Barnett "Barney" Frank (born March 31, 1940) is an American politician who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee (2007–2011). He was a leading co-sponsor of the 2010 Dodd–Frank Act, a sweeping reform of the U.S. financial industry. Frank, a resident of Newton, Massachusetts, is considered the most prominent openly gay politician in the United States. 