[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 194 (Thursday, December 5, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1541-E1542]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 RETIREMENT OF MS. PAULA KOCHER BARNES

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JOHN LEWIS

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, December 5, 2019

  Mr. LEWIS. Madam Speaker, today, I rise to recognize Ms. Paula Kocher 
Barnes on her retirement from the Department of Health and Human 
Services (HHS) and for her decades of public service.
  For over 40 years, Ms. Barnes served our country--most recently as 
deputy associate general counsel for the Centers for Disease Control 
and Prevention (CDC) in the Office of the General Counsel located in 
Georgia's Fifth Congressional District.
  It took some time for Ms. Barnes to make her way to our wonderful 
city. A native daughter of Iowa, Ms. Barnes completed her undergraduate 
degree at Coe College in Cedar Rapids. She continued her studies at 
Emory University's School of Law, where I believe Metro Atlanta infused 
her spirit. Ms. Barnes began a career in federal service at the 
Department of Education in 1980 and joined the HHS Office of the 
General Counsel in the Region IV Atlanta Office a couple of years 
later.
  After five years in the regional office, Ms. Barnes transitioned to 
the CDC's Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), 
where she continued her federal career for the next 32 years. During 
her tenure with the ATSDR, Ms. Barnes served on the front lines of 
implementing policy at the intersection of environment and health 
policy, an issue that is near and dear to my heart. As an attorney-
advisor, Ms. Barnes worked to implement the Superfund Amendments and 
Reauthorization Act, a monumental bill which became public law the same 
year that I was elected to Congress.
  As a senior attorney, Ms. Barnes continued this important effort by 
providing key counsel

[[Page E1542]]

 for interagency initiatives and memoranda on environmental health 
policy. In January 2014, the Centers for Disease Control promoted Ms. 
Barnes to the prominent position of deputy associate general counsel 
for the CDC/ATSDR Branch. Over the years, she contributed to litigation 
efforts regarding the Agent Orange exposure studies, the Federal 
Advisory Committee Act-National Institute for Occupational Safety and 
Health (NIOSH) Diesel Study, Freedom of Information Act, ATSDR cost 
recovery, and the precedential Hanford Downwinders case.
  Ms. Barnes also managed to find the time to advance scholarship and 
policy in her professional field by contributing to numerous 
publications, including two prominent public health law textbooks and 
several articles. In addition, she served as an adjunct professor at 
Georgia State University's and Emory University's law schools and as a 
guest lecturer at Duke University.
  During her esteemed career, Ms. Barnes played a critical role in 
several significant public health activities and events, including 
emergency responses to the September 11th tragedy, anthrax threats, 
Ebola Virus, Zika, and several major natural disasters. Our nation and 
the global family are forever grateful for Ms. Barnes and so many other 
CDC employees who help keep us safe, healthy, and alive.
  Today, I would like to thank Ms. Barnes for her 41 years of federal 
service, for her dedication to public health, public service, and 
education. As she prepares for a well-deserved retirement, I wish Ms. 
Barnes the very best as she embarks upon this next chapter.

                          ____________________