Stephen S. Ruhlen, whose decades of work on Capitol Hill includes most recently serving as chief of staff to the chairwoman of the House Appropriations Committee, has joined the Washington, D.C. office of Baker Donelson as a senior public policy advisor.
Mr. Ruhlen's previous experience in the U.S. government also includes serving as deputy assistant to the vice president of the United States and chief of staff to four members of Congress.
As Congresswoman Kay Granger's chief of staff, Mr. Ruhlen worked closely with the Appropriations Committee and House leadership on legislative and communications priorities and strategies affecting the appropriations process. He also managed her role as dean of the Texas Republican delegation, the largest delegation in the House Republican Conference.
Sheila P. Burke, chair of Baker Donelson's Government Relations and Public Policy Group, said, "Steve's extensive experience on Capitol Hill includes collaborating with corporate stakeholders, national associations, and House and Senate leadership to advance legislation across various issue areas. He joins an experienced, bipartisan team that is committed to a customized and strategic approach to helping our clients achieve their mission through in-depth understanding of federal policymaking and its consequences."
Between his service as chief of staff and deputy assistant to the vice president, Mr. Ruhlen was a partner at Total Spectrum, where he advised senior executives in developing and implementing cogent and successful government affairs strategies that addressed legislative and regulatory obstacles. From 2015 to 2018, Mr. Ruhlen served as principal at Ruhlen Strategies, LLC, where he provided government affairs consulting, strategy development, and advocacy services to clients. He played a key role in coordinating successful efforts to protect the partnership tax model of Master Limited Partnerships (MLPs) in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 and developed strategies to make further critical modifications to the law.
"I feel fortunate to be joining a firm with a longstanding reputation for deep federal government capabilities in its public policy practice," said Mr. Ruhlen. "I look forward to contributing to Baker Donelson's continued success and helping our clients navigate the complexities of federal policymaking."
Prior to his role at Ruhlen Strategies, LLC, Mr. Ruhlen served as the senior vice president and co-head of federal government relations at JP Morgan Chase & Co., where he managed the federal government relations program. While in this role, he designed and implemented legislative strategies involving corporate, legal, and business line leaders to achieve specific government relations goals. Mr. Ruhlen also developed and executed government relations strategies for several business lines, including retail, credit card, tax, and government business.