[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 85 (Tuesday, June 9, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H6362-H6366]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       RALPH REGULA FEDERAL BUILDING AND UNITED STATES COURTHOUSE

  Mr. BOCCIERI. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1687) to designate the Federal building and United States 
courthouse located at McKinley Avenue and Third Street, SW., Canton, 
Ohio, as the ``Ralph Regula Federal Building and United States 
Courthouse,'' as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1687

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. RALPH REGULA FEDERAL BUILDING AND UNITED STATES 
                   COURTHOUSE.

       (a) Designation.--The Administrator of General Services 
     shall ensure that the federally occupied building located at 
     McKinley Avenue and Third Street, SW., Canton, Ohio, is known 
     and designated as the ``Ralph Regula Federal Building and 
     United States Courthouse''.
       (b) References.--With respect to the period in which the 
     building referred to in subsection (a) is federally occupied, 
     any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, paper, or 
     other record of the United States to that building shall be 
     deemed to be a reference to the ``Ralph Regula Federal 
     Building and United States Courthouse''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. Boccieri) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mario Diaz-
Balart) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio.


                             General Leave

  Mr. BOCCIERI. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 1687.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Ohio?

[[Page H6363]]

  There was no objection.

                              {time}  1800

  Mr. BOCCIERI. Madam Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the bill I introduced, 
H.R. 1687, as amended, and urge its quick passage.
  This bill designates the building located at McKinley and Third 
Streets, S.W., Canton, Ohio, as the Ralph Regula Federal Building and 
United States Courthouse. The bill has strong, bipartisan support.
  While I know Congressman Regula as my predecessor, many of you on 
both sides of the aisle were also fortunate enough to call him a 
colleague, a mentor, and a friend. He was a true steward of his 
district and earned every accolade from his constituents, who knew him 
only as Ralph. He combined a unique blend of procedural acumen, hard 
work, and collegial personality in rising to a position of leadership 
on the House Appropriations Committee. All the while, he never forgot 
where he came from, consistently setting the standard and making sure 
that his constituents received the assistance they needed with their 
problems.
  As a former teacher and principal, Ralph was a leader in pushing to 
improve our students' reading skills, develop teacher training, and 
increase Pell Grant funding. He also increased by millions of dollars 
the amount of Federal money committed to research in fighting cancer, 
heart disease, and birth defects.
  Ralph was a leader in alternative energy. And he was an early 
champion of fuel cell technology, helping my district earn a reputation 
as a national leader in fuel cell research and development.
  Congressman Ralph Regula served with distinction and represented the 
16th District of Ohio for over 30 years--in fact, it was 36 years. He 
is a native Ohioan, born in Beach City, Ohio, on December 3, 1924. 
After high school, Congressman Ralph Regula served in the United States 
Navy with distinction and honor in World War II. He later graduated 
from college and earned his law degree in Canton, Ohio, at William 
McKinley School of Law. He went on to become a lawyer and later a State 
legislator.
  He was first elected to Congress in 1972 and served 18 consecutive 
terms, retiring last year to spend more time with his lovely, lovely 
wife, Mary, and college sweetheart, as well as their three children and 
four grandchildren.
  As much as I wish to claim this as an original idea, I have to give 
thanks and credit to Senator Sherrod Brown, who first introduced this 
legislation last December before I was sworn in.
  It is appropriate that we honor Congressman Ralph Regula with this 
bill because in many ways this building would not exist without his 
efforts, having laid the groundwork for it many, many years ago.
  The Ralph Regula Federal Building and United States Courthouse will 
continue Ralph's legacy, serving Stark County for many years to come. 
It is most fitting and proper to honor Congressman Regula with this 
designation.
  I support this bill, as amended, and urge its immediate passage.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MARIO DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 
myself such time as I may consume.
  I want to thank the chairman and the sponsor, the gentleman from 
Ohio, for sponsoring this legislation. He mentioned the history of Mr. 
Regula. He obviously served honorably the people of the 16th District 
in Ohio for 18 consecutive terms, from 1973 until last Congress, 
becoming the second longest-serving Republican Member in the House, Mr. 
Speaker.
  Congressman Regula has a great legacy and has had a long and 
distinguished career in public service, always, always serving his 
country. Early on, he served in I think the most honorable way that one 
can ever serve this country, and that is in the Armed Forces, in the 
Navy. After completing his legal education, he went into private 
practice of law. In the early 1960s, Congressman Regula served as a 
member of the Ohio State Board of Education, and then he went on to 
serve in the Ohio House of Representatives, also in the Ohio State 
Senate prior to his election in the Congress.
  Naming this Federal building in Ohio is appropriate to recognize 
Congressman Regula's commitment to public service, to his constituents, 
and to this Nation. The respect that he earned while serving in 
Congress is really demonstrated by what we are seeing today, the fact 
that this bill is sponsored by Ohio representatives from both sides of 
the aisle.
  Again, I want to thank the sponsor of this legislation. I support the 
passage of this bill and urge my colleagues to do the same. Again, this 
is a man who has served this country with distinction.
  With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BOCCIERI. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
New York (Mr. Serrano).
  (Mr. SERRANO asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. SERRANO. I thank the gentleman.
  Today, I rise in support of H.R. 1687, legislation to bring well-
deserved recognition to Congressman Ralph Regula, who was first elected 
to Congress in 1972.
  Congressman Regula retired in January of this year after serving in 
Congress for 18 consecutive terms. He had a wealth of experience on the 
House Appropriations Committee, serving as chairman of both the Labor, 
Health and Human Services, and Education Subcommittee and the Interior 
Subcommittee.
  When I assumed the chairmanship of the House Financial Services 
Appropriations Committee in this Congress, Congressman Regula was the 
ranking member, and he was a mentor and a partner. I learned a lot 
about how to be an effective chairman from Congressman Regula by 
watching him in action and talking to him as my ranking member.
  As a Member from an urban district, New York City, I also learned a 
lot about him and about farming. And I must tell you, I learned 
something that may sound funny to some folks, but I learned the 
difference between jelly and jam, and he was an expert on the subject. 
What I most treasure is his friendship because Congressman Regula was a 
true and generous friend to me.
  The designation of this Federal building and courthouse in Canton, 
Ohio, as the Ralph Regula Federal Building and United States Courthouse 
is an appropriate honor for this man who has devoted his life to public 
service. He served in the Navy, was a lawyer, a member of the Ohio 
State Board of Education, the Ohio House of Representatives, and the 
Ohio State Senate before joining Congress and beginning his many years 
of distinguished and dedicated service on behalf of his constituents of 
the 16th Congressional District of Ohio.
  We are doing something really good today; we are honoring a man who 
deserved this. And let me just conclude by saying this: I imagine when 
we leave here--when the day comes that I leave here--you want to be 
remembered for your work, but I think more than that you want to be 
remembered by your colleagues as how you treated them and how you 
interacted with them. Ralph Regula was a gentleman. Ralph Regula was a 
colleague. Ralph Regula never had anything nasty to say about anyone. 
And as I said before, coming from a community where I came from and 
coming from a community where he would tell me about driving his pickup 
truck and going out to his farm, it was two different worlds, and yet I 
learned to admire him, to love him, and to respect him.
  And so today I wanted to join this celebration to say thank you to 
him. And I know, Mr. Speaker, it's somewhere outside the rules of the 
House to speak to a TV audience or to people in the gallery, so I won't 
do that, but I suspect that Congressman Regula is watching us today and 
needs to know that we care about him, that we care a lot, and that this 
is an honor, one of many, that he truly deserves.
  Mr. MARIO DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to 
the distinguished gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette).
  Mr. LaTOURETTE. Thank you, Mr. Diaz-Balart, for the recognition. And 
I want to thank Mr. Boccieri of Ohio for introducing this piece of 
legislation.

