[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 105 (Thursday, July 30, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1479-E1480]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


       IN MEMORY OF THE HONORABLE CARL S. SMITH OF HOUSTON, TEXAS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. KEN BENTSEN

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 29, 1998

  Mr. BENTSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the memory of a legend in 
both Houston and Texas politics, my constituent, the Honorable Carl S. 
Smith, who died Tuesday afternoon, at the age of 89.
  Carl S. Smith dedicated his life to public service. He was first 
appointed as Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector in 1947. He was 
elected in 1948 and re-elected an unprecedented 12 times, serving a 
total of 51 years. In fact, Carl was so dedicated to public service 
that he never considered his job ``work.'' That's not just an 
assertion--Carl never retired. Throughout all these years, Carl helped 
Harris County residents meet their common obligations to one another 
and to their government by making it more convenient for citizens to 
pay taxes and register to vote. He was also responsible for car 
registration, alcohol license fees, and a host of state levies.
  Carl lived a long and good life. He was born just as the combustible 
engine was first being applied in cars. He ended his life riding the 
crest of the information age. Not only can Carl's life chart the course 
of American history, his acts of courage foreshadow great changes in 
American history. For example, in 1952, Carl was the first county 
official to promote an African-American employee to an important 
government position, a deputy clerkship. This was a small but 
significant act in the early days of the Civil Rights movement. 
Additionally, Carl was an advocate for the elderly. He wrote the 
statewide property tax exemption for senior citizens that was later 
adopted as a constitutional amendment. Finally, Carl was able to adapt 
to the times. In the past few years, Carl received accolades for 
automating and computerizing his office's operations.
  Carl's dedication to public service is an example to all Americans of 
what government is capable of accomplishing. Carl was first elected to 
office just two years after our victory in World War II, when it was 
thought that we could accomplish anything. He held on to that belief 
even in this cynical era where government is among the least trusted of 
public and private institutions. He is a model to all Americans 
involved in public service and especially elderly Americans. A few 
years ago, Carl joked that while his body had aged, his doctor said he 
had the ``mind of a 20-year-old.''
  While he was tax assessor at the time of my birth and I remember 
learning his name at an early age, I first came to know Carl when I 
became the Chairman of the Harris County Democratic Party in 1990. Ever 
since then, whenever I was in the Harris County Administration 
Building, I would stop to say hello. Whether I was there on business or 
to register a car, Carl would always call me in to sit down and talk 
politics in his office, which consisted of maps, floor to ceiling 
boxes, and records. Just a few years ago, I was picking up new license 
plates, and Carl summoned me to another part of the office where he was 
helping staff and conducting a seminar. In his 51 years at the helm, it 
is fair to say that Carl S. Smith probably did every job there was to 
do in the Tax Assessor-Collectors' Office he ran.
  Carl S. Smith was a good and great man. He was my constituent, but 
more importantly, he was my friend and one whose counsel I often 
sought. As much as Harris County loved and respected Carl, his family 
has suffered an even greater loss.
  I ask unanimous consent to insert in the Record at this point an 
article and obituary which appeared in the Houston Chronicle on July 
29, 1998.

              [From the Houston Chronicle, July 29, 1998]

                Carl Smith, Tax Chief for 51 Years, Dies

                             (By Bob Tutt)

