Safety advocate Rep. George Miller to retire

Richmond, CA – Rep. George Miller (D-CA), longtime worker advocate in the Democratic Party, on Jan. 13 announced he will not be seeking re-election this fall.

Miller – who has been in office for the past 40 years and was the Democrat leader in the House Education and the Workforce Committee since 2001 – has been a staunch worker advocate, pushing several efforts to update occupational safety and health laws.

“I’m proud of what I have been able to accomplish on behalf of children, working people and the environment,” Miller said in a statement. “Now, I look forward to one last year in Congress fighting the good fight and then working in new venues on the issues that have inspired me.”

Miller’s announcement comes about a year after his Democrat counterpart in the Senate – Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) – announced his intent to retire at the end of his current term.