[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 34 (Friday, February 27, 2015)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E263]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING NOREEN EVANS

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JARED HUFFMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, February 27, 2015

  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with my colleague, Mike 
Thompson, to recognize California Senator Noreen Evans, who recently 
retired on November 30, 2014 following twenty-one years of public 
service.
   Senator Evans has a distinguished record of serving the North Coast 
as a public servant and community leader. She has devoted her career to 
protecting the North Coast's invaluable natural resources, reforming 
the California legal system, and advocating for the rights of 
underserved communities, especially women and children.
   Ms. Evans began her career in public service on the Santa Rosa 
Planning Commission and continued this service as a member of the Santa 
Rosa City Council before serving three terms in the California State 
Assembly and one term in the California State Senate. As an 
Assemblymember, Ms. Evans took on key roles as a Majority Whip, Human 
Services Committee Chair, and Budget Committee Chair. In the Senate, 
Ms. Evans led the Senate Banking and Finance Committee, the Senate 
Committee on Judiciary, the Legislative Women's Caucus, and the Senate 
Select Committee on Wine. Ms. Evans used her leadership positions to 
champion local issues as well as statewide policy and was able to forge 
bipartisan consensus among her colleagues.
   In addition to her time in elected office, Ms. Evans has practiced 
law for more than twenty years and litigated before both state and 
federal courts, up to the United States Supreme Court. In 2011, she 
became the first woman to receive the Defender of Justice Award from 
the Judicial Council of California.
   Mr. Speaker, it is fitting that we honor Noreen Evans upon her 
retirement from the California State Senate for her tireless work 
representing the North Coast by protecting its valuable natural 
resources and championing its people. We express our deep appreciation 
to Noreen Evans for her exemplary public service, and convey our best 
wishes to Ms. Evans and her family as she pursues new endeavors.

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