[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 4 (Friday, January 6, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E33]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  HONORING THE LIFE OF JANET POLINSKY

                                  _____
                                 

                           HON. JOE COURTNEY

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, January 6, 2017

  Mr. COURTNEY. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor and remember the 
life of Janet Polinsky who passed away on September 26, 2016. Janet had 
a long and colorful career in the Connecticut General Assembly, serving 
as a State Representative for the 38th District for eight straight 
terms, from 1977 to 1993.
  Janet was a 1953 graduate of the University of Connecticut, where she 
was the president of the Panhellenic Association. Her political career 
began on the Waterford Board of Education, followed by a stint on the 
Waterford Planning and Zoning Commission, of which she was the 
chairwoman. She then became the 38th District's State Representative.
  During her time in the General Assembly, Janet was a mentor and 
inspiration to many and a true giant of state politics. She was the 
chairwoman of the Appropriations Committee, and the first female to 
serve as Deputy Speaker of the House. I was honored to serve alongside 
her during my time as a State Representative from 1987 until she 
retired in 1993. Janet's career in public service continued as the 
commissioner of the Department of Administrative Services from 1993 to 
1995, and later the Public Utilities Control Commission from 1995 to 
1999. Observing her perform her duties in committee and on the floor of 
the General Assembly was a great inspiration for all on how to act as a 
public servant. She was smart, funny, honest, decent and ethical. She 
left a huge footprint on the state of Connecticut, raising the salaries 
of public school teachers, originating a prescription drug benefit for 
seniors, and at the same time balancing the state's finances. It was an 
extraordinary record.
  The Waterford community and our entire state will miss Janet deeply. 
I ask my colleagues to join me in offering our condolences to her 
husband, Alexander, and the rest of her family as they mourn her 
passing. She was one of the greats.

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