[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 88 (Tuesday, May 21, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E530]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING DR. DANIEL F. MORGAN FOR HIS 25 YEARS OF PUBLIC SERVICE TO THE 
          U.S. CONGRESS AT THE CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ZOE LOFGREN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 21, 2024

  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Dr. Daniel F. Morgan for 
his lengthy career of public service to the U.S. Congress. After 25 
years at the Congressional Research Service, or CRS, he will retire as 
a specialist in science and technology policy at the end of the month. 
During his time at CRS, Dr. Morgan made invaluable contributions to 
Congress in federal and commercial space policy, federal research and 
development facilities and infrastructure, and the role of science and 
technology in homeland security.
  Dr. Morgan was born in London and raised in Austin, TX, where he 
attended high school, excelling in mathematics. He played the cello in 
the high school string quartet, igniting a life-long love of classical 
music, and in particular, music that allows the cello to shine. Dr. 
Morgan graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), 
majoring in physics and mathematics and minoring in philosophy. While 
at MIT, he was a consultant to Project Athena to produce a campus-wide 
distributed computing environment, which is recognized as an important 
historical contribution to distributed computing. He competed in the 
MIT Integration Bee, an annual integral calculus competition, placing 
second his junior year. Dr. Morgan then attended the University of 
Texas at Austin and earned a doctorate in physics with a dissertation 
on particle physics and cosmology in the early universe. His 
dissertation was supervised by Joe Polchinski, noted string theorist 
and Dirac Medal winner, and Steven Weinberg, Nobel laureate in physics, 
was on his committee. During graduate school, Dr. Morgan began to play 
bridge at beer gardens around Austin. He would go on to regularly host 
games, compete at regional and national competitions, and regularly 
play bridge during lunch with CRS colleagues.
  Dr. Morgan began his career with CRS in 1991 as a contractor, 
covering major federal physics projects and advanced energy 
technologies. In 1994 he joined the staff at the National Academies of 
Science, Engineering, and Medicine, first on Board on Physics and 
Astronomy and then National Materials Advisory Board, working with 
preeminent researchers in their fields. Dr. Morgan returned to CRS in 
2002 and was instrumental in covering the creation and evolution of the 
research and development activities of the Department of Homeland 
Security (DHS), established by the Homeland Security Act of 2002 
following the September 11, 2001 attacks. He consulted regularly with 
Congress as multiple Department of Energy (DOE) programs--such as those 
dedicated to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear defense--
were folded into the newly-established agency. During this period, 
Congress also relied heavily on his technical expertise to cover the 
development and deployment of explosive and radiation detection 
systems. For over two decades, Dr. Morgan has covered major scientific 
facilities at DOE, including the national laboratories, and civil and 
commercial space policy. He is widely recognized in Congress for his 
expertise on the policies, programs, and missions of the National 
Aeronautics and Space Administration, routinely providing invaluable 
personal consultation to Members and staff on House and Senate 
committees of jurisdiction. Dr. Morgan consulted heavily with Congress 
as it considered the United States Innovation and Competition Act of 
2021 and America COMPETES Act of 2022 and the subsequent development 
and enactment of the resulting CHIPS and Science Act in 2022.
  Dr. Morgan is a polymath, whose advice is valued by Members, 
congressional staff, and colleagues. At CRS, he is relied on to provide 
expert leadership and coordination of complex analysis and is a sought-
after reviewer and mentor. Throughout his career at CRS, he embodied 
the agency's mission values of providing authoritative, objective, 
nonpartisan, and timely service to Congress.
  On behalf of the American people, I thank Dr. Morgan for his decades 
of service to the country.

                          ____________________