Evan Schatz has built an impressive career on Capitol Hill, playing a significant role in some of the most critical Senate negotiations over the last 15 years.
Currently, he serves as a senior aide to Sen. Patty Murray (D-Washington) and has become an essential figure in the ongoing budget discussions involving President Trump and White House Budget Director Russell.
Come September, Schatz will be pivotal in negotiations around a government funding package that must be approved by October 1 to prevent a government shutdown.
He was instrumental in guiding the Democratic Caucus through challenges during the 118th Congressional Finance War, resulting in several notable bipartisan successes, like the passage of expenditure bills in 2024, alongside a substantial $61 billion in aid for Ukraine and funds for domestic disaster relief.
Originally from Edmonds, Washington, Schatz attended West Washington University and began his career on Capitol Hill in 2001, working for Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Washington).
In 2005, he transitioned to the Senate to assist Murray and has spent the past two decades as her staff director on the Senate Budget Committee, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pension (HELP) Committee, and now, the Appropriations Committee.
He also served as co-chair of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, often referred to as the Super Committee in 2011, where he aimed to negotiate measures to avoid severe spending cuts.
Schatz was a key figure behind the 2014 Senate budget resolution that resulted in a bipartisan budget law known as “Murray Lean,” which reinstated funding for healthcare, education, and defense jobs previously cut by the 2011 Budget Control Act.
As the Director of the HELP staff, he led negotiations on various significant bipartisan laws, focusing on strategies to enhance student success.
