[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 44 (Wednesday, March 14, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S3121]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       RETIREMENT OF JIM SOURWINE

  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, this is a statement I wish I did not have 
to make. Jim Sourwine, who has almost 40 years of Federal service, 
including more than 30 on the staff of the Senate Appropriations 
Committee, will retire this month. He not only served the committee but 
the entire Senate as a professional staff member. And when I say 
``professional,'' I really mean it with Jim. Always courteous, always 
helpful, he is an appropriator's appropriator. He worked for 
Republicans and he worked for Democrats, with equal diligence. He 
treated every Senator with respect, and we respected him as well.
  Mr. SPECTER. I don't know if the Senator from Iowa knows this, but 
Jim Sourwine has served almost 100 different members of the 
Appropriations Committee during his time in the Senate. Imagine each of 
the desks in this Chamber filled with U.S. Senators, and you will have 
a sense of the number of committee members Jim served.
  Mr. HARKIN. And we all benefited from that service. He understands 
the appropriations process better than anyone. New staff could always 
look to Jim for institutional knowledge, and count on him to be a 
patient teacher of many on both substantive issues an the 
appropriations process.
  The Senate depended on this expertise. Jim is a master craftsman, the 
person we relied on to compile all the spending figures and technical 
language and mould it into an appropriations bill. Whether it was 
drafting an amendment to the budget resolution; finding a creative 
offset to meet an important priority; or organizing and staffing a 
hearing on an important labor issue, such as those that we held on the 
overtime regulation, Jim Sourwine was the staffer we wanted and needed 
by our side.
  Mr. SPECTER. Jim came to the Senate in 1972 when he was first 
detailed to the committee from the Department of Labor. He found his 
place quickly and began responding to what were known as 
``Harleygrams''--daily instructions from Harley Dirks, who was Senator 
Magnuson's clerk of the Labor, HEW and Related Agencies Subcommittee, 
as it was called then.
  After Senator Magnuson, Jim served under Senator Schmitt in the 97th 
Congress, and then Senator Weicker and Senator Chiles. Since the 101st 
Congress, the Senator from Iowa and I have exchanged the gavel on 
several occasions. I never miss a chance to mention that I always 
prefer to have the gavel in my hand. On this occasion, I should also 
say that I prefer to have Jim Sourwine's services on staff as well.
  Mr. HARKIN. Jim is the undisputed master at identifying creative 
solutions to funding problems. However, we can never forget that the 
work he did to support this institution ultimately benefited the 
American people, through increased educational and job training 
opportunities, greater protections for the Nation's workers or more 
affordable and improved health care.
  For example, when Jim came to the committee, title I education grants 
were funded at $1.6 billion; this year's level is $12.8 billion. Think 
of the millions of disadvantaged students who have benefited over the 
years from this funding. In 1972, Congress created the basic 
educational opportunity grant to provide grant aid that would help low-
income students earn a postsecondary education. The grant program, now 
known as Pell grants, provides a maximum award of $4,310 to more than 5 
million low- and middle-income students. Millions of students have been 
able to earn a postsecondary education because of the extra assistance 
they were provided. Jim should feel proud of the role he has played in 
each of these programs and so much more.
  Mr. SPECTER. I would like to add several other accomplishments of 
Congress for which Jim should feel a great sense of pride. In 2002, 
Congress completed a doubling of the NIH budget over a 5-year period. 
Jim's thorough knowledge of the bill and the budget was instrumental in 
securing the doubling. If there was a way to write bill language that 
would save money or change a date to free up some cash, Jim knew how to 
do it.
  When Jim started working at the Department of Labor in 1967, the Job 
Corps program was in its infancy, just 3 years old. Today, it is a $1.6 
billion enterprise widely touted for its performance standards and 
student outcomes, helping more than 60,000 youths each year. After the 
Quecreek coal mine accident, I held a hearing in Pennsylvania to look 
into the mine safety issues related to that situation. We have held two 
mine safety hearings since the Sago and Alma disasters in early 2006. 
Jim organized and staffed those hearings. What's more, he helped craft 
legislation that I introduced last year which contributed to the 
development of the MINER Act. This act passed last year and is now the 
law of the land. It is the most significant piece of mine safety 
legislation passed in more than 30 years and its effective implantation 
will save lives. Jim should feel very good about the work he did to 
support that legislation, as well as other worker protection programs.
  I believe the Senator from Iowa and I could go on for some time on 
all that Jim Sourwine has meant to the Senate Appropriations Committee, 
the Senate and the American people. For me, I want him to remember 
always what the long hours have done for so many. Jim, best wishes to 
you on your retirement. You will be missed.
  Mr. HARKIN. Jim, I understand that the round-the-clock hours and 
weekend work have made it difficult to catch up on some projects around 
the house and get on the golf course. While you might prefer one over 
the other, I hope you know that your long and distinguished service to 
the Senate has more than earned for you the right to do just that or 
nothing at all. I will miss you and your sage counsel. The Senate will 
miss you. I wish you all the best on your retirement and thank you for 
your service.

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