[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 178 (Friday, November 9, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1502]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  TRIBUTE TO THE HONORABLE MIKE ENNIS

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. KEVIN McCARTHY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, November 9, 2018

  Mr. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, along with my colleague, 
Devin Nunes, to recognize Tulare County Supervisor Mike Ennis. This 
year, Mike is retiring from his position on the Tulare County Board of 
Supervisors following a career of 12 years of service to his community.
  Born and raised in California, Mike has spent 60 years living in the 
City of Porterville. He attended Porterville High School, Porterville 
Junior College, and General Motors University of Automotive Management. 
Taking what he learned at school and college, Mike became an 
accomplished businessman and worked in the private sector, including 
for Faggart Buick and GMC.
  Mike was elected to represent Tulare County's Fifth Supervisorial 
District in 2006, and has represented the communities of Springville, 
Terra Bella, Alpine, Ducor, Camp Nelson, California Hot Springs, Posey, 
Kennedy Meadows, Ponderosa, and Sequoia Crest. During his tenure on the 
Board of Supervisors, Mike has accrued a long list of accomplishments, 
including his work to secure funds for a new prison complex and new 
roads as part of the state's ``Safe Routes to Schools'' program in our 
community, as well as establishing the first mental health clinic, 
Porterville Wellness Center, in the area.
  Mike has also been a tireless advocate for enlarging Success 
Reservoir by widening and raising the spillway. After nearly a decade 
of delay by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, we were proud to work 
with Mike in leading the community effort to get this critical project 
back on track. We recently secured full funding from the Army Corps to 
complete the Success Reservoir Enlargement Project, marking the 
beginning of the end of this long and storied project, which will bring 
additional water supplies and recreation opportunities to our 
community. Mike has also been an active member of the Tulare County 
Association of Governments (TCAG), traveling to Washington to advocate 
for critical road, bridge, and infrastructure projects in our 
community, as well as for commonsense reforms to byzantine Federal 
transportation policies and programs to help get projects to 
construction expeditiously. Among his accomplishments with TCAG have 
been the critical rehabilitations of State Routes 190 and 65, which are 
key transportation arteries in Tulare County. He also worked with us to 
reform National Forest management policies to reduce the risk of 
catastrophic fires that can threaten the Giant Sequoias, important 
natural wonders that bring visitors from around the world to Tulare 
County.
  Outside of his work on the Tulare County Board of Supervisors, Mike 
is active in the local community, counting himself as a Charter Member 
of the Springville Siena Sunrise Rotary Club, the co-chair of the 
Porterville Fair Sales Committee, and a leader in the community' s 
local4-H program for 27 years, not to mention being a past member of 
the Porterville Noon Rotary.
  We have enjoyed working with Mike over the years, and always 
appreciated his insight, counsel, and advice on the important issues 
facing Tulare County. As Mike retires, he can rest assured that he has 
left an indelibly positive mark in our community, and we have been 
honored to call him a friend. On behalf of a grateful community, we 
wish Mike, his wife Diane, and their family all the best as he begins 
this new chapter of his life.

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