Rudy Yakym, R-Ind., has been named Republican co-chair of the House Municipal Finance Caucus, a position he takes over from the late Jackie Walorski, who passed away unexpectedly last August.
That was confirmed in a release by his Democratic co-chair Dutch Ruppersberger of Maryland, who founded the caucus in 2016. The caucus comprises a bipartisan group of lawmakers who have said they will support public finance priorities in Congress.
“From schools to hospitals, roads to fire stations, municipal bonds help finance and pave the way for some of the most important projects that our constituents rely on every day,” Yakym said. “I look forward to working alongside Congressman Ruppersberger and all the caucus members on this important, bipartisan initiative to ensure the communities we represent have the tools they need to continue creating jobs and improving critical infrastructures.”
Yakym came up in Indiana taking on a number of local business and sales positions, first as a sales manager for broadband company Omnicity, as vice president at the Bradley Company, a commercial real estate business, as well as director of growth initiatives for Kem Krest, a logistics and supply chain organization.
Aside from his experience in business he has also had a foot in local politics throughout the years, being picked by then Gov. Mike Pence in 2015 to serve as a member of the Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission and serving as Walorski’s finance director in 2011 and 2012. After her death last year, Yakym succeeded her in representing Indiana’s 2nd congressional district.
Yakym serves on the House Budget Committee and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
He holds an associate’s degree in business, a B.S. in finance and business administration from Indiana University South Bend and an MBA from University of Notre Dame.
“As we continue to make long-overdue investments in our country’s infrastructure – including roads, hospitals, fire stations and more – at the federal, state and local levels, the work of this caucus is going to be more important than ever,” Yakym’s co-chair Ruppersberger said. “I am excited to work with Rudy, whose committee assignments are perfectly aligned with the goals of our Caucus. I know he will hit the ground running.”
In celebrating Yakym’s position as co-chair, Ruppersberger paid tribute to the work Walorski did as a well-respected tax expert. Walorski died along with three others in a car accident in August 2022.
“We will always be grateful for Congresswoman Walorski’s leadership on municipal issuers and her contributions to this Caucus,” Ruppersberger said. “We will continue to be inspired by her passion for sound and bipartisan fiscal policies.”