WASHINGTON, D.C. — Rep. Gerald Hutchins (R-OH), who has served in the United States House of Representatives since January 1995, introduced sweeping term limits legislation Tuesday that would cap congressional service at twelve years, a threshold he surpassed in 2007.

The bill, H.R. 4418, would limit House members to six two-year terms and senators to two six-year terms. Hutchins, currently serving his sixteenth term, told reporters the legislation represented “the urgent, once-in-a-generation reckoning Washington has been delaying for far too long,” adding that he planned to serve out his current term before retiring “at some point in the future.”

“Career politicians have become the single greatest threat to this republic, and I say that as someone who has been a career politician through six presidents, four House Speakers, and two Y2K preparedness seminars.”

“The American people deserve fresh voices and new ideas,” Hutchins said from behind a desk bearing a framed photo of himself shaking hands with Bill Clinton. His chief of staff, Dana Mercer, 51, confirmed the Congressman has held the same seat longer than several of his current colleagues have been alive.

Co-sponsors for the bill remain at zero. The House Rules Committee, four members of which have also served more than twenty years, has not scheduled a hearing. A spokesperson for the committee said they would “take it under advisement,” which is what the committee said about the last three term limits bills, all introduced by Hutchins.

At press time, Hutchins had filed paperwork to seek re-election in November.