Brian Babin
RepublicanU.S. Representative, TX-36| Age | 78 (b. 1948-03-23) |
| Gender | Male |
| In office since | 2015-01-06 (~11 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | White (of Cajun/French descent) |
| Religion | Baptist (member, deacon, and Sunday school teacher at First Baptist Church of Woodville) |
| Education | Forest Park High School, Beaumont (1966); B.S. in biology, Lamar University (1973); D.D.S., University of Texas Dental Branch, Houston (1976) |
| Prior occupation | Dentist; operated a general dental practice in Woodville, Texas from 1979. Before dental school worked as a merchant seaman, janitor, musician, disc jockey, and U.S. Postal Service letter carrier. |
| Military service | Yes: U.S. Air Force (also Texas Army National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve) (Captain) |
| Birthplace | Port Arthur, Texas |
| Marital status | Married — Roxanne Babin |
| Children | 5 |
| Residence | Woodville, Texas |
| Notable relatives | Son Leif Babin, former Navy SEAL and author, married to former Fox News anchor Jenna Lee; son Lucas Babin, Tyler County (TX) District Attorney and former actor/model; daughter Marit, an attorney and former NRCC staffer |
Pending research: languages · openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 2014 |
| Previous offices | Mayor of Woodville, Texas (1982-1984) · Woodville City Council (1984-1989) · Woodville Independent School District Board (1992-1995) · President, Texas State Board of Dental Examiners (1981-1987) · Tyler County Republican Party Chairman (1990-1995) · Lower Neches Valley Authority board member (1999-2015) |
| Committees | House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology (Chair, 119th Congress) · House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure |
| Caucuses | Republican Study Committee · Congressional Western Caucus · Second Amendment Caucus |
| Leadership | Chairman, House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology (119th Congress, since January 2025) |
| Ideology | Consistently ranked among the most conservative members of the House; GovTrack ranked him 3rd most politically right of all representatives in 2022. |
| Signature legislation | One Small Step to Protect Human Heritage in Space Act (Public Law 116-275, enacted Dec. 31, 2020) - co-led as Space Subcommittee Ranking Member to protect Apollo lunar landing sites · NASA Reauthorization Act (led as Science Committee Chairman, 119th Congress) · American Tech Workforce Act (H.R. 6202) - bill to restrict the H-1B visa program |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed $1,071,084–$3,342,000 (2014) · estimate
| DDS dental practice (Woodville, TX) | business_owned · $100,001–$250,000 · 2015 |
| Chevron Corporation stock | stock · $1,001–$15,000 · 2015 |
Scandals & crimes ledger
resolved — FEC MUR 4783: Campaign Committee Conciliation Agreement for Accepting Conduit Contributions
In 1995–1996, businessman Peter Cloeren arranged for employees to make $37,000 in contributions to the Babin Committee, reimbursing them from corporate funds — a scheme constituting contributions in the name of another and illegal corporate contributions. Cloeren pled guilty to federal election law violations in 1998. The FEC opened MUR 4783 naming the Babin Committee, Brian Babin personally, and others. Babin individually was dismissed; the campaign committee entered a conciliation agreement with the FEC in 2001, paying a civil penalty and disgorging excessive contributions. The FEC found that the committee accepted an excessive contribution and a contribution made in the name of another and failed to properly disclose financial activity.
resolved — 1996 campaign finance violations (FEC MUR 4783) business
Businessman Peter Cloeren admitted using his company Cloeren, Inc. and its employees to funnel approximately $37,000 in prohibited corporate contributions in the names of others to Brian Babin's 1996 U.S. House campaign committee, exceeding the $1,000 individual contribution limit. Cloeren alleged in an affidavit that Babin and then-House Majority Whip Tom DeLay laundered his donations through other committees; both Babin and DeLay denied the allegations. Cloeren and his company pleaded guilty to federal campaign-finance violations and were fined (reported at $200,000 each / $400,000 total), and Cloeren received probation. In FEC Matter Under Review 4783, the FEC found reason to believe Babin and the Babin Committee violated the Federal Election Campaign Act by assisting and accepting contributions in the name of another. The matter against the candidate and committee was resolved by a conciliation agreement accepted by the FEC in 2001, under which Brian Babin for Congress (the campaign committee, treasurer Thomas E. Freeman) paid a civil penalty (the FEC official case record lists $6,700; some news accounts and Wikipedia report a $20,000 civil penalty plus repayment of $5,000 in excessive contributions) and disgorged excessive contributions to the U.S. Treasury, without admitting wrongdoing. Because the action was against the candidate's campaign committee (a political committee entity), is_business_entity is set to true.