PGI: Donation Concentration Metric

See also: The Donation Concentration Metric (U.S. Congress Personal Gain Index)

Filings required by the Federal Election Commission report on the industries that give to each candidate. Using campaign filings and information calculated by OpenSecrets.org, Ballotpedia calculated the percentage of donations by industry received by each incumbent over the course of his or her career (or 1989 and later, if elected prior to 1988). Johnson received the most donations from individuals and PACs employed by the Lawyers/Law Firms industry.

From 2005-2014, 27.38 percent of Johnson's career contributions came from the top five industries as listed below.

Hank Johnson Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$2,737,916
Total Spent	$2,724,418
Top five industries that contributed to campaign committee
Lawyers/Law Firms	$270,825
Industrial Unions	$135,321
Public Sector Unions	$125,000
Building Trade Unions	$113,050
Real Estate	$105,315
% total in top industry	9.89%
% total in top two industries	14.83%
% total in top five industries	27.38%

Analysis

Ideology and leadership

See also: GovTrack's Political Spectrum & Legislative Leadership ranking

Based on an analysis of bill sponsorship by GovTrack, Johnson was a "far-left Democrat, as of July 29, 2014." This was the same rating Johnson received in June 2013.

Like-minded colleagues

The website OpenCongress tracks the voting records of each member to determine with whom he or she votes most and least often. The results include a member from each party.

Johnson most often votes with:

• Chris Gibson
• Daniel Kildee

Johnson least often votes with:

• Jim Jordan
• Jim Matheson

Lifetime voting record

See also: Lifetime voting records of United States Senators and Representatives

According to the website GovTrack, Johnson missed 298 of 6,234 roll call votes from January 2007 to July 2014. This amounts to 4.8 percent, which is worse than the median of 2.5 percent among current congressional representatives as of July 2014.

Congressional staff salaries

See also: Staff salaries of United States Senators and Representatives

The website Legistorm compiles staff salary information for members of Congress. Johnson paid his congressional staff a total of $1,068,306 in 2011. He ranked 120th on the list of the lowest paid Democratic representative staff salaries and ranked 341st overall of the lowest paid representative staff salaries in 2011. Overall, Georgia ranked 24th in average salary for representative staff. The average U.S. House of Representatives congressional staff was paid $954,912.20 in fiscal year 2011.

National Journal vote ratings

See also: National Journal vote ratings

Each year National Journal publishes an analysis of how liberally or conservatively each member of Congress voted in the previous year.

2013

Johnson ranked 147th in the liberal rankings in 2013.

2012

Johnson ranked 37th in the liberal rankings in 2012.

2011

Johnson ranked 77th in the liberal rankings in 2011.

Voting with party

The website OpenCongress tracks how often members of Congress vote with the majority of the chamber caucus.

2014

Johnson voted with the Democratic Party 91.2 percent of the time, which ranked 144th among the 204 House Democratic members as of July 2014.

2013

Johnson voted with the Democratic Party 94.9 percent of the time, which ranked 93rd among the 201 House Democratic members as of June 2013.

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a Google news search for the term Henry + Johnson + Georgia + House

All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.

Henry Johnson News Feed

See also

• Georgia
• United States congressional delegations from Georgia
• United States House of Representatives
• Georgia's 4th Congressional District
• Georgia's 4th Congressional District elections, 2014
• Georgia's 4th Congressional District elections, 2012

External links

Suggest a link

Suggest a link

 

• Official House website
• Official campaign website

• Social media:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
• Biographies:
  • U.S. Congress
  • Wikipedia
• Political profiles:
  • GovTrack
  • CongressMerge
  • OpenCongress
  • Project Vote Smart
  • Roll Call
• Financial (federal level):
  • FEC contributions
  • OpenSecrets.org
  • LegiStorm.com
• Interest group ratings:
  • Project Vote Smart
• Issue positions:
  • On The Issues
  • Project Vote Smart
• Public statements:
  • Project Vote Smart
• Voting record:
  • Project Vote Smart
  • Washington Post
• Media appearances:
  • C-SPAN
• Media coverage:
  • Washington Post

References

Political offices
Preceded by Cynthia McKinney	U.S. House of Representatives - Georgia, District 4 2007–present	Succeeded by '
Preceded by '	DeKalb County Commission 2000-2005	Succeeded by '

[show]

Georgia's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Jon Ossoff (D)

Raphael Warnock (D)

Representatives

District 1

Earl Carter (R)

District 2

Sanford Bishop (D)

District 3

Brian Jack (R)

District 4

Hank Johnson (D)

District 5

Nikema Williams (D)

District 6

Lucy McBath (D)

District 7

Rich McCormick (R)

District 8

Austin Scott (R)

District 9

Andrew Clyde (R)

District 10

Mike Collins (R)

District 11

Barry Loudermilk (R)

District 12

Rick Allen (R)

District 13

David Scott (D)

District 14

Vacant

Republican Party (8)

Democratic Party (7)

Vacancies (1)