[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 111 (Thursday, August 11, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: August 11, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
              TRIBUTE TO DON PATCH, A CAREER CIVIL SERVANT

                                 ______


                         HON. HENRY B. GONZALEZ

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, August 11, 1994

  Mr. GONZALEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring to the attention of 
our colleagues and to acknowledge 36 years of distinguished Federal 
service of Don I. Patch. Mr. Patch retired on July 29, 1994 after 34 
years serving the Nation at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban 
Development and its predecessor, the Housing and Home Finance Agency.
  Don Patch's career typified all that was right with respect to our 
country's commitment to housing and community development. Countless 
individuals and organizations concerned with the Nation's housing needs 
were cognizant of Mr. Patch's personal commitment, expertise and 
exemplary contributions. As chairman of the Subcommittee on Housing and 
Community Development, I deeply appreciate his hard work and dedication 
to our Nation's communities.
  From 1981, until his retirement, Mr. Patch was Director of the Office 
of Block Grant Assistance, overseeing the $4 billion Community 
Development Block Grant [CDBG] Program and the Section 108 Loan 
Guarantee Program.
  In 1966, in the early days of Mr. Patch's service, he designed the 
delivery systems at HUD to maximize the use of the Department's 
programs to aid model neighborhoods in 147 Model Cities across the 
country, including my home city of San Antonio.
  In 1972, Mr. Patch designed the policy framework for use of Urban 
Renewal funds for long-term disaster recovery in six States. He was 
instrumental in obtaining White House approval of an allocation of $550 
million for this effort. He's been there for every disaster since, like 
the earthquake in California, the hurricane in Florida and the floods 
in the Midwest.
  Mr. Patch directed the closing out of the Urban Renewal and 
Neighborhood Development Programs during the 1974-80 transition to the 
CDBG Program. He directed the staff implementing the Housing and 
Community Development Act of 1974, establishing the CDBG Program for 
entitlement communities. In 1982 Mr. Patch directed a successful 
transfer to 48 State governments the responsibilities for administering 
$1 billion in CDBG funds for small cities.
  He also has been instrumental in implementing economic stimulus 
legislation when our communities and our Nation's citizens were in deep 
economic slumps. The $1 billion 1983 jobs bill add-on to the CDBG 
Program was made available to State and local governments within 2 
months largely due to the leadership provided by Mr. Patch.
  Mr. Patch influenced the evolution of the Section 108 Loan Guarantee 
Program by providing guidance to congressional staff in reformulating 
the program in 1977 to make it a viable tool in financing community and 
economic development projects. In 1986, he devised a compromise to the 
administration's thrust to terminate the program by persuading decision 
makers to take it ``off-budget'', saving over $100 million per year in 
Federal budget outlays. The 1990 legislation, which expanded the 
Section 108 Program to States and small cities and made loan terms more 
flexible, was designed with Mr. Patch's guidance. Over 300 communities 
have borrowed more than $1.5 billion without default under this program 
since 1978.
  Mr. Patch received his B.A. degree from Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH, 
in 1948 and his M.A. degree from Mexico City College in 1950. Prior to 
entering Federal service, Mr. Patch was administrator of the Inter-
American Housing and Planning Center in Bogota, Colombia. Earlier he 
served 2 years in the U.S. Armed Forces.
  His Federal civilian career in housing began in 1960 in public 
housing where I, too, began my career in housing in San Antonio. It 
began with the old Public Housing Administration at HHFA which became 
the Department of Housing and Urban Development in 1966. In 1988, Mr. 
Patch was given a Presidential Rank Award [Meritorious Executive], and 
in 1991 he received the National Association of Housing and 
Redevelopment Officials' [NAHRO] highest honor, the M. Justin Herman 
Memorial Award, an award which I have proudly received.
  While several other HUD programs were cut in years past, it is no 
small tribute to Don Patch's stewardship that the CDBG Program survived 
and still remains popular today. Although corruption tainted several 
other aspects of HUD during some very dark years, the national 
administration of the CDBG Program remained untouched.
  Intelligence, integrity, policy timeliness, and common sense were Don 
Patch's hallmarks. Don Patch has retired, but his legacy for American 
communities will endure.

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