[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 38 (Wednesday, March 2, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E202]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    CONGRATULATING ELIZABETH SAVAGE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. STENY H. HOYER

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 2, 2022

  Mr. HOYER. Madam Speaker, I rise to congratulate Elizabeth `Liz' 
Savage, a career attorney in the Disability Rights Section of the Civil 
Rights Division (CRD) at the U.S. Department of Justice, who received 
the Maceo W. Hubbard Award in December. The Division's highest award, 
it recognizes her exceptional work as an expert in disability rights 
law and her commitment to educating Americans with disabilities on how 
to access reasonable accommodations guaranteed under law. The law 
referenced, of course, is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 
which I was proud to sponsor and helps shepherd to enactment in 1990.
  I've known Liz Savage for many years, and during the time that I was 
leading efforts to pass the ADA, she was working at the Epilepsy 
Foundation. Liz had been working with our former Majority Whip Tony 
Coelho, long a champion for disability rights, who served on the 
Epilepsy Foundation's board at the time. Tony, of course, was the 
original author of the ADA, and I was honored that he asked me to take 
charge of it after he left the House. When I did, I was grateful for 
Liz's support and assistance, as she helped lead grassroots organizing 
and outreach to Members of Congress to educate the public and 
policymakers about what the ADA would achieve and how important it 
would be to promoting equality, access, independence, and opportunity 
for those living with disabilities. She worked hard to build a 
coalition among national disability, civil rights, religious, and civic 
organizations in support of the ADA's enactment.
  In addition to the ADA, Liz had a profound impact on a number of 
pieces of federal legislation during her time at the Epilepsy 
Foundation. These included the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Civil 
Rights Restoration Act, and Fair Housing Act amendments. Liz served as 
a tireless advocate in all of those efforts to ensure that the voices 
of people whose lived experience included dealing with a disability 
were included when policies were developed and adopted.
  For more than three decades, Liz has continued to fight for the 
rights and equality of people with disabilities. Over the past ten 
years, she has been working in the Justice Department's Disability 
Rights Section, and the Maceo W. Hubbard Award she received in December 
is testament to her success and achievement in that role. I join in 
congratulating her and thanking her for the service and many 
contributions she has made and continues to make for her country and 
for Americans with disabilities. I hope my colleagues will join in 
congratulating Liz Savage as well.

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