State Rep. Craig Williams (R-Delaware/Chester) was appointed by House Republican Leader Jesse Topper to serve as minority chairman of the House Government Oversight Committee for the 2025-2026 House session.
The House Government Oversight Committee is empowered to conduct hearings at any place in the commonwealth to investigate any matter referred to it.
Democrats currently hold a slim 102-101 majority in the House, while the GOP controls 27 of the 50 seats in the state Senate.
“I hand-picked Chairman Williams for this position,” said Topper (R-Bedford/Fulton). “In his four years in the House chamber, I have seen him lean on his wealth of experience to drive to reasoned outcomes. He solves problems. He does the right thing for the right reasons. That is who we need leading oversight investigations.”
As the committee’s ranking member, Williams will work with Democratic Majority Chair Morgan Cephas (D-Philadelphia). He will lead Republican committee members, Reps. Tim Bonner (R-Mercer/Butler Counties), Dallas Kephart (R-Cambria/Clearfield) and Grimm Krupa (R-Fayette), in conducting critical investigations.
“Having done similar work on the executive side at the highest levels of our federal government, I know that House Government Oversight is a crucial function in integrity and also the checks and balances of government power. As always, I am honored to serve,” said Williams.
Williams has previously served as a federal prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice, deputy legal counsel to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and in his final tour as a colonel in the U.S. Marine Corps, commanded all prosecutors in the Marine Corps Reserve.
Williams spent nearly three decades in the Marines and 56 combat missions. He was decorated 11 times, twice for valor in battle.
Williams told DVJournal, “In a political landscape currently marred by the weaponization of our legal system, the citizens of our commonwealth are hungry for transparency, fairness and justice. That is how I intend to lead my team and investigations on the Government Oversight Committee.”
Some House Government Oversight Committee investigations include:
- In 2019, the committee investigated compliance with the commonwealth’s Lobbying Disclosure Law, as amended by Act 2. That investigation recommended further changes to lobbying disclosures.
- In 2020, the committee investigated reports that the Office of the State Inspector General (OSIG) procured firearms for use by its agents and subsequently did not put those firearms into service. The committee was tasked with conducting “an investigation of the facts surrounding the adherence to the procurement process in making this purchase.”
The committee concluded that the former inspector general and his staff at all times acted in good faith in reliance on a change in the law.
- In 2020, the committee investigated the decisions made, guidance issued, and public information provided concerning nursing home patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. That investigation was not completed before the 2020 session ended.
Williams was elected to his third term in the House in November. He lost his bid to be the GOP nominee for attorney general to Dave Sunday, who went on to win the general election. Williams also lost a bid for Congress to incumbent Democrat Rep. Joe Sestak in 2008.
During his tenure in the House, Williams grabbed headlines for managing the House impeachment of progressive Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner. He secured funding to hire more firearms prosecutors for Philadelphia and Delaware County, and introduced legislation to include human traffickers in the state’s Sex Offender Registry.
In addition to being appointed minority chairman of the Government Oversight Committee, Williams will serve on the Consumer Protection Technology and Utilities, Energy, Gaming Oversight, and Veterans Affairs and Emergency Preparedness committees.