[[Page H6364]]

  Mr. Boccieri--I can't call him Congressman Regula's replacement 
because nobody can replace Congressman Regula, but he is his successor. 
And, unluckily, I also happen to be his successor as the dean of the 
Ohio Republican Delegation because in the last two elections you guys 
have wiped everybody out, and at eight terms, I'm the head guy on our 
side in the State of Ohio.
  But, as has been mentioned, Ralph served 36 years here. And 36 years 
is the longest that any Republican Member of Congress has served from 
the State of Ohio. He had a lot to do, and I think Mr. Petri is going 
to talk about his work with the parks when he was the chairman of the 
Interior Subcommittee, but Ralph's real gift, when it came to our side 
of the aisle at least, back in happier days--and Mr. Boccieri, happier 
days are when the Republicans were in the majority, that definition. 
Ralph guided us. And if you looked at the Ohio delegation back in the 
1990s, most of us were the chairmen of full committees. We had two 
cardinals, Mr. Regula and Mr. Hobson of Springfield. And that was all 
Ralph's doing. He made a commitment to make sure that there was an 
Ohioan on every committee that mattered.
  When I was elected--I'm a lawyer by training--I said, Ralph, I think 
I would like to be on the Judiciary Committee. And he said, What are 
you, nuts? We need a Republican from Ohio on the Transportation 
Committee. And he put me there, and it was one of the happiest times of 
my life.
  There are two things that I want to talk about. Mr. Serrano is right 
about his observations, but I came in the Class of 1994, so I'm one of 
those Republican revolutionaries that created the first majority since 
1954. And Mr. Speaker, you may remember--and others may remember--that 
at that time there was a lot of rhetoric in this Chamber and there were 
some things that became targets. And parks became targets. But what I 
will always remember is that it was the desire on my side of the aisle 
to zero-fund things like the National Endowment for the Arts and the 
National Endowment for the Humanities. And I thought that was 
misguided, and Congressman Regula, as the chairman of the Interior 
Subcommittee, also felt that that was misguided. And as a result, 
although those agencies saw reductions during that time, they were 
never zeroed out. And I think in this appropriation cycle we will 
finally get back to the level of funding that they received prior to 
1994.
  I will tell you that a few years before Congressman Regula's 
retirement he was in line as the most senior guy to become the chairman 
of the Appropriations Committee. And he worked very hard at that. He 
created an organization called CARE, and worked hard--raised a lot of 
money in what you had to do and all that other business--and he was 
denied that honor, that opportunity. I will tell you that, in my mind, 
it had a lot to do not with the quality of the other candidates, who 
were both excellent. It had a lot to do with the fact that Ralph had 
angered people back in the 1990s because he wouldn't eliminate the 
National Endowment for the Arts, he wouldn't eliminate the National 
Endowment for the Humanities, he wouldn't agree to shut down the 
Department of Education. And as a result, even though Ralph had a long 
and distinguished career here, I think he was punished.
  The other thing I want to say about Ralph is his partner, his life 
partner, Mary--Mary, of course, is the brains behind the First Ladies' 
Library. Mr. Speaker, if you ever happen to be traveling through the 
State of Ohio and you have to take a restroom break or you have to get 
off and get a soda, stop at the First Ladies' Library, because it 
really is an amazing creation that wouldn't be in existence today if it 
wasn't for Mary Regula, with the support of her husband, Ralph Regula.
  So, Mr. Boccieri, I again want to thank you very much. This is an 
amazingly wonderful bipartisan effort on your part, and Senator Brown, 
who you mentioned, to name something after somebody who really deserves 
to have something named after him. I never have served with a finer 
public servant than Congressman Regula. I know that that building will 
make him proud, and it should make the citizens of Canton, Ohio, proud 
as well. And I thank you for honoring my friend.
  Mr. BOCCIERI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may 
consume.
  I wish to thank the gentleman from Ohio. His remarks were not only 
appropriate, they were well-guided in terms of what Mr. Regula meant 
not only to our part of Ohio, but what he meant to America.
  Campaigning through the district and having the occasion to work with 
Congressman Regula while I was in the State legislature, people knew 
him not as a conservative, not as a liberal, not as a Democrat or 
Republican, but just as Ralph. And that type of leadership, that type 
of portrayal of American politics is what we should all rise to 
emulate. He was a man of his word, a man of integrity, and a man who 
believed in the Constitution. And he told me, he said, When you go to 
Congress, John, make sure that you protect the Constitution and, in 
particular, the fact that we own the checkbook, we write the checks, we 
appropriate the money, we here in Congress are responsible for the 
taxpayers' dollars. He was responsible for millions and millions of 
dollars coming back to the State of Ohio, whether it was research in 
fuel-cell technology or whether it was the First Ladies' Library that 
his wife had such a brilliant idea to anchor in our part of Ohio and 
the Midwest, or just funding for all the medical research that we're 
doing in our State, he was a leader. And he believed in the innovation 
and creativity of the American people, and in particular of all 
Ohioans. He was a man of great integrity, and someone who obviously I, 
as Congressman LaTourette said, would not be able to replace, but 
certainly respect as his successor.
  Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield to the gentlelady from California, 
our Speaker of the House of Representatives, Speaker Pelosi.
  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and thank 
him for giving us this opportunity to come to the floor to sing the 
praises of our former colleague--we always will have him as a colleague 
in our hearts, but former colleague on the floor, Congressman Ralph 
Regula of Ohio.

