David Rivera

David Rivera
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 25th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2011
Preceded by	Mario Diaz-Balart
Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the 112th district
In office 2003–2011
Preceded by	Mario Diaz-Balart
Succeeded by	Jeanette Nuñez
Personal details
Born	(1965-09-16) September 16, 1965 New York City, New York
Political party	Republican
Residence	Miami, Florida
Alma mater	Miami Christian School Florida International University (B.A.) Florida International University (Masters)
Website	davidrivera.org

David Mauricio Rivera (born September 16, 1965) is the U.S. Representative for Florida's 25th congressional district. He is a member of the Republican Party. He is a Miami-based public affairs consultant and formerly represented District 112 in the Florida House of Representatives.

Early life, education, and career

Rivera was born in New York City on September 16, 1965 and moved to Florida in 1974. He graduated from Miami Christian High School. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree with honors in Political Science from Florida International University in 1986 and his MPA in 1994.

Florida House of Representatives

David Rivera was first elected to the Florida House of Representatives on November 5, 2002, and was subsequently re-elected three times in 2004, 2006 and 2008.

During his final legislative session Rivera served as Chairman of the House Full Appropriations Committee, which oversees Florida’s budget in areas such as education, transportation, housing, and economic development.

Rivera also served as chairman of the Rules Committee and as a member of the Insurance and Agriculture Committees and the Education and State Administration Councils.

Rivera’s Legislative Accomplishments

Balancing Florida’s Budget

Rivera served as the Chairman of the Florida House Full Appropriations Council, and the Joint Legislative Budget Commission during the 2009 and 2010 legislative sessions. He led the fight to balance Florida’s budget, overcoming $9 billion in deficits during those two years, increasing funding for public education, and without raising taxes on Floridians.

Leading the Fight for Property Tax Reform

Rivera passed property tax reform legislation which seeks to bring equitable property tax relief to residential and commercial property tax owners by placing limits on the amount local governments may assess andtax these properties. (2006 HB 753 CS)

Rivera passed property tax reform legislation which exempts homeowners from paying back taxes on their property for additions or improvements that were made to their home since the last time the property’s value was assessed. (2010 HB 1279)

Creating Sales Tax Relief for Florida’s Families

Rivera passed legislation to reduce back-to-school costs for Florida’s families by creating a Sales Tax Holiday from August 13, 2010 to August 15, 2010. Tax exempt items included books, clothing, wallets or bags with a sales price of less than $50 and school supplies with a sales price of $10. The 2010 Sales Tax Holiday was the first time in three years that Florida families were able to save on sales taxes during the back-to-school season. (2010 CS/ HB 483)

Ensuring Transparency in the Insurance Industry and Fair Insurance Practices

Rivera has passed several pieces of landmark legislation into law related to insurance reforms which have created consumer protections against unfair practices from insurance companies, and protections from insurance fraud. (2006 HB 561 (SB 159), 2007A CS/HB1)

Protecting Florida’s Children and Families from Sexual Predators

Rivera passed anti-cyber predator legislation into law which provides stronger protections for victims of crimes involving child pornography, and stronger criminal sanctions against those that would use the internet to prey upon the children of Florida. (2008 CS/CS/HB 605)

Combating Health Care Fraud

Rivera passed legislation to combat the high levels of health care fraud in Miami-Dade County. The bill requires licenses and increased accountability measures for home health agencies, home medical equipment providers, nursing homes and health care clinics, including proof of financial viability and stability. In addition to increased transparency for health care providers, the bill also outlines criminal penalties for unlicensed or misleading health care practices. (2009 CS/CS/CS HB 1487 )

U.S. House of Representatives

2010 election

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Florida, 2010 § District 25

Rivera ran against Democratic nominee Joe Garcia, Tea Party nominee Roly Arrojo, and Florida Whig Party nominee Craig Porter.

In January 2009, Rivera filed to run for the state senate seat being vacated by J. Alex Villalobos. However, when neighboring U.S. Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart decided not to run for another term in 2010, his brother, local Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, opted to run for a new term in Lincoln's district rather than his current one. This prompted Rivera to drop his State Senate campaign and on February 25, 2010 he announced he would instead be a candidate for U.S. Congress in Florida's 25th district.

Committee assignments

• Committee on Foreign Affairs
  • Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
  • Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere
• Committee on Natural Resources
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources
  • Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands

Controversies

Domestic violence allegations

On October 13, 1994 a domestic abuse charge was filed in Miami-Dade County against one David M. Rivera. Rivera denies that he was the defendant in the 1994 domestic violence case, and the victim of the attack has maintained that David Rivera, the politician, was not the defendant in her case.

The Miami Herald reported that according to a woman who is friendly with the victim's brother, Rivera and the victim came to her home as a couple to attend a dinner party about 10 years ago. The victim's mother also once worked on one of Rivera's political campaigns, records show.

Mail truck collision

On September 6, 2002, Rivera was involved in a traffic collision with a truck carrying thousands of fliers, produced by Rivera's campaign opponent at the time, that included a last-minute attack on Rivera's character and detailed past domestic violence accusations against him. According to reports filed by the Florida Highway Patrol, a car driven by Rivera hit the truck and forced it to the shoulder of the Palmetto Expressway, ten minutes before the truck's 6 p.m. deadline to deliver the fliers to the post office, preventing the fliers from being delivered in time to be mailed.

Rivera has said that he had planned to meet up with the truck on an exit ramp off the Expressway so he could retrieve a batch of his own campaign fliers. The owner of the company that produced the anti-Rivera fliers maintains that the truck driver did not voluntarily pull off the highway. According to the FHP incident report, the collision occurred in the middle of the road.

Additional source of income

Rivera on more than one occasion stated in sworn documents that his primary source of personal income, besides his salary from the Florida State Legislature, was from freelancing consulting work he did for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). However, when the Miami Herald asked USAID, the agency said that Rivera never worked for them. On October 21 of 2010, a suit was filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court stating that Rivera should be disqualified from running for office for violating state laws requiring public officials and candidates to file full and complete financial disclosure forms. After the initial investigation was reported, Rivera amended his disclosure forms, removing any reference to USAID as a source of income for the seven years in question.

Dog track payments

The Miami Herald has reported that "[t]he Miami-Dade state attorney's office is investigating more than $500,000 in secret payments from the owners of the Flagler Dog Track to a company tied to" Rivera. According to the Herald: "Most of the money was paid in early 2008, weeks after Rivera -- then a member of the Florida House of Representatives -- helped run a political campaign backed by the dog track to win voter approval for Las Vegas-style slot machines at parimutuel venues in Miami-Dade County." Rivera did not report any income from either company in financial disclosure forms filed with the Florida Ethics Commission, but instead "reported that he worked during those years as a consultant for the U.S. Agency for International Development," which had no record of him ever having worked there.

External links

• Congressman David Rivera official U.S. House site
• David Rivera for Congress official campaign site
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Profile at Vote Smart