[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 111 (Wednesday, July 16, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1178-E1179]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE CENTENNIAL

                                  _____
                                 

                          HON. DAVID E. PRICE

                           of north carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 16, 2014

  Mr.  PRICE of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
100th anniversary of the Congressional Research Service (CRS) and to 
pay tribute to the dedicated men and women of CRS.
  Established in 1914 as the Legislative Reference Service (LRS) thanks 
to the efforts of Senator Robert LaFollette, Sr. and Congressman John 
Nelson, the organization's early mission was to provide basic reference 
services to lawmakers. Researchers benefited then, as they do today, by 
being housed in the Library of Congress and having access to its 
unparalleled collection.
  Over the course of its 100 years, CRS has evolved time and time again 
to meet the needs of the Congress and the American people. From its 
inception as a relatively small division of the Library of Congress in 
1914, to its pivots and expansions in 1946 and 1970--the latter of 
which included renaming the institution as the Congressional Research 
Service--the organization has distinguished itself as a world-class 
source of objective and authoritative research and analysis.
  Today, CRS continues to thrive as it meets the demands of the 21st 
century Congress. With a workforce of more than 600, CRS has the unique 
ability to bring interdisciplinary scholarship to bear on complex 
issues of policy by recruiting scientists and engineers to work 
alongside policy analysts and attorneys. It is this melting pot of 
expertise and backgrounds that allows CRS to provide comprehensive, 
objective and non-partisan research to the entire Congress on all 
legislative issues.
  Through the House Democracy Partnership (HDP), I have witnessed 
firsthand the ability of CRS professionals not only to share their 
expertise with members of Congress, but to

[[Page E1179]]

teach others about the inner workings of Congress and to assist 
parliamentarians in establishing and improving their own research 
bureaus. As a Commission working with 16 developing democracies, the 
Partnership has found an essential partner in CRS.
  All this began over twenty years ago with the Frost-Solomon 
Commission's work with emerging parliaments of Central and Eastern 
Europe. CRS employees were absolutely critical to our efforts, giving 
extraordinary time and effort in consulting with these parliaments as 
they set up libraries and research services.
  More recently, CRS has supported HDP in establishing research 
operations and services in Afghanistan, Indonesia, Georgia, Kenya, 
Lebanon, Liberia, Mongolia, Pakistan, Peru and Timor-Leste.
  Just last month, as we hosted delegations of parliamentarians from 
five partner nations for a seminar on committee operations, several of 
our sessions were ably led by senior CRS experts, including the 
Director herself. Not surprisingly, when we asked our guests what 
lessons they learned at the end of that seminar, every last one of them 
commented how lucky we are to have the Congressional Research Service 
supporting us in our work.
  That is just a small testament to the importance of CRS to the work 
that we all do here, and I urge my colleagues to join me in honoring 
the Congressional Research Service on its 100th anniversary.

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