                              {time}  1815

  As many of you know and as has been acknowledged, Ralph Regula served 
in the House with great distinction for 38 years of service, 38 years 
of service and not only service, great leadership. Last year we sadly 
said good-bye to him, but now tonight we will honor him by creating a 
longstanding testament to his leadership, designating the courthouse 
and Federal building in his hometown of Canton as the Ralph Regula 
Federal Building and United States Courthouse.
  I want to acknowledge Congressman John Boccieri for his work in 
shepherding this legislation through Congress and for doing an 
exceptional job, I believe, following in the footsteps of Ralph Regula 
in representing Ohio's 16th Congressional District.
  Congressman Regula's entire life was devoted to public service and 
still is. He was a distinguished Navy veteran of World War II. He 
served our country in that way, and he served in both the Ohio Senate 
and the Ohio House of Representatives as well as the State Board of 
Education. And aren't we fortunate that when he came to Congress, he 
was already an experienced legislator with a strong commitment to 
educating our children.
  Thirty-eight years. Imagine that. Some of our Members weren't even 
born when Ralph Regula came to the Congress. Thirty-eight years in the 
House of Representatives, earning the distinction of being the second-
longest-serving Republican in the Congress.
  Congressman Regula's leadership benefited our entire Nation. It was a 
personal privilege for me to work with him on the Appropriations 
Committee. I saw firsthand his leadership, his knowledge of the issues, 
the respect that he commanded for all who came before him and the 
respect he had from both sides of the aisle.
  I personally am grateful to him for transforming San Francisco's 
former Army base--he was very much a part of doing that--the Presidio, 
into one of our Nation's premier parks, and we have honored him on many 
occasions in San Francisco, most recently at Fort Baker.
  None of us can come together and talk about Ralph Regula without 
talking about Mary Regula because they

[[Page H6365]]

