[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 7]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 9928-9929]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



 TRIBUTE TO DR. JAY C. DAVIS, DIRECTOR, DEFENSE THREAT REDUCTION AGENCY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ELLEN O. TAUSCHER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 5, 2001

  Mrs. TAUSCHER. Mr. Speaker, I wish to take this opportunity to 
recognize the accomplishments of Dr. Jay Davis, the first Director of 
the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, more commonly known as ``DTRA.'' 
Jay completes his tenure as the Director on June 21, 2001 and will be 
returning to Lawrence Livermore Laboratory.
  Three years ago, the Department of Defense recognized the need to 
establish an agency to respond to the growing threat posed by the 
proliferation of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons--so called 
``weapons of mass destruction'' or ``WMD.'' In October 1998, the 
Defense Threat Reduction Agency was established to integrate and focus 
the capabilities of the Department on the present and future WMD 
threat.
  The agency needed a director and the Department reached out to Jay 
Davis to establish the Agency, provide its vision, and make it a rapid 
success. Jay was the perfect choice for this assignment. He had spent 
the majority of his career at Lawrence Livermore Labs. A nuclear 
physicist, he has worked as a research scientist and an engineering 
manager, leading the design and construction of several unique 
accelerator facilities for basic and applied research. Most recently, 
he was the Director, Center for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry.
  He also brought extensive management experience in mergers, 
restructuring, and change management in organizations as well as 
project and operations management. His research interests also include 
treaty verification and nonproliferation technologies, and the design 
of research and development collaborations.
  Jay has also served as a scientific advisor to the United Nations 
Secretariat, several US agencies, and to the scientific agencies of the 
governments of Australia and New Zealand. He participated in two United 
Nations inspections of Iraq as an expert on mass spectrometer and 
construction techniques.

[[Page 9929]]

  He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Arts Degree, both in 
Physics, from the University of Texas, and a Ph.D. in Physics from the 
University of Wisconsin. Prior to joining Lawrence Livermore, he was an 
Atomic Energy Commission Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of 
Wisconsin. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and was one 
of its Centennial Lecturers in its 100th Anniversary Year. The author 
of more than seventy published works in his discipline, he also holds 
three patents on analytical techniques and applications.
  During his three years at DTRA, Jay created an agency that is widely 
respected for the unique perspectives and capabilities it offers