By a party-line vote of 60-37, the Senate has confirmed the nomination of Patricia Smith to be the U.S. Solicitor of Labor. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee had approved her nomination on October 7, but controversy arose when Sen. Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) accused Smith of making inconsistent statements during her confirmation hearing in May 2009. At issue was Smith’s testimony regarding the New York Wage Watch program, an initiative based on the Neighborhood Watch program that purportedly exposes businesses that violate wage and hour law. Smith is currently the Commissioner of the New York State Department of Labor (DOL), and unveiled the Wage Watch program last year. During her confirmation hearing, Smith denied that outside groups were involved in creating the program, an assertion that has come under fire. Sen. Enzi, Smith’s most vocal critic, has accused her of being a “trusted ally of organized labor and even allows them to participate heavily in the formulation of her agency's initiatives.” Smith later claimed that she “misspoke” about the timeline of various advocacy group and union involvement in the Wage Watch program. The alleged conflicting testimony threatened to derail Smith’s nomination, but the Senate voted 60-32 to end debate on her nomination on Monday, clearing the way for her confirmation.

In addition to serving as NY’s DOL Commissioner, Smith co-chairs the New York State Economic Security sub-cabinet. In this position, she oversees the state’s DOL and serves as advisor to New York’s governor on workforce and labor policy. Prior to holding this position, Smith spent 20 years in the Labor Bureau of the New York State Attorney General’s Office, the last eight as Bureau Chief. Smith’s job included overseeing labor law litigation in state and federal courts. In 1996 and 1997, Smith argued and won two Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) cases before the United States Supreme Court. Prior to working in the Attorney General’s office, Smith worked for a variety of legal services organizations representing unemployment claimants, minimum wage workers, individuals in federal job training programs, and job seekers.

Smith graduated from Trinity College, and earned a law degree from the New York University School of Law.