[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 53 (Wednesday, May 3, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H2458-H2459]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DONALD J. PEASE FEDERAL BUILDING

  Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1405) to designate the Federal building located at 143 West 
Liberty Street, Medina, Ohio, as the ``Donald J. Pease Federal 
Building.''
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 1405

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. DESIGNATION.

       The Federal building located at 143 West Liberty Street, 
     Medina, Ohio, shall be known and designated as the ``Donald 
     J. Pease Federal Building''.

     SEC. 2. REFERENCES.

       Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper, 
     or other record of the United States to the Federal building 
     referred to in section 1 shall be deemed to be a reference to 
     the ``Donald J. Pease Federal Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Traficant) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette).
  Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1405 designates the Federal building in Medina, 
Ohio, as the ``Donald J. Pease Federal Building.''
  Congressman Pease was born in Toledo, Ohio, where he attended public 
schools. He earned his undergraduate and masters degrees from Ohio 
University before becoming a Fulbright scholar at Kings College 
University of Durham, England.
  Congressman Pease served in the Oberlin City Council, the Ohio State 
House of Representatives, and in the Ohio State Senate before being 
elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1976. He 
served in the House from 1977 until his retirement in 1993.
  Congressman Pease began his congressional career on the Committee on 
International Relations. He later secured a spot on the Committee on 
Ways and Means and by the time of the 102nd Congress earned one of the 
three seats on the Committee on the Budget that is reserved for members 
of the Committee on Ways and Means.

                              {time}  1430

  This bill is a fitting tribute and this naming a fitting tribute for 
this fine former Member. I urge passage of the bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. TRAFICANT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise with great pride in this bill being brought to 
the floor. Congressman Don Pease worked tirelessly for the citizens of 
Northern Ohio as a Member of the Committee on Ways and Means. He 
tackled the tough tax reform and tax policy issues with zeal. He always 
looked for consensus. He was able to work on both sides of the aisle. 
He kept a rather low profile, but he was a very effective Member and 
one of the few who was able to influence former chairman Dan 
Rostenkowski. I might add, anybody who could do that was certainly an 
influential Member.
  As I said, he was an activist who fought for welfare reform. Don 
Pease supported sunshine rules for open government, and he was always 
available to look for common ground on bills that emanated from either 
side of the

[[Page H2459]]

aisle. He was a staunch, hard worker for tax fairness and tax policy 
fairness, and I think that people of Northern Ohio really do owe him a 
debt of gratitude.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to associate myself with the designation of 
the naming of the Federal build in Medina in honor of our fine former 
Congressman, Don Pease.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Ohio (Mr. Brown).
  Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, the gentleman from 
Lake County, Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) and my friend, the gentleman from 
Mahoning County, Ohio (Mr. Traficant).
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the legislation about former 
Congressman Don Pease. Don Pease began his long and distinguished 
congressional career in 1976, a time when Gerald Ford was President of 
the United States and Ohio's 13th Congressional District was 
characterized by growing industrialization and rural communities.
  Upon his retirement in 1992, Don Pease could look back and see a 
fundamentally changed landscape that he held shaped both on a local and 
national level.
  A native of Toledo, Ohio, Pease is a graduate of Ohio University and 
served in the Oberlin City Council, the Ohio House and Senate and as 
editor of the Oberlin News-Tribune. In 1976, he won election to this 
House of Representatives.
  Pease spearheaded the fight for human rights protections with his 
standing on the International Relations Committee. In 1981, he secured 
his seat on the Committee on Ways and Means and further dedicated 
himself to tax policy. His numerous legislative victories were marked 
by an ability to reach consensus. His efforts to work with both sides 
of the aisle included service on the conference committee for the hotly 
debated tax reform bill of 1986, and mediation between congressional 
leaders and the Bush administration on tax policy. Also, as Congress 
prepares to consider China's trade status at the end of this month, I 
think it is especially important to note Pease is largely responsible 
for introducing labor rights into trade legislation.
  Since leaving Congress, Don has returned to Ohio. He has served on 
the Amtrak board and currently serves as Visiting Distinguished 
Professor in Oberlin College's Department of Politics.
  Don Pease was, and still is, committed to Ohio's working families. 
His efforts to improve education, expand access to health care, and 
support workers have made a difference in our lives. By renaming the 
Medina Federal Building on West Liberty Street in Medina, Ohio, as the 
Donald J. Pease Federal Building, this bill, Mr. Speaker, honors his 
hard work in the district that he loves so much.
  Don Pease was held in high regard as both an ethical and able 
legislator. He devoted 16 years of service to the 13th district in 
Ohio, and he served the Nation and the State well. I am pleased to join 
my colleagues in both parties in recognizing Don's dedication to 
improving people's lives.
  Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the support for this legislation.
  Mr. SAWYER. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support the designation of 
the Donald J. Pease Federal Building in Medina, Ohio.
  I had the great pleasure of working with Congressman Pease for many 
years in this House. Throughout his years here, he approached every 
problem with an open mind, a sense of fairness, and a gentle good 
humor. In addition, Congressman Pease had a remarkable facility for 
grasping and getting to the essence of any issue he confronted.
  The legacy of Don Pease continues today in the heightened attention 
given to the conditions under which workers around the world toil.
  Finally, there have been times when this Congress could still benefit 
from Don Pease's ability to appeal to reason and common sense on both 
sides of the aisle. Rather than stirring baser instincts, or joining in 
a chorus of noise-makers, Don Pease embodied the all too rare ability 
to focus on policy as it affects real people in the real world.
  Throughout his career at all levels of public service--city, state, 
and federal--Don Pease followed the guiding principle that there is no 
limit to what one person can accomplish if he doesn't care who gets the 
credit.
  Now, Don Pease is in retirement from public life. But he remains 
active. He recently completed serving on the board of Amtrak, a product 
of his abiding affection for railroads. And he has been able to travel 
around the country and around the world with his wife, Jeanne--a 
delightful and special person in her own right.
  But Don Pease's service is not finished, and neither is Don. He is 
sharing his wisdom and experience, educating and guiding the next 
generation of leaders at Oberlin College in his Ohio hometown.
  Mr. Speaker, it is a fitting tribute to Congressman Don J. Pease that 
we name a public building for him. It is a tangible symbol of the 
esteem in which he is held by those privileged to know him, to work 
with him, and to learn from him.
  Mr. TRAFICANT. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of our time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Ose). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1405.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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