[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 101 (Thursday, July 1, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1261-E1262]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNIZING THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF MICHAEL QUEAR TO THE HOUSE COMMITTEE 
                       ON SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BART GORDON

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, July 1, 2010

  Mr. GORDON of Tennessee. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 
service of a valued staff member of the Committee on Science and 
Technology, Michael Quear. Mike has served on Capitol Hill for over 20 
years, most recently as the Staff Director for the Technology and 
Innovation Subcommittee.
  Mike Quear grew up in Indiana on a farm where his work for 4H and his 
demanding piano teacher taught him the importance of principled, 
disciplined hard work. Every day Mike came to work for the Committee 
for the last 20 years, he brought that attitude to the job with him. It 
is hard to match either his stamina or the quality of his work.
  In 1990, Mike came to the Science Committee from a fellowship with 
the State Department. Educated in Chemical Engineering, Mike brought 
with him real-world experience from working in industry as well as 
exposure to the thinking of the State Department about how to use 
science and technology to build stronger diplomatic ties among nations. 
He worked directly for then-Chairman George E. Brown, Jr. Brown was a 
passionate advocate for using scientific cooperation to bridge 
differences between nations. Mike supported his efforts, acting as his 
advisor for international scientific cooperation matters. At Brown's 
direction, Mike played a key role in negotiating the establishment of 
the U.S.-Mexico Foundation for Science.
  Beginning in 1995, Mike took the lead as the key Democratic staffer 
on technology issues and for reauthorization of programs at the 
National Institute of Technology and Standards. For the last 15 years, 
virtually every authorization or reauthorization of programs at NIST 
was the direct product of

[[Page E1262]]

Mike's work. Mike is well known to colleagues in the Senate and the 
House, among authorizers and appropriators, both on and off the Hill 
for his detailed knowledge of NIST, its programs and its problems. His 
work on NIST programs could be a perfect case study for any young 
Committee staffer trying to understand how to work with an agency.
  Mike played a key role in crafting many pieces of legislation 
relating to standards, technology development, and competitiveness. I 
want to mention just two specifically. I am particularly indebted to 
Mike because he drafted the first bill I had signed into law as 
Chairman of the Committee on Science and Technology: the 
Methamphetamine Remediation Research Act of 2007. Secondly, Mike Quear 
was at the heart of the America COMPETES Act--taking the lead on all 
the technology provisions in that landmark legislation.
  Mike has been a model staffer: creative, smart, hard-working, and 
loyal. While the Committee will miss his dedicated services, I am 
confident that he will retire to his farm in Pennsylvania and apply 
those same gifts to his passions of raising horses, driving buggies, 
and gardening. I want to thank him for his selfless professionalism and 
congratulate him on his hard earned retirement. We will miss you and 
cannot replace you.

                          ____________________