[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 21]
[Senate]
[Page 31059]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



          THE DEPARTURE OF STEVEN APICELLA, LEGISLATIVE FELLOW

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I would like to take a moment to recognize 
my Legislative Fellow, Steven Apicella, who will be leaving the Lott 
staff, my team, at the end of this session.
  I must admit, when Steven first joined us, I was not sure who he was 
or why he was lurking in my meetings. However, I quickly learned that 
thanks to the wisdom of my Chief of staff and then Legislative 
Director, the Department of Energy had lent me and Mississippi one of 
their best.
  Over the past twenty months, Steven has become an indispensable part 
of my legislative shop. He has worked hard on a broad range of issues--
each time jumping in feet first, soaking up knowledge, and moving 
legislation forward in this often complicated process.
  Steven began his Capitol Hill experience during the lengthy and 
grueling TEA-21 negotiations. He quickly realized my transportation 
priorities for my home state of Mississippi, and was helpful in making 
sure these issues were not ignored. During these long hours spent 
hammering out the details of TEA-21, Steven earned the respect of 
staff, as well as mine.
  Steven advised me on a variety of high-tech issues, and was an active 
participant of the team which formulated a focus for the Republican 
Technology Task Force. He worked with the staffs of several of my 
colleagues to reach a consensus--often not an easy task.
  Steven has also been very diligent in advancing a meaningful and 
updated encryption policy--one that balances national security, law 
enforcement and trade interests. He continually made sure that all 
parties realized that these are not mutually exclusive priorities. 
Steven detected this significant issue and was responsible for bringing 
it to my attention and guiding me as the bill worked its way through 
the Commerce committee.
  Digital signatures is another issue Steven has aggressively pursued. 
He played an active role in getting the government portion of the 
legislation enacted into law last Congress, and worked extensively 
toward today's Senate passage of this needed opportunity for the 
private sector.
  An important service on behalf of the State of Mississippi has been 
Steven's diligence on national parks legislation. This year Steven was 
very helpful in preparing two bills that I introduced in this area--one 
to add the battlefield at Corinth as part of the Shiloh National Park, 
and another to begin the planning for the designation of the Vicksburg 
Campaign Trail. On each of these bills, Steven worked effectively with 
the Senate committee of jurisdiction and was responsible for getting 
the funds authorized before introduction. I am happy to say that today 
those bills passed the Senate by unanimous consent.
  Finally, with Steven's help I again fought the uphill battle of Title 
Branding. Steven worked with and strengthened a large, bipartisan 
effort to draft and support legislation to brand the titles of severely 
damaged salvaged vehicles, so consumers will be able to identify 
potentially dangerous used cars before they are purchased. Steven 
searched for a compromise, and constantly pushed the envelope of 
consensus. Steven tirelessly championed this pro-consumer bill and his 
efforts brought it to the threshold of Senate passage.
  Although Steven was assigned areas which were outside the realm of 
his ``parent'' employer, Department of Energy--he has been an excellent 
ambassador. He has helped the staff understand the intricacies of the 
agency and appreciate its problems. As Steven returns to his duties at 
DOE, I hope his experiences and the skills and contacts he has 
developed while serving as a part of my staff will serve him well.
  Over the past several years, I have been privileged to have the 
services of legislative fellows, to provide stellar support for my 
efforts. Steven has been fantastic. I thank Steven for his dedication 
and determination, and I thank DOE for their patience--I'm sure they 
are ready to have him back, working his magic there. I wish Steven, and 
his son Jarrett, Godspeed in their future endeavors.

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