Rep. Randy Neugebauer (R-Texas) on Thursday became the sixth House Republican to announce he won’t seek reelection in 2016.
Neugebauer, the chairman of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit and the vice chairman of the House Agriculture Committee, said it was a difficult decision to not run for an eighth term.
“But I feel this is a good time to end this season of my life and move to another,” Neugebauer said in a statement.
{mosads}He vowed “to work tirelessly” on behalf of his constituents for the remaining 15 months of his term.
“I am not walking away from the important work that lies ahead,” he said.
Neugebauer tamped down concerns that he is leaving Congress because of health issues.
“I feel great and I am cancer-free,” he said. “The bottom line is that I really think this is the right time for my family and me to have more time together.”
“I have a 4-year-old granddaughter that I have never been with on her birthday.”
Neugebauer started his political career in 1992 as a member of the city counsil of Lubbock, Texas, where he served three terms through 1998.
In 2003, he won a special election to replace Larry Combest, who resigned after deaths in his family.
As a former banker and home builder, Neugebauer has played a major role in crafting legislation to wind down mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
He also was a key player in writing the 2014 farm bill.
“To say that this has been an honor would be an understatement,” he said.
Neugebauer said he is looking forward to what life brings for him and his wife, Dana.
“I hope it brings more time for family and maybe a little more time for fly-fishing as well.”