Richard E. Neal
DemocratU.S. Representative, MA-1| Age | 77 (b. 1949-02-14) |
| Gender | Male |
| In office since | 1989-01-03 (~37 yrs) |
| Race / ethnicity | White (Irish-American) |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Education | BA in Political Science, American International College (1972); MA in Public Administration, University of Hartford Barney School of Business (1976); also attended Holyoke Community College |
| Prior occupation | High school history teacher (Cathedral High School, Springfield); lecturer at Springfield College and American International College; Springfield City Council member (1978–1984); Mayor of Springfield (1984–1989) |
| Military service | No |
| Birthplace | Worcester, Massachusetts |
| Marital status | Widowed (wife Maureen Conway Neal died March 19, 2025) — Maureen Conway Neal (married 1975; deceased March 2025) |
| Children | 4 |
| Residence | Springfield, Massachusetts |
Pending research: languages · notable relatives · openly lgbtq.
Career & politics
| First elected | 1988 |
| Previous offices | Springfield City Council member (1978–1984) · President, Springfield City Council (1979–1983) · Mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts (1984–1989) |
| Committees | House Ways and Means Committee (Ranking Member) · Joint Committee on Taxation |
| Caucuses | New England Congressional Caucus (Co-chair) · Friends of Ireland (Chairman) · Congressional Arts Caucus · Afterschool Caucuses · U.S.-Japan Caucus · Rare Disease Caucus |
| Leadership | Chair, House Ways and Means Committee (2019–2023) · Ranking Member, House Ways and Means Committee (2023–present) · Chairman, Friends of Ireland Caucus (2007–present) · Co-chair, New England Congressional Caucus |
| Ideology | Generally liberal; Americans for Democratic Action rating 100% (2008); American Conservative Union lifetime rating 8.19%; voted with Biden positions 100% in 117th Congress (FiveThirtyEight). Considered a centrist Democrat on healthcare and trade issues. |
| Signature legislation | SECURE Act (H.R. 1994, 2019) — retirement savings reform, signed into law December 20, 2019 · SECURE Act 2.0 (2022) — further retirement savings expansion · H.R. 6081 (2008) — required federal contractors to pay taxes for offshore-hired workers · Child tax credit AMT exemption (1998, made permanent 2001) · Public Servants Protection and Fairness Act — Windfall Elimination Provision fix |
Financial
Net worth: disclosed + (2023) · estimate
| Goldman Sachs Bank (savings/deposit account) | other · $100,001–$250,000 · 2023 |
| First Republic Bank (transferred to Needham Bank) | other · $15,001–$50,000 · 2023 |
| Needham Bank | other · $50,001–$100,000 · 2023 |
| Lincoln Financial Securities | other · $100,001–$250,000 · 2023 |
| T. Rowe Price Capital Appreciation Fund | fund · $15,001–$50,000 · 2023 |
Top donors: Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance (MassMutual) ($472,357 (career)) · Fidelity Investments ($300,800 (career)) · RTX Corp. ($215,000 (career)) · MetLife Inc. ($173,650 (career)) · National Association of Realtors ($169,990 (career))
Top industries: Insurance · Finance, Insurance & Real Estate · Health · Business Services · Communications & Electronics
Scandals & crimes ledger
No recorded incidents. Under the adjudicated-only methodology, an entry appears only when a court or official body has formally acted and the record is cited.