Meng, Grace, 1975-

Grace Meng (born October 1, 1975) is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, she serves in the U.S. House of Representatives representing New York's 6th congressional district. She is the first Asian American to be elected to Congress from New York.

Born in Queens, New York, she attended Stuyvesant High School before earning an A.B. from the University of Michigan and a J.D. from Yeshiva University. After earning her J.D., Meng worked as a public-interest lawyer. In 2006, she ran to succeed her father, Jimmy Meng, in the New York State Assembly; her name was taken off the ballot when Democrat Ellen Young challenged her residency status. Meng challenged Young in 2008, defeating her in the Democratic primary and in the general election. Meng was the author of the Reverse Mortgage Act of 2009 that prohibited proceeds received from reverse mortgages from being considered as income, so senior citizens can get their partial property tax exemption. Seven other of her pieces of legislation were signed into law.

In 2012, Meng was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Inaugurated on January 3, 2013, Meng helped form the Bipartisan Freshman Caucus. During her time in Congress, Meng has passed several pieces of legislation into law. These include laws about religious freedom, making Queens historic sites part of the National Park Service, striking “Oriental” from federal law and protecting public housing residents from insufficient heat. Also signed into law were her measures to assist veterans and members of the military, and provisions to improve consumer protections and safeguards for children. She helped to found and co-chaired of the Kids’ Safety Caucus, the first bipartisan coalition in the House that promotes child-safety issues.