LegiStorm

This Congress's freshman class is nearly a decade younger than their longer-serving peers — and their staff is years younger too, according to LegiStorm data.

The average chief of staff to a freshman representative is 36 years old — four years younger than other House chiefs. Colin Allred's (D-Texas) chief of staff, Paige Hutchinson, is the youngest-known current chief, at about 26 years old.

Legislative assistants to new representatives are likewise about four years younger, at 26 years, while their legislative directors are about one year younger, at 32 years.

The trend also holds true outside of Washington, with the freshman class hiring district directors an average of 38 years old - three years younger than those of longer-serving members. Nathan Gerace, a staff assistant in Rep. Dan Meuser's (R-Pa.) Pottsville office, is, at age 20, the youngest-known full-time aide to a freshman member. Gerace made headlines in 2017 for being elected mayor of Tamaqua, Pa. at age 19.

Freshman Rep. Michael Waltz's (R-Fla.) initial hiring spree brings a wide range of experiences to his office, including a general.

Micah Ketchel, now Waltz's chief of staff, most recently worked at Data Targeting Inc., a Florida-based political research and polling firm. The attorney has also worked for the Republican State Leadership Committee and the Republican Attorneys General and as a research assistant for the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

Waltz's other D.C. hires include legislative director Walker Barrett, previously LD to Jeff Denham (R-Fla.), and scheduler Deborah Hansen, previously with Jason Lewis (R-Minn.). Both Denham and Lewis lost their reelection bids in November.

Leading Waltz's district operations is retired Army Brigadier General Ernie Audino. Following his 32-year military career, Audino worked as senior adviser and government relations director to the Kurdistan National Assembly of Syria and as SVP of military market development at defense contractor Raydon Corp. He holds a JD from Vermont Law School and a master's degree from the National War College.

An aide with the House's Oversight and Government Reform Committee is trading Congress for the General Services Administration.

Kevin Ortiz starts this month as a congressional policy analyst at the GSA, the federal government's primary logistics and acquisition agency. The GSA maintains a contractual relationship with the Trump Organization through its lease of the Trump Hotel in Washington, a subject that may draw some interest from Democratic investigators in the House. 

Ortiz previously worked as a professional staff member to OGR under ex-Chair Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), who did not run for reelection.

The chief of staff to an outgoing member has made a soft landing at the Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations.

Adam Carbullido had worked for Madeleine Bordallo (D), Guam's delegate to the House, since 2010, and as her chief of staff since last year. Bordallo lost her reelection bid to incoming delegate Mike San Nicolas (D).

Carbullido joins the AAPCHO as policy and advocacy director. The association advocates for policies aimed at increasing health-care access for U.S. Asians, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders.

A Senate Judiciary attorney is back to his old employer — the Justice Department — but now in management.

Patrick Davis returned to DOJ this month as a deputy associate attorney general. He most recently worked as the Judiciary Committee's deputy chief investigative counsel on the Republican side.

Before joining the committee in 2015, the Georgetown Law alumnus spent seven years as a DOJ trial attorney.