[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 39 (Tuesday, March 31, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E530-E531]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   THE RETIREMENT OF THOMAS G. POWERS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOHN J. LaFALCE

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 31, 1998

  Mr. LaFALCE. Mr. Speaker, all of us who are privileged to serve in 
the House know how much we rely on the hard work of our staffs, both in 
our own offices and in the various committees on which we serve. 
Occasionally, we are fortunate enough to work with a staff member who 
is so knowledgeable and effective in his or her area that it is 
difficult to imagine anyone else holding down that responsibility. I 
rise today to report to the House the retirement of such a staff 
member, the long time senior counsel to the Committee on Small 
Business, Tom Powers.
  Tom has the distinction of being the longest tenured staff member in 
the history of the Small Business Committee--27 continuous years, in 
all. In fact, Tom is the only staffer to have served throughout the 
full standing Committee's existence, it having attained this status 
with the beginning of the 94th Congress in 1975. He also served 
throughout the period during which the Small Business Committee was a 
permanent select committee, from 1971 to 1975.
  Tom earned law degrees from both Drake University in his native Des 
Moines, Iowa and New York University in New York City. He served as 
legal counsel to the Iowa General Assembly and Polk County, Iowa before 
coming to Washington in 1971.
  He served as subcommittee counsel to our colleague, Hon. John 
Dingell, and then counsel to the full committee under Chairmen Joe L. 
Evins and Tom Steed. In 1977, Tom became the Committee's General 
Counsel, serving in that capacity under Chairmen Neal Smith and Parren 
Mitchell. Tom continued to serve as my senior counsel from 1987 until 
recently when I resigned my ranking minority position on the Small 
Business Committee to assume that position on the Banking and Financial 
Services Committee.
  Tom's encyclopedic knowledge of small business issues and of Small 
Business Administration programs and legislation is legendary. Our 
friend, Representative Neal Smith, who served so honorably in this 
House for 36 years and was the father of many of those programs, 
remarked in his recent book, Mr. Smith Went to Washington, that Tom was 
the expert in the country on SBA programs. In keeping with the Small 
Business Committee's long tradition of operating in the most bipartisan 
and cooperative spirit possible, Tom made his expertise available to 
all Members on both sides of the aisle and to their staffs; and the 
respect which Members on opposite sides of an issue shared for Tom's 
knowledge and judgment was often decisive in our fashioning a workable 
compromise. Similarly, Tom used his technical skills and talent for 
negotiation in countless instances to resolve legislative and other 
disagreements between the House and Senate or between the Congress and 
the Executive Branch.
  Tom has been deeply involved in virtually all small business 
legislation in the last quarter century. Of course, SBA's authorizing 
legislation has been a primary focus of his responsibilities over the 
years. But Tom also successfully shepherded the enabling legislation 
for all three White House Conference on Small Business (1980, 1986, and 
1995), the original Regulatory Flexibility Act, the Prompt Payment Act, 
the Equal Access to Justice Act and federal procurement reform 
legislation, in addition to legislation establishing the nationwide 
Small Business Development Center network, the Small Business 
Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, new financing mechanisms for 
certified development companies (CDCs) and small business investment 
companies (SBICs), and new secondary market programs to enhance small 
business access to capital from sources traditionally unavailable to 
smaller concerns.
  In addition to his legislative responsibilities, Tom also served as 
the Committee's liaison with the Committee on Appropriations, with 
which the Small Business Committee enjoyed an exceptionally good 
relationship. As though all these duties were not enough, Tom served as 
the Committee's parliamentarian and, in this role, earned the respect 
of all Committee members for his knowledge of House Rules and 
procedures and for his impartiality.
  Over the years, Tom has received countless commendations for his 
accomplishments and services on behalf of the small business community. 
During Small Business Week in May,

[[Page E531]]

in fitting recognition for his untiring efforts, Tom will receive from 
SBA's Chief Counsel for Advocacy, Hon. Jere Glover, a Special Advocacy 
Award for unique and outstanding advocacy achievements on behalf of 
small business.
  It is hard to overstate the influence Tom Powers has had on small 
business legislation and policy during his long tenure here. It is also 
hard to imagine the Small Business Committee without him. I know that I 
speak for all members of the Committee, past and present, and for the 
whole House in thanking Tom for his extraordinary service and devotion, 
both to the House and to the small business community, and in extending 
to him our best wishes for success in his future endeavors.

                          ____________________