Pete Schneider (Louisiana politician)
Encyclopedia
Matthew Peter Schneider, III, known as Pete Schneider (born December 2, 1953), is a Slidell
, Louisiana
, business
man who served four terms between 1992 and 2008 as a Republican
member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
from District 90, which encompasses his St. Tammany Parish
. Known for his anti-crime legislative endeavors, Schneider, who was term-limited in the House, was handily defeated in a contest for the District 11 seat in the Louisiana State Senate
(St. Tammany and Tangipahoa parishes
) in the nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 20, 2007.
, a company founded in 1891. He is the fourth generation of his family to run the firm. He is also a former member of the board of the interest group, the Brick Industry Association Manufacturer’s Council.
Schneider graduated from Slidell High School
and thereafter attended Louisiana State University
in Baton Rouge
and Texas Christian University
in Fort Worth
, Texas
. Schneider has been married since 1979 to the former Elizabeth Lussen, and the couple has three children, Pete, IV, Christopher, and Kathryn. He is Presbyterian.
He is affiliated with the Lake Pontchartrain
Basin Foundation, the Louisiana Wild Life Federation, the Sugar Bowl
Committee, the National Rifle Association
, the St. Tammany Association for Retarded Citizens, the St. Tammany Economic Development Foundation, the St. Tammany Homebuilder’s Association, and several chambers of commerce
. He is a Paul Harris Fellow
of Slidell Rotary International
. He is a past trustee of the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, a "good government" civic group.
. There is also a considerable registration of Independents. The district is populated by business and professional persons, some of whom commute to New Orleans or Metairie
or to the Martin Marietta
aerospace facility. Others are employed at the John C. Stennis Space Center
across the state line in Mississippi
. The district also contains retirees from metropolitan New Orleans.
Representative Schneider attracted national attention as the author of the "Scarlet Letter Law" which requires convicted child molesters to notify the community once they are released from prison. He also worked to pass legislation to give juries
the option to issue the death penalty to a person convicted of raping
a child under the age of twelve. He worked for passage for the "three-strikes-and-you’re-out" law which authorizes the life imprisonment
of habitual felon
s upon conviction of their third violent crime. Schneider worked to establish a state-wide DNA
database.
In 2007, Schneider became the first legislator in the United States to write adopted legislation which authorizes state public pension systems to divest from foreign companies that do business in nations sponsoring terrorism
. The law authorizes the governor to contract with Wall Street
companies to develop a terror-free investment index in which the state can place its pension funds.
Schneider opposed higher taxes on personal income and small businesses. He fought to permit St. Tammany Parish voters the right to block casino
gambling
and video poker
by supporting local option. He sponsored bills to dedicate lottery
proceeds to education and law enforcement. He also worked to secure funding for highway
and drainage projects in Slidell, Lacombe
, and Mandeville
.
As a state House member, Schneider was cited in 1994 as "Outstanding Legislator" by the Victims and Citizens Against Crime, “Conservative of the Year” in 2003 by the Louisiana State Troopers Association, “Special Friend” of the Louisiana Municipal Association in 2002 and 2003, “Friend of the Family” by the Louisiana Christian Coalition, and the “Guardian of Small Business Award” (1995) by the state chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business. In the House, Schneider was chairman of the Retirement Committee and served on the Natural Resources panel.
. In his initial election to the legislature on October 19, 1991, with all thirty-four precincts officially reporting, Schneider led an eight-candidate field of seven Republicans and one Democrat. He received 2,436 votes (19.3 percent). The runner-up, Republican Mark Jolissaint of Mandeville, trailed with 2,166 ballots (17.1 percent). The other eight candidates shared the ciritical 8,054 votes. In the runoff on November 16, 1991, the same election in which Edwin Washington Edwards defeated David Duke
for governor, Schneider defeated Jolissaint, 8,552 (56.7 percent) to 6,519 (43.3 percent) Schneider defeated an Independent candidate by a wiide margin to win reelection in the primary in 1995. He was unopposed in both 1999 and 2003.
In 2007 state Senate primary, with all 99 precincts officially reporting, Schneider, with 12,287 votes (32.8 percent), trailed the successful Republican candidate, Jack Donahue
of Covington
, the St. Tammany parish seat of government, who garnered 24,200 (64.5 percent). A contractor who spent heavily on his own campaign, Donahue carried the support of term-limited Senator Tom Schedler
of Mandeville
, later the Louisiana Secretary of State. Campaign finance reports filled by the Donahue campaign indicate that the Donahue campaign spent in excess of $835,000 by the end of the campaign. Schneider was supported by former Lieutenant Governor
Jimmy Fitzmorris
of New Orleans. The remaining 1,041 ballots (2.8 percent) went to a third Republican, A.M. "Ace" LeBleu.
