[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 108 (Monday, July 22, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S8489]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO SAM M. GIBBONS

 Mr. GRAHAM. Mr. President, it was a great privilege for me to 
introduce legislation to name the Federal Courthouse in Tampa, FL as 
the Sam M. Gibbons United States Courthouse.
  The Honorable Sam Gibbons has devoted his entire life to serving the 
United States of America. A veteran of World War II, Gibbons was 
awarded the Bronze Star after parachuting into Normandy on D-day as a 
part of the initial Allied assault force. He achieved the rank of 
captain in the 501st Parachute Infantry of the 101st Airborne Division 
before embarking on his long and distinguished career as a public 
servant.
  Gibbons' career in public service began with his election to the 
Florida House of Representatives in 1952. In the Florida House, he 
passed legislation creating the University of South Florida and is 
appropriately recognized as The father of the University of South 
Florida. In 1958, Gibbons' moved from the House to the Florida Senate 
where he enacted legislation to establish Florida's regional water 
management districts. These districts are vital to Florida's ability to 
allocate and preserve its precious water resources.
  Gibbons barnstormed into the U.S. Congress in 1962. President Johnson 
appointed Gibbons, then a junior Congressman, floor manager of his 
Great Society initiatives. Gibbons deftly steered this legislation, 
including Project Head Start, through the Congress. He also wrote the 
law that allows Americans over the age of 55 to protect, from taxation, 
capital gains from the sale of their primary homes. Despite his 
enormous achievements in social policy, Gibbons' experience as a 
legislator was not limited solely to domestic issues.
  As acting chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee in 1994 and 
chairman of the Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee from 1981 through May 
1994, Gibbons has been a champion of open markets and free trade around 
the world. Under his direction, two of our Nation's most comprehensive 
trade agreements, the North American Free Trade Agreement [NAFTA] and 
the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade [GATT] passed Congress, and 
were signed into law.
  Today, Congressman Gibbons sits as the Dean of the Florida 
congressional delegation. At the end of the 104th Congress, Gibbons 
will complete his 17th term representing the Tampa Bay area. The 
Gibbons family has lived in Tampa for more than a century. Congressman 
and Mrs. Gibbons, who will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary 
this year, have also served together tirelessly to improve the lives 
all Tampa residents.
  A graduate of the University of Florida College of Law and a member 
of Florida Blue Key, Gibbons has served the State of Florida and the 
United States of America with distinction. This courthouse should be 
named as a tribute to the lifetime works of Congressman Sam M. 
Gibbons.

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