Rep. Tom Houghton is an attorney and previously served seven years as a supervisor of London Grove Township, including five years as chairman of the Board of Supervisors. Houghton served four years on the township’s Planning Commission and was also London Grove's representative on the executive committee to PennDOT's Route 41 Commission. Houghton is also a board member of the White Clay Creek Watershed Association, board member and member of Jennersville YMCA, and he and his wife are both State Grange members.

Houghton is a 1991 graduate of LaSalle University and 1995 graduate of Widener Law School. He married his high school sweetheart, Danelle, and together they have two children, Marley and Benjamin. The couple has also served for many years as foster parents with Chester County Children and Youth Services.

Recently, Houghton was appointed by House Speaker Keith McCall to the Joint Legislative Air and Water Pollution Control and Conservation Committee. The Joint Conservation Committee is a bipartisan committee consisting of 18 members of the state House and Senate that conducts studies, holds hearings and makes recommendations to the General Assembly on air and water pollution laws, mining practices and land reclamation. Recent issues the committee has focused on include land use and growth management, sewer and water infrastructure and Pennsylvania's Heritage Park program.