Slidell, Louisiana
Slidell is a city situated on the northeast shore of Lake Pontchartrain in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 25,695 at the 2000 census. The Greater Slidell Community has a population of about 90,000...
, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
man who served four terms between 1992 and 2008 as a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
member of the Louisiana House of Representatives
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
from District 90, which encompasses his St. Tammany Parish
St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana
St. Tammany Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana, in the New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner Metropolitan Statistical Area. The parish seat is Covington....
. Known for his anti-crime legislative endeavors, Schneider, who was term-limited in the House, was handily defeated in a contest for the District 11 seat in the Louisiana State Senate
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
(St. Tammany and Tangipahoa parishes
Tangipahoa Parish, Louisiana
Tangipahoa Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana, one of the Florida Parishes. The parish seat is Amite City, but the major city is Hammond. As of 2006, the population was 113,137...
) in the nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 20, 2007.
Personal and civic matters
Since 1978, Schneider has been the president and general manager of St. Joe Brick Works, Inc., in SlidellSlidell, Louisiana
Slidell is a city situated on the northeast shore of Lake Pontchartrain in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 25,695 at the 2000 census. The Greater Slidell Community has a population of about 90,000...
, a company founded in 1891. He is the fourth generation of his family to run the firm. He is also a former member of the board of the interest group, the Brick Industry Association Manufacturer’s Council.
Schneider graduated from Slidell High School
Slidell High School
Slidell High School is a public school for grades nine through twelve located in Slidell, Louisiana. It is part of the St. Tammany Parish Public School District and serves portions of west and central Slidell.-Notable alumni:...
and thereafter attended Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
in Baton Rouge
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
and Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University is a private, coeducational university located in Fort Worth, Texas, United States and founded in 1873. TCU is affiliated with, but not governed by, the Disciples of Christ...
in Fort Worth
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. Schneider has been married since 1979 to the former Elizabeth Lussen, and the couple has three children, Pete, IV, Christopher, and Kathryn. He is Presbyterian.
He is affiliated with the Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain is a brackish estuary located in southeastern Louisiana. It is the second-largest inland saltwater body of water in the United States, after the Great Salt Lake in Utah, and the largest lake in Louisiana. As an estuary, Pontchartrain is not a true lake.It covers an area of with...
Basin Foundation, the Louisiana Wild Life Federation, the Sugar Bowl
Sugar Bowl
The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Sugar Bowl has been played annually since January 1, 1935, and celebrated its 75th anniversary on January 2, 2009...
Committee, the National Rifle Association
National Rifle Association
The National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
, the St. Tammany Association for Retarded Citizens, the St. Tammany Economic Development Foundation, the St. Tammany Homebuilder’s Association, and several chambers of commerce
Chamber of commerce
A chamber of commerce is a form of business network, e.g., a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to advocate on behalf of the business community...
. He is a Paul Harris Fellow
Paul P. Harris
Paul Percy Harris was a Chicago, Illinois, attorney best known for founding Rotary International in 1905, a service organization that currently has well over one million members worldwide.-Biography:...
of Slidell Rotary International
Rotary International
Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help...
. He is a past trustee of the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, a "good government" civic group.
Legislative career
Among the fastest-growing state House districts in Louisiana, District 90 is the only one in the state in which registered Republicans outnumber DemocratsDemocratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
. There is also a considerable registration of Independents. The district is populated by business and professional persons, some of whom commute to New Orleans or Metairie
Metairie, Louisiana
Metairie is a census-designated place in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, United States and is a major part of the New Orleans Metropolitan Area. Metairie is the largest community in Jefferson Parish. It is an unincorporated area that would be larger than most of the state's cities if it were...
or to the Martin Marietta
Martin Marietta
Martin Marietta Corporation was an American company founded in 1961 through the merger of The Martin Company and American-Marietta Corporation. The combined company became a leader in chemicals, aerospace, and electronics. In 1995, it merged with Lockheed Corporation to form Lockheed Martin. The...
aerospace facility. Others are employed at the John C. Stennis Space Center
John C. Stennis Space Center
The John C. Stennis Space Center , located in Hancock County, Mississippi, at the Mississippi-Louisiana border, is NASA's largest rocket engine test facility.- History :...
across the state line in Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. The district also contains retirees from metropolitan New Orleans.
Representative Schneider attracted national attention as the author of the "Scarlet Letter Law" which requires convicted child molesters to notify the community once they are released from prison. He also worked to pass legislation to give juries
Jury
A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty,...
the option to issue the death penalty to a person convicted of raping
Rape
Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse, which is initiated by one or more persons against another person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or with a person who is incapable of valid consent. The...
a child under the age of twelve. He worked for passage for the "three-strikes-and-you’re-out" law which authorizes the life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
of habitual felon
Felony
A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
s upon conviction of their third violent crime. Schneider worked to establish a state-wide DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
database.
