Debra Dixon

Background

About Debra Dixon

I am an innovative, pragmatic, and big-picture thinker. I can quickly identify critical tasks as well as longer-term strategies. With private and public sector and nonprofit experience, I am at my best when working with a talented, bipartisan team on a shared mission. As former Chief of Staff to then Rep. Xavier Becerra, my more than a decade and a half of work on Capitol Hill included leading teams and supporting the Congressman’s efforts on the Ways and Means Committee, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the California Delegation, and House Democratic Leadership. I learned the ins and outs of the non-profit world at the National Immigration Forum where I advocated for immigration reform, workforce needs, and a path to citizenship. An attorney by trade, I bookended my time on Capitol Hill with stints at two federal agencies, serving as Immigration Counsel at the Department of Justice and subsequently as the Chief of Staff at the Department of Education's Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development. In the private sector, I have represented clients in the tech and B2B manufacturing industries. I am a whiz at translating legislative and regulatory developments into layperson’s terms on issues such as education policy, international trade, supply chain, tax, immigration, and health IT. Helping people navigate DC is what I like best about my job. A great day for me is zipping from the labyrinth of offices on the Hill to a meeting at an agency across town, thinking through complex policy issues, and encouraging voices to participate in the democratic process.