[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 130 (Tuesday, October 17, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1806-E1807]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              CELEBRATING TAFT, CALIFORNIA, 90TH BIRTHDAY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. WILLIAM M. THOMAS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 17, 2000

  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. Speaker, I want to join my friends and constituents 
in the community of Taft, California in celebrating Taft's 90th 
birthday. On November 7th, Taft will be 90 years old and the town has 
come together to celebrate that fact as part of this year's Oildorado 
Days celebration, entitled ``Blowout 2000''. It is a proud celebration 
of the community's history and ties to the California oil industry.
  Taft is an oil town, pure and simple. From the time of oil's 
discovery in the area in the 1860s, the area around this small western 
Kern County community has been the focus of

[[Page E1807]]

oil production. Some of the biggest producing fields in the lower 48 
states are located around Taft, fields like Midway-Sunset, Cymric, the 
Belridge Fields, Buena Vista and Elk Hills. Kern County, California 
produces more oil than the State of Oklahoma and the people of Taft do 
much of the work that makes the county so very productive.
  The Oildorado celebration Taft holds every five years is one way the 
community celebrates its link to energy production and lets its hair 
down--literally, since there is a beard growing contest. People who 
work hard producing energy get together to celebrate their commitment 
to a very tough trade. I hope my colleagues will join me in celebrating 
their pride in their work and in their town with them.

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