Maurice Dunlea Hinchey (October 27, 1938 – November 22, 2017) was an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from New York and was a member of the Democratic Party.

Hinchey was born to a working-class family on the Lower West Side of Manhattan, the son of Rose (Bonack) and Maurice D.

Hinchey also served on the Ways and Means, Rules, Banks, Health, Higher Education, Labor, Energy and Agriculture committees.

Hinchey was threatened with dismemberment of his district or with having to run against a popular and well-established Republican incumbent, either Ben Gilman or Sherwood Boehlert.

[9] He bridged the ideological gap with a reputation for supporting many measures to improve integrity in government,[10][11][12][13] by popular (in New York) advocacy of strong environmental protection,[14][15] and by diligent constituent services.

[citation needed] In 2010, Hinchey was elected to his tenth and final term, with a 52% to 48% margin over Republican George Phillips of Binghamton.

TSEC supports the growth of a solar energy industry in New York, creating green jobs in the Hudson Valley area.

[23] In 2010 midterm elections, Hinchey clashed with his opponent over shale gas drilling and hydraulic fracturing in upstate New York.

[25] Along with Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.) and Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Hinchey introduced legislation called the "FRAC Act" which proposes lifting fracturing exemptions and forcing public disclosure of chemicals used.

[citation needed] Hinchey introduced the Hinchey–Rohrabacher amendment in 2001, to prohibit the Justice Department from taking actions to interfere with the implementation of state medical cannabis laws.

[28] In 2009, the U.S. House Committee on Appropriations approved adding a provision authored by Hinchey to the committee report on the fiscal 2010 Justice Department appropriations bill, requesting "clarification of the Department's policy regarding enforcement of federal laws and use of federal resources against individuals involved in medical marijuana activities.

[26] Member, Eastern Regional Conference of the Council of State Governments and chair of its Environment Committee Hinchey was made an Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau on September 4, 2009, by the Ambassador of the Netherlands in capacity of Queen Beatrix.

He was awarded the Dutch royal order for his work to commemorate the quadricentennial anniversary of Henry Hudson's exploration and discovery of the river in New York and for Hinchey's efforts to strengthen the U.S.-Netherlands relationship.

"[citation needed] Another bill Hinchey voted yes on, the Aid to States for Medicaid, Teacher Employment and Other purposes, passed in the House in August 2010.

"[34] In a letter sent on November 10, 2010, to Jeffrey Zients, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, Hinchey promoted the support of Job Corps.

[33] In May 2010, Hinchey, along with two other Progressive democrats, Lois Capps and Jay Inslee, began a petition to ask Obama to delay Shell from beginning exploratory drilling near Alaska.

Another priority was assuring native communities would not be harmed; since they often depend on fish and marine life to sustain them, their resources would be depleted if a spill happened.

Not long after, Hinchey—along with three other House Democrats—John Lewis of Georgia, Henry Waxman of California, and Lynn Woolsey of California—wrote the Justice Department, requesting an investigation to determine whether Bush administration violated any laws in authorizing and carrying out the program.

[37] In December 1994, Hinchey was issued a summons after X-ray machines at Washington National Airport found a loaded .32-caliber handgun in his carry-on luggage before he boarded a flight.

Hinchey was informally advised to carry a handgun for personal protection by NYS Law Enforcement investigators when, as Chair of the NYS Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee, he conducted a major investigation into the repeated dumping of toxic waste into an Orange County NY Landfill by Organized Crime.

[39] He denied his decision to step down had anything to do with the state's pending redistricting but said he wanted to make his intentions clear before the process was completed.

His departure was seen as making it easier for the state's Democratic Party to decide which member of its congressional delegation would have to give up their district since New York had to eliminate two of its seats that year.

[6] Shortly after being treated for colon cancer, Hinchey began experiencing symptoms of frontotemporal dementia, a diagnosis that his family did not make public until 2017.