[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 137 (Monday, December 6, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2145]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     IN HONOR OF JOHN D. WEBSTER ON THE OCCASION OF HIS RETIREMENT

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                           HON. JACK KINGSTON

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, December 6, 2004

  Mr. KINGSTON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize John D. Webster, 
who is retiring from his post as Chief Financial Officer of the Library 
of Congress on January 3, 2005.
  As chairman of the Subcommittee on Legislative Appropriations, I know 
that I speak not only for myself, but also for all the members of the 
subcommittee and clerks in thanking John Webster for his service to the 
Library and to the United States Congress.
  John leaves a legacy of dedication, the highest principles of 
financial management and reporting, a highly professional and devoted 
staff, and an enviable record of eight consecutive unqualified audit 
opinions on the Library's financial statements. We on the subcommittee 
are equally grateful for John's groundbreaking work as co-founder and 
cochairman of the Legislative Branch Financial Managers Council. We 
have benefited from John's testimony and appearance before this 
subcommittee on behalf of the Council.
  John has served as the Library's chief liaison and representative to 
this subcommittee since 1996. He has worked hard--and often at 
inconvenient times including nights and weekends--to ensure that the 
subcommittee and its clerks had the information and understanding 
needed to complete appropriations work on the Library's complex budget. 
Both before and during my tenure, the Library has achieved major budget 
milestones--support for collections arrearage reduction, collections 
security, an integrated library management system, storage modules at 
Ft. Meade, the National Audio-Visual Conservation Center, the National 
Digital Library, the Digital Talking Book Program for the Blind and 
Physically Handicapped, the alternate computer facility and National 
Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program. John was 
keenly aware that each of these projects was a high priority for the 
Librarian of Congress, Dr. Billington, and John ensured that the 
subcommittee understood these priorities as well as the complex 
financial underpinnings needed to appropriate funding requisite to 
their realization.
  John Webster has served the Library for 15 years. He was named CFO in 
2003, having been honored in 2000 as the recipient of the National 
President's Award by the Association of Government Accountants. As 
Chief of the Financial Management Office at the Library, and later CFO, 
John achieved not only Dr. Billington's goals but his professional 
commitment to modern, integrated financial systems that serve all 
customers--internal and external--with trust, confidence, and 
integrity. He leaves a powerful legacy in the Legislative Branch, one 
that we collectively applaud and hopefully can emulate. We wish John 
the best as he retires after a difficult year--losing his beloved wife 
Gloria and his only brother. His dedication to his work never failed 
even in light of terrible personal tragedies. His hard work, 
dedication, and expertise will be sorely missed.

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