click for hi-res

Since his May 2, 2005 appointment to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Mr. Bingel served as Assistant Commissioner for the Office of Congressional Affairs where he managed relations with the United States Senate and House of Representatives for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, a component of the Department of Homeland Security with more than 40,000 employees and annual budget of nearly $6 billion.

Prior to joining U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Mr. Bingel served as Majority Counsel for the full House Judiciary Committee and Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner during the 108th and 109th Congresses. His duties included preparing for Full Committee hearings and managing a broad spectrum of legislation from subcommittee through passage into law.

Before joining the House Judiciary Committee, Mr. Bingel served in the 107th Congress as counsel and policy analyst for then Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX), where he was responsible for technology, telecomm, energy, environment, resources, and other issues for the House Majority Leader's office, including providing assistance to the special legislative committee headed by the Majority Leader which created the Department of Homeland Security. Previously, Mr. Bingel served as Legislative Director and Counsel to Congressman Chris Cannon (R-UT) during the 106th and 107th Congresses, where his issue responsibilities included defense, terrorism, homeland security, and technology. Prior to Rep. Cannon, Mr. Bingel was also a legislative aide to Congressman Dan Miller of Florida in the 106th Congress.

Before his service in the Legislative Branch, Mr. Bingel worked as an associate at a Washington government affairs consulting firm Merritt Group, Ltd. and he began his career in Washington doing political research on House races for the National Republican Congressional Committee during the 1995-96 election cycle. Mr. Bingel is a native of upstate New York and holds a JD from Georgetown University Law School and a BA from Holy Cross. His wife Kelly and he have two children.