James E. Clyburn
DemocratU.S. Representative, SC-6| Age | 85 (b. 1940-07-21) |
| Gender | Male |
| In office since | 1993-01-05 (~33 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | African American |
| Religion | Christian; African Methodist Episcopal (AME) |
| Education | Graduated from Mather Academy (Camden, SC); B.S./bachelor's degree in history from South Carolina State College (now South Carolina State University), 1962; attended University of South Carolina School of Law (1972-1974) |
| Prior occupation | Public school teacher (C.A. Brown High School, Charleston, SC); civil rights activist; director of two youth/community programs; South Carolina Human Affairs Commissioner |
| Military service | No |
| Birthplace | Sumter, South Carolina |
| Marital status | Widowed — Emily England Clyburn (married 1961; died 2019) |
| Children | 3 |
| Residence | Columbia, South Carolina |
| Notable relatives | Daughter Mignon Clyburn, former FCC commissioner; daughter Jennifer Clyburn Reed, federal co-chair of Southeast Crescent Regional Commission; daughter Angela Clyburn, South Carolina Democratic Party political director and Richland County School Board member; distant kinsman George W. Murray, Republican U.S. Representative from SC (1890s) |
Pending research: languages · openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 1992 |
| Previous offices | South Carolina Human Affairs Commissioner (1974-1992) · Adviser to South Carolina Governor John C. West (appointed 1971; first nonwhite adviser to a SC governor) |
| Committees | House Committee on Appropriations · Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies (Ranking Member) · Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies · Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies |
| Caucuses | Congressional Black Caucus · House Democratic Caucus · Black Maternal Health Caucus · Congressional Arts Caucus · U.S.-China Working Group · Congressional International Conservation Caucus |
| Leadership | House Majority Whip (2007-2011; 2019-2023) · House Assistant Democratic Leader / Assistant Speaker (2011-2019; 2023-2024) · Chair, House Democratic Caucus (2006-2007) · Vice Chair, House Democratic Caucus (2003-2006) |
| Ideology | Considered a liberal/progressive Democrat; National Journal (2007) ranked him the 77th most liberal House member (liberal score 81). Widely described as an institutionalist and party power broker. |
| Signature legislation | 10-20-30 Persistent Poverty Formula (directs at least 10% of certain federal program funds to counties with 20%+ poverty over 30+ years; included in 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Rural Development provisions) · Access for All Americans Act (2009), to fund community health centers |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed $97,008–$282,000 (2018) · estimate
| Investment Entrepreneurs LLC | business_owned · –$175,000 · 2016 |
| Real estate holding | real_estate · –$75,000 · 2016 |
| Commercial bank deposits/holdings | other · –$73,001 · 2016 |
Top donors: PricewaterhouseCoopers ($15,500 (2023-2024 cycle))
Top industries: Electric Utilities (top industry, $118,861 in 2023-2024 cycle)
Scandals & crimes ledger
resolved — FEC ADR 674 — Friends of Jim Clyburn Failure to Disclose Financial Transactions (2013 Q2)
The FEC's Reports Analysis Division referred Friends of Jim Clyburn and its treasurer James Bennett to the ADR Office after a review of reports showed that the committee failed to disclose all financial transactions on its 2013 April Quarterly Report. The case opened December 20, 2013 and closed July 31, 2014. The FEC Commission approved a negotiated settlement with a $3,100 civil penalty and a non-monetary requirement that the committee develop a FEC Compliance Manual.
resolved — House Fine for Bypassing Metal Detector (H.Res. 73) — Fine Vacated on Appeal
On April 21, 2021, the Sergeant at Arms notified the House Committee on Ethics that Rep. Clyburn had been fined $5,000 under House Resolution 73 for allegedly bypassing mandatory weapons-screening magnetometers before entering the House chamber. Capitol Police reported he 'deliberately avoided being screened.' Clyburn denied this account and appealed on April 22, 2021. A majority of the Ethics Committee agreed with his appeal on May 18, 2021, making it the first successful appeal of a magnetometer fine. The fine was dropped entirely.
resolved — FEC Administrative Fine #4561 — Failure to File 48-Hour Notices for 2022 Election Cycle Contributions
The FEC found reason to believe (6-0 vote, March 29, 2023) that Friends of Jim Clyburn and its treasurer James Bennett failed to file 48-Hour Notices for 17 contributions of $1,000 or more received between October 20 and November 5, 2022, totaling approximately $49,000–$51,500. The initial penalty was $5,322, later recalculated to $5,072. The penalty was paid in full by October 5, 2023.
resolved — FEC ADR 1107 — Friends of Jim Clyburn Failure to Disclose Disbursements on 2022 Pre-General Report
The FEC RAD referred Friends of Jim Clyburn and its treasurer James Bennett to the ADR Office after the committee's original 2022 12-Day Pre-General Report failed to disclose approximately $62,102 in disbursements. The committee attributed the error to the serious illness and subsequent death (December 9, 2022) of its FEC compliance consultant Whitney Wyatt Burns. The error was corrected in the December 2022 report. The case opened April 12, 2023 and closed October 11, 2023, with a $3,500 negotiated settlement penalty approved by the Commission.