Principal
Washington, DC
jnovotny@hbstrategies.us
Joe is an experienced and skilled public speaker with established and trusted relationships with lawmakers on Capitol Hill. He is an invaluable legislative and institutional resource for clients, who also benefit from his keen sense of political strategy and process. Prior to joining HBS in 2021, Joe served in the House of Representatives and in March 2022, the Congressional Management Foundation awarded Joe its Democracy Award for Staff Lifetime Achievement for his 30 years of service in the US House of Representatives, recognizing “exemplary public service in Congress”. In 2010, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) appointed Joe as House Reading Clerk, a position he served in for 11 years. With such a visible role, Joe has worked closely with leadership and committee staff of both parties and managed the activity of legislation with valuable understanding of Committee rules and procedure.
Joe’s responsibility to convey the dignity of the House has made him a well-known face on C-SPAN, and he has taken his role in representing the institution with great care and pride. During his time on the House Floor, Joe has had extensive experience in learning about House and committee process, and his duties included communicating with the Senate regarding delivery of legislation and messages. Joe has also helped to put together annual Appropriations and Defense Authorization bills when they come to the House Floor, in addition to other significant pieces of legislation.
Prior to his appointment as Reading Clerk, Joe was Chief Clerk for Congressman George Miller (D-CA) at the Education and Workforce Committee. Some of the important legislation that Joe worked on included the Affordable Care Act, No Child Left Behind, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, the Employment Nondiscrimination Act, and he has worked on other issues such as mine safety, protecting pensions for airline workers, and child bullying. Before his time at the Education and Labor Committee, Joe worked for Congressman Miller at the Natural Resources Committee, and he spent time on issues relating to Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and pardoning servicemen from the Port Chicago Disaster of 1944.
Originally from Chicago, Joe first came to DC as a Page and then as a staffer for House Ways and Means Committee chairman Dan Rostenkowski (D-IL). During his time on Capitol Hill, Joe became a Stennis Fellow during the 115th Congress, and he used that experience to communicate with senior House and Senate staff to strategize about ways to improve Congress, create open dialogue for staff as well as Members, and how to help retain institutional knowledge at a time when Congress is rapidly changing. Joe has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Communication from George Washington University, and he resides in Washington, D.C.
