[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 141 (Tuesday, October 31, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2036]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     HONORING LAWRENCE D. DAHMS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, METROPOLITAN 
                       TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ELLEN O. TAUSCHER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 31, 2000

  Mrs. TAUSCHER. Mr. Speaker, today I pay tribute to Lawrence D. Dahms, 
executive director of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission in the 
San Francisco Bay Area, who will be retiring at the end of this year.
  The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) was created in 1970 
to provide transportation planning for the nine-county San Francisco 
Bay Area. MTC is the designated federal Metropolitan Planning 
Organization (MPO) for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area, and is 
charged with disbursing federal, state and regional transportation 
revenues in the region. The retirement of Lawrence D. Dahms is a severe 
loss to the Bay Area community.
  Lawrence D. Dahms has served as MTC's executive director since 1977. 
In both his 23 years at MTC and in an earlier six-year stint at the Bay 
Area Rapid Transit District (BART), Larry spearheaded the successful 
effort to extend BART to San Francisco International Airport. His many 
accomplishments also include a pivotal role in negotiating the San 
Francisco Bay Area Regional Rail Agreement, known as MTC Resolution No. 
1876. This became the basis for securing federal funding for BART to 
San Francisco International Airport and the Tasman light-rail extension 
in Silicon Valley, as well as state and local funding for East Bay BART 
extensions to Dublin and Bay Point.
  In addition to his regional impact, Larry was a leader on the 
national stage in developing and advocating the landmark 1991 federal 
Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA). This ushered 
in a new era in federal transportation policy by giving states and 
localities greater responsibility and flexibility in the investment of 
federal dollars. Larry continued his involvement as he advocated for 
the passage of ISTEA's successor, the 1998 Transportation Equity Act 
for the Twenty First Century (TEA-21), which consolidated that policy 
shift and dramatically increased funding levels.
  Larry took the lead in implementing this new federal policy at the 
local level by establishing the Bay Area Partnership to foster 
multimodal decision-making and coalition building, in the process 
creating a trail-blazing MPO that is a model for the nation.
  I, as well as the Bay Area Congressional Delegation, wish Mr. Dahms 
our most sincere thanks for his accomplishments. We greatly appreciate 
his achievements on behalf of the past, current and the future 
residents of our region. We wish him well in all his future 
professional and personal endeavors.

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