[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 146 (Monday, November 7, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2285-E2286]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      HONORING RETIRING ERIE COUNTY LEGISLATOR CHARLES M. SWANICK

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BRIAN HIGGINS

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, November 7, 2005

  Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a longtime member of 
the Erie County Legislature who has chosen 2005 as his final year of 
service as a legislator. This person is not a resident of the 27th 
Congressional District, but is someone with whom I have worked closely, 
and about whom I still maintain kind and warm thoughts--former Erie 
County Legislature Chairman Charles M. Swanick, one of that body's 
longest-serving members.
  Now, Mr. Speaker, believe me, there have been and will continue to be 
many things said about Chuck Swanick, his tenure in the legislature and 
his service to the people he represented. I choose to remember Chuck's 
service in a manner once used by The Buffalo News in endorsing his 
candidacy for re-election in 1995. That word was ``indefatigable.''
  The word indefatigable is defined as ``tireless,'' ``unflagging'' or 
``untiring.'' Knowing Chuck as I have for nearly 20 years, these words 
could not describe him, or his manner of service to his constituents, 
more effectively.
  Chuck Swanick was born a quintessential ``baby boomer''; born in 
Buffalo on December 18, 1948 and raised in a northern first-ring suburb 
of Tonawanda, Chuck and his older brother Dave were raised by two 
wonderful people, his father Dave, a railroadman, and his mother 
Murial, a homemaker. Chuck grew up on Moore Avenue in Tonawanda's 
Lincoln Park area, and like most baby boomers of his generation, made 
his way through the 1960s and 1970s in a routine way. He finished high 
school, found work on the railroad like his dad, and spent time with 
his friends.
  It was his friends--or rather a conversation with his friends--that 
brought Chuck Swanick into the public realm.
  During one night's round of discussion and ``refreshment,'' Chuck 
Swanick and his friends continued a long-held discussion of current 
events that ordinarily would end with the conclusion that the public 
officials running Erie County were, shall we say, less than effective. 
During this conversation, as more beverages were consumed, it was 
determined that one of the group should stand for election to public 
office, in order to ``make a difference'' for their community and, one 
supposes, for their younger generation.
  Then came the kicker for Chuck: he was the only unmarried person--and 
thus the only person with enough time to effectively campaign for 
office--among the group. Chuck, it was collectively decided, would be 
the group's candidate. The office he chose? Erie County Legislator.
  Chuck began his quest for public office by answering the local 
Democratic Party's advertisement for a candidate for the Legislature in 
what was then the 12th District. Upon attending an endorsement meeting, 
Chuck was dutifully supplied the party's endorsement and was told, 
``we'll see you in November.'' Obviously, the committee wasn't counting 
on victory. In truth, they were in for a wild ride.

  Chuck began his quest for office with a write-in candidacy for the 
Conservative Party's endorsement--an impossible task, many pundits 
thought. Chuck began a write-in campaign the likes of which had never 
before been seen in Erie County, and stunned observers by stealing the 
line away from the incumbent. Thereafter, Chuck won a difficult general 
election victory, and so born was a political career that has stretched 
more than 25 years.
  Chuck was a rebel during his early years in the Legislature. Known as 
a ``maverick'' Democrat, Chuck always sought to represent the people of 
his district--in the towns of Tonawanda and Grand Island, the City of 
Tonawanda and the Village of Kenmore. Chuck had no problems bucking the 
party line when he thought it appropriate to do so. In so doing, at one 
point or another, he earned the enmity of public officials from all 
levels of government. But in his mind, he was representing the people 
who sent him to County Hall. That was good enough for him.
  In later years, as Chuck's years of service in the Legislature grew, 
he became something of an ``elder statesman.'' Graying hair 
precipitated the shaving of his moustache, and by the 1990s, Chuck's 
years of service gave him an institutional knowledge of County 
government that few possessed. Indeed, it would be that knowledge that 
would serve him well in years to come.
  Chuck served as the chairman of several of the Legislature's standing 
committees, and was the longtime chairman of the Agricultural and 
Farmland Protection Board (formerly known as the Agricultural District 
Advisory Committee).
  In 1996, after nearly giving up hope of ascending to the 
Legislature's leadership, a sudden vacancy in the Legislature's 
Chairmanship occurred. With a unanimous vote, Chuck Swanick became the 
9th Chairman of the Erie County Legislature in May of 1996.
  I was proud to work with Chuck during this period. At this time, Mr. 
Speaker, I had just returned from my studies at Harvard University's 
Kennedy School of Government, and was eager to work with Chuck in his 
newfound leadership role.
  We would have many successes, working together. All told, I worked 
with Chuck in the Legislature until my election to the New York State 
Assembly in 1998, and during that time we had many successes. We worked 
together to keep the county's property tax levy at a reasonable level, 
and working together with then-Erie County Executive Dennis Gorski, we 
retired $108 million in debt left over from the previous county 
administration.
  Chuck made his mark upon the local laws of Erie County as well. Chuck 
worked with Legislator Ray Dusza on his first Item Pricing/Scanner 
Accuracy Law, and then forged a coalition of business leaders and 
consumer advocates to draft a new, more comprehensive law in 1997. 
Chuck also was the author of many laws involving one of his pet areas 
of county government, the Erie County Parks system.
  After my election to the State legislature, Chuck continued as 
Chairman and fought battles old and new. Chuck would go on to serve

[[Page E2286]]

two stints as Chairman, for a total of six and one-half years as 
Chairman, which is the longest total amount of service as Chairman of 
the Erie County Legislature.
  There is one other aspect of Chuck Swanick's life that I cannot fail 
to mention--and that is his family. Chuck's wife Shelly may well be the 
most patient and understanding spouse of an elected official in the 
United States, given Chuck's seemingly non-stop campaign schedule. 
Chuck is also the father of two children, Maverick and Charlie.
  Chuck Swanick's record in the Erie County Legislature is an 
impressive one. Chuck was the author of dozens of local laws and 
thousands of legislative resolutions. As a member of the Legislature, 
Chuck served with four county executives, six legislative chairs 
(excluding himself), ten majority leaders and eleven minority leaders 
(excluding himself). Over the Legislature's thirty-seven year history, 
one hundred and three people have served as members of the Erie County 
Legislature; at one time or another, Chuck Swanick served with 57 of 
those people.
  At the end of the day, Mr. Speaker, there will be a lot of things 
said about Chuck Swanick and about his 26 years of service in the Erie 
County Legislature. To me, Mr. Speaker, I will always remember the 
sincere concern that Chuck had for his constituents, and the 
earnestness with which he served those constituents. Chuck's legacy of 
twenty-six years of service will mark an important chapter in the 
history of county government, and I am proud to honor his service 
today.

                          ____________________