In 2007, Schneider became the first legislator in the United States to write adopted legislation which authorizes state public pension systems to divest from foreign companies that do business in nations sponsoring terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
. The law authorizes the governor to contract with Wall Street
Wall Street
Wall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
companies to develop a terror-free investment index in which the state can place its pension funds.
Schneider opposed higher taxes on personal income and small businesses. He fought to permit St. Tammany Parish voters the right to block casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
gambling
Gambling
Gambling is the wagering of money or something of material value on an event with an uncertain outcome with the primary intent of winning additional money and/or material goods...
and video poker
Video poker
Video poker is a casino game based on five-card draw poker. It is played on a computerized console similar in size to a slot machine.-History:...
by supporting local option. He sponsored bills to dedicate lottery
Lottery
A lottery is a form of gambling which involves the drawing of lots for a prize.Lottery is outlawed by some governments, while others endorse it to the extent of organizing a national or state lottery. It is common to find some degree of regulation of lottery by governments...
proceeds to education and law enforcement. He also worked to secure funding for highway
Highway
A highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...
and drainage projects in Slidell, Lacombe
Lacombe, Louisiana
Lacombe is a census-designated place in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 7,518 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Lacombe is located at ....
, and Mandeville
Mandeville, Louisiana
Mandeville is a city in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 12,421 in 2008. Mandeville is located on the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain, south of Interstate 12. It is across the lake from the city of New Orleans and its southshore suburbs...
.
As a state House member, Schneider was cited in 1994 as "Outstanding Legislator" by the Victims and Citizens Against Crime, “Conservative of the Year” in 2003 by the Louisiana State Troopers Association, “Special Friend” of the Louisiana Municipal Association in 2002 and 2003, “Friend of the Family” by the Louisiana Christian Coalition, and the “Guardian of Small Business Award” (1995) by the state chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business. In the House, Schneider was chairman of the Retirement Committee and served on the Natural Resources panel.
Election results
Schneider's House district was newly-established within St. Tammany Parish after the 1990 censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
. In his initial election to the legislature on October 19, 1991, with all thirty-four precincts officially reporting, Schneider led an eight-candidate field of seven Republicans and one Democrat. He received 2,436 votes (19.3 percent). The runner-up, Republican Mark Jolissaint of Mandeville, trailed with 2,166 ballots (17.1 percent). The other eight candidates shared the ciritical 8,054 votes. In the runoff on November 16, 1991, the same election in which Edwin Washington Edwards defeated David Duke
David Duke
David Ernest Duke is a former Grand Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan an American activist and writer, and former Republican Louisiana State Representative. He was also a former candidate in the Republican presidential primaries in 1992, and in the Democratic presidential primaries in...
for governor, Schneider defeated Jolissaint, 8,552 (56.7 percent) to 6,519 (43.3 percent) Schneider defeated an Independent candidate by a wiide margin to win reelection in the primary in 1995. He was unopposed in both 1999 and 2003.
In 2007 state Senate primary, with all 99 precincts officially reporting, Schneider, with 12,287 votes (32.8 percent), trailed the successful Republican candidate, Jack Donahue
Jack Donahue (Louisiana politician)
John Leo Donahue, Jr., known as Jack Donahue is a building contractor and philanthropist in Mandeville, Louisiana, who is a Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate from District 11...
of Covington
Covington, Louisiana
Covington is a city in and the parish seat of St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 8,483 at the 2000 census. It is located at a fork of the Bogue Falaya and the Tchefuncte River....
, the St. Tammany parish seat of government, who garnered 24,200 (64.5 percent). A contractor who spent heavily on his own campaign, Donahue carried the support of term-limited Senator Tom Schedler
Tom Schedler
John Thomas Schedler, known as Tom Schedler , is a politician from suburban St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, USA, who served as the District 11 Louisiana state senator from 1996 to 2008, when he was term-limited after twelve years...
of Mandeville
Mandeville, Louisiana
Mandeville is a city in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 12,421 in 2008. Mandeville is located on the North Shore of Lake Pontchartrain, south of Interstate 12. It is across the lake from the city of New Orleans and its southshore suburbs...
, later the Louisiana Secretary of State. Campaign finance reports filled by the Donahue campaign indicate that the Donahue campaign spent in excess of $835,000 by the end of the campaign. Schneider was supported by former Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana
The Office of Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana is the second highest state office in Louisiana. The current Lieutenant Governor is Jay Dardenne, a Republican...
Jimmy Fitzmorris
Jimmy Fitzmorris
James Edward "Jimmy" Fitzmorris, Jr. , is a New Orleans businessman and civic leader who was the Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana from 1972–1980...
of New Orleans. The remaining 1,041 ballots (2.8 percent) went to a third Republican, A.M. "Ace" LeBleu.