       Carl S. Smith, who served 51 years as Harris County's tax 
     assessor and collector and was the senior elected official 
     here, died Tuesday afternoon. He was 89.
       His death came at St. Luke's Hospital where he had been 
     confined just over two weeks for treatment of heart problems 
     and other complications.
       The Harris County Commissioners Court appointed him to the 
     tax assessor's office in 1947 upon the death of the 
     incumbent, Jim Glass. The next year Smith won election to the 
     post, then was re-elected 12 times. If he had completed the 
     last two years of his term, he would have been 91.
       County Judge Robert Eckels announced Smith's death during 
     Tuesday's session of Commissioners Court, prompting gasps 
     from the audience.
       ``The county has lost someone who's been an institution 
     here,'' Eckels said. ``He was a great leader . . . and 
     someone who cared a great deal for the people of this 
     country.''
       Eckels then led the court in a moment of silence in Smith's 
     memory.
       Commissioner Jim Fonteno, a 24-year veteran of the court, 
     said Smith made him look like the new kid on the block.
       ``He's been a good one,'' Fonteno said. ``He's been 
     dedicated. He'd get with you too. If you said something he 
     didn't like, he'd take you to task on it.''
       District Clerk Charles Bacarisse joined other department 
     heads in praising Smith, calling him an ``icon'' of county 
     government.
       ``He clearly was a man of honor and integrity and ran his 
     office in an honorable fashion,'' Bacarisse said.
       Jack Loftis, Chronicle executive vice president and editor, 
     reflected, ``To say that Carl Smith was the consummate public 
     official would not be giving him proper credit for the 51 
     years of honest and gracious service he provided to the 
     citizens of Harris County. He was an extraordinary man in 
     every way.''
       Eckels added, ``I remember that he would be down here many 
     times at midnight helping people to file their taxes by the 
     deadline so they wouldn't have to pay a penalty.''
       The court appointed Loretta Wimp, Smith's chief clerk, as 
     temporary tax assessor-collector. Later it will appoint an 
     acting assessor-collector to serve until a replacement is 
     elected in November.
       Under state law a successor to fill out Smith's term will 
     be selected in an election held as part of the Nov. 3 general 
     election. Had Smith died after Aug. 30, Commissioners Court 
     would have named his successor.
       Smith had considered retiring in 1996. He said he decided 
     against it because his doctor had pronounced him very fit and 
     he wanted to oversee installation of a new computer system to 
     process motor vehicle titles and licenses. David Mincberg, 
     the Democratic County Chairman, also had urged him to run 
     again.
       At the time, Smith joined, ``My doctor said I have the mind 
     of a 20-year-old, but that's stretching a bit.''
       He noted at the time that his years of service in the 
     county's employ would make him eligible for a pension greater 
     than his $93,000 salary.
       In winning re-election in 1996 Smith captured almost 60 
     percent of the vote. He and state District Judge Katie 
     Kennedy turned out to be the only Democrats to win county-
     wide elections that year.
       Reflecting on his tenure in office, Smith said he took 
     special pride in establishing tax office substations around 
     the county to dispense automobile and voter registrations and 
     provide other services.
       That, he pointed out, enabled citizens to avoid long lines 
     at county offices downtown.
       Smith also said he was proud of efforts he and the late 
     state Sen. Criss Cole made in support of state legislation 
     allowing homestead exemptions to reduce property taxes for 
     senior citizens.
       Smith boasted that in keeping with changing times he had 
     computerized and upgraded his office's operations.
       His responsibilities also included directing registration 
     of voters and maintaining voter registration rolls.
       A native of Lindale in Smith County in northeast Texas, 
     Smith spent most of his life in Houston. A graduate of Reagan 
     High School, he got a law degree from the Houston Law School 
     in 1934, in addition to taking courses at the University of 
     Houston.
       Smith had served as president of the Tax Assessor-
     Collectors Association of Texas as well as the International 
     Association of Assessing Officers.
       His wife of 59 years, Dorothy, died in 1991. They were 
     parents of two daughters, Nancy Stewart and Pam Robinson, 
     both of Houston.
       Visitation will be from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday at the Geo. 
     H. Lewis & Sons Funeral Home, 1010 Bering Dr. Services will 
     be held at 10 a.m. Saturday at Bethany Christian Church, 3223 
     Westheimer.
                                  ____


                             Carl S. Smith


          Harris County will miss its long-time public servant

       The secret of Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector Carl 
     Smith's five decades in office has to be that he changed with 
     the times yet managed to remain an old-fashion public 
     servant. His reputation is that of an effective manager and 
     an admirable man.
       In his last terms in office, Smith became used to hearing 
     about himself as ``an institution'' and ``the dean'' of 
     Harris County government. He made no bones about his 
     advancing years, sometimes joking that he could tune out 
     nonsense by turning down the volume on his hearing aids. 
     Smith was appointed to head the tax office after the death of 
     the incumbent, Jim Glass, in 1947, and was fond of noting 
     that he was elected in 1948, the same year Harry Truman was 
     elected president.
       ``Youth and inexperience are no match for age and 
     determination,'' Smith would say, crediting the comment to 
     former President George Bush.

[[Page E1480]]

       Well liked and respected at Commissioners Court, Smith was 
     revered by many of his employees, from whom he insisted on 
     unwavering courtesy to the public. A number of Smith's 
     employees have been with him for decades. It was frequently 
     said that when Smith finally left office, the average age of 
     tax office employees likely would decline significantly.
       Smith, a native of Lindale, Texas, took a law degree from 
     Houston Law School before a great many of his Harris County 
     constituency were born. Talk around the county was that 
     Smith, one of the Harris County's last remaining Democrats 
     elected countywide and serving his 12th term, was clinging to 
     the office to keep it out of Republican hands. But there is 
     no denying he managed an efficient shop.
       Through the years, Smith fought off usurpers to his domain 
     of tax collection and tax bill distribution, voter 
     registration, motor vehicle registration, alcohol license 
     fees and other state levies. Smith fended off a proposal by 
     powerful former Mayor Bob Lanier to give a portion of his 
     office's tax collection function to a law firm. And in his 
     most recent re-election, Smith put down a challenger's 
     campaign to shutter the tax office, pass voter registration 
     duties to the county clerk and privatize tax collection.
       Smith, in 1952, was the first county official to promote a 
     black employee to an important government position, a deputy 
     clerkship. And he wrote the statewide property tax exemption 
     for citizens over 65 that was later adopted as a 
     constitutional amendment.
       Smith's wife of 59 years, Dorothy DeArman Smith, died in 
     1991. They were parents of two daughters, Nancy Stewart and 
     Pam Robinson, both of Houston.
       His mind clear, his wit sharp and his sense of humor 
     intact, Smith's heart failed him in the end. He died at 89 at 
     St. Luke's Hospital, where he was being treated for heart 
     problems. Carl Smith will be long missed and remembered 
     always.

     

                          ____________________