served here in Congress as a team. Ralph would be the first to say that 
it was the love of Mary and their three children and four grandchildren 
that made his leadership possible. And we all know that Mary is the one 
who made a decision that we would have a National First Ladies' Library 
in Canton, Ohio, to honor the contribution to our Nation of the First 
Ladies of America. It's a phenomenal thing. She had an idea, she 
executed it, and now people can visit and see that important part of 
American history thanks to Mary Regula.
  Today we honor a great congressional leader, a great friend to all of 
us, and a great man. I urge all of my colleagues to understand the 
privilege that we have of expressing our appreciation for Ralph 
Regula's leadership by supporting this legislation, and I join my 
colleagues from Ohio on both sides of the aisle for the honor that we 
are paying to Ralph Regula tonight. And I again thank John Boccieri for 
shepherding this through the Congress.
  Mr. BOCCIERI. Thank you, Madam Speaker.
  I concur with the Speaker's eloquent remarks, especially about Mary, 
who champions women in their role in politics. And for my two daughters 
who are sitting behind me and the ones I have at home, she has been a 
shepherd for all in the 16th District as well as our country.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MARIO DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to 
the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Petri).
  Mr. PETRI. I thank my colleague for yielding. I thank the previous 
speakers, particularly the Speaker of the House for taking the time 
from her busy schedule to come down here to honor a distinguished 
colleague on the occasion of naming the Federal courthouse in his 
hometown after him, and that's the gentleman I had the privilege of 
serving with for nearly 30 years and getting to know and one whom I 
admire a great deal, and that is Ralph Regula.
  You've heard about the spirit with which Ralph Regula approached his 
responsibilities as a legislator. It was positive. He worked with all 
Members of this body, and he did what he thought was in the best 
interest of this country and this institution.
  You learn a lot about Members of this body when you visit their 
districts. And my wife and young daughter and I had the habit, as we 
would drive back to Wisconsin for the August break, of picking a 
different route across the country and taking a few extra days and 
stopping to see historic and interesting places and making it an 
educational and fun thing rather than just an ordeal to go across the 
country. And one year we decided to go through and visit John 
Seiberling, another colleague in Akron, Ohio, from a distinguished 
family, Seiberling Tire and all that, and he had his home which they 
had lost in the Depression, Stan Hywet, which is one of the largest 
private homes in the United States.
  And in the course of doing that, he took us through the thing, and I 
discovered that he and Ralph Regula had worked together for many years 
to create what is now, I believe, the largest national park east of the 
Mississippi, the Cuyahoga. I know they were both tremendously proud of 
that. It was a wonderful opportunity for that area of Ohio because 
there are large cities on various sides of this and it provides 
recreational and other opportunities for a large population. And if 
they had not acted when they did, it might not be there today. It was 
done by those two Representatives working as best they could with 
colleagues in both political parties and will stand, I think, as a 
lasting monument to their joint efforts on behalf of our country and 
certainly the people of their region in Ohio.
  Ralph and Mary were and are a great team. And one other thing I think 
I might mention, Ralph is kind of a gentleman farmer, I guess, and he 
used to spend a lot of time working there, and he loved his 
grandchildren and family and all of that. But Ronald Reagan was kind of 
a gentleman farmer, too. He had this ranch out in California where he 
cleared brush and was trying to develop it. And it turned out that he 
and Ralph were talking over at the White House for some reason about 
some other things, and Reagan discovered that Ralph was going back to 
work on some fencing on his farm and he asked him if he could explain 
how he did it. So Ralph came back to a meeting afterward and said that 
Reagan had taken careful notes and everything else and then a week or 
two later gave him, I think, a signed copy of the instructions that 
Ralph had given to him, that it was a good fence.
  Ralph did a great job and it's an appropriate honor. I strongly 
support the passage of this legislation.
  Mr. BOCCIERI. Mr. Speaker, just a few more comments and I think we 
will be wrapping this up very soon.
  To piggyback on what the gentleman was suggesting, as I said earlier, 
Ralph was not known as a Democrat or a Republican, a conservative or a 
