On March 18, 2013, President Obama announced the nomination of  Thomas Perez to serve as the next U.S. Secretary of Labor. Perez is a former Maryland Secretary of Labor and is currently serving as U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights. Perez also served as head of the Office of Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services during the Clinton Administration.  His nomination will go to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, which will conduct a hearing on the nomination.