liberal; he was just known as ``Ralph.'' I remember, in some closing 
remarks at a recent banquet that we were at, I was telling folks, and I 
feel at liberty to say this, I'm a freshman Member here, that this 
collegiality that we are sharing right now becomes few and far between 
at times and we need to return this Chamber, this body, our dialogue to 
that kind of respect for each other, where we may disagree on ideas, as 
Democrats and Republicans, we both believe in the end goal. And like a 
married couple, we may argue about how we get to the end destination, 
taking this exit ramp, that road, but at the end of the day, like a 
married couple, we always end up where we need to go. And we need to 
respect that. And I think that this bill respects the service of Ralph 
Regula and his contributions to northeast Ohio, and in particular what 
it will mean to the people of Stark County who go there to find relief 
and find help from their government. And every day they walk into that 
building, that building that's being built right now, they will see his 
designation, his name, and it will be a remembrance of what he meant.
  Just one last comment, Mr. Speaker. This district that I am currently 
representing and serving in is, by all measures, arguably a swing 
district. It has Democrat and Republican registrations, even 
Independents inside the race. But yet he held this district for 36 
years, and the Congressman before him held this district for 18 years, 
and the other Federal building in the city is named after him, Frank T. 
Bow. And so what this says is that the people of northeast Ohio, in 
particular the 16th District, they respect legislators, they respect 
Congressmen like Ralph Regula and his predecessor because they believe 
in our greatest asset, which is our people.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MARIO DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I will be brief.
  I want to echo the words of the gentleman from Ohio. I think they 
were very well-stated. I also want to thank the Speaker of the House 
for coming down today and speaking in such well-deserved words but kind 
words to a man that really loved this institution, loved this country, 
and served both so very well.
  Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1687, as amended, introduced by the 
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boccieri), designates the building located at 
McKinley Avenue and Third Streets, SW. in Canton, Ohio, as the ``Ralph 
Regula Federal Building and United States Courthouse''. The bill has 
broad bipartisan support.
  The designation honors the exemplary public service of our former 
colleague from Canton, Ohio, Ralph Regula. Ralph represented the 16th 
district of Ohio for 36 years, from January 3, 1973 to January 3, 2009. 
Former President Gerald Ford, while serving as the House leader, 
recommended Ralph Regula for an appointment to the Committee on 
Appropriations. He served with distinction on the Subcommittee on the 
Interior and the Subcommittee on Labor, Health, and Human Services.
  Ralph Strauss Regula was born in Beach City, Ohio, on December 3, 
1924. During World War II, Congressman Regula served in the United 
States Navy. He later went on to earn a B.A. from Mount Union College 
in 1948, and then graduated from the William McKinley School of Law in 
Canton, Ohio, in 1952.
  Congressman Regula served in many different capacities in his long 
tenure in public service. He was a member of the Ohio State Board of 
Education from 1960-1964. Regula was then elected to the Ohio State 
House of Representatives from 1965-1967, and subsequently served in the 
Ohio State Senate in

[[Page H6366]]

1967-1972. He then went on to be elected to the U.S. House of 
Representatives in the 93rd Congress, and served for 36 years.
  Congressman Regula last served as the ranking member of the 
Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General 
Government, and was one of the longest serving Republican Members of 
Congress. Congressman Regula retired at the end of the 110th Congress 
after a career of nearly 50 years of public service. Congressman Regula 
is married to Mary Regula and has three children and four 
grandchildren.
  It is most fitting and proper to honor Congressman Regula with this 
designation.
  I support H.R. 1687, as amended, and urge its passage.
  Mr. MARIO DIAZ-BALART of Florida. With that, Mr. Speaker, I have no 
further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BOCCIERI. Mr. Speaker, at this time I have no further requests 
for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Kissell). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boccieri) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1687, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. BOCCIERI. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be 
postponed.

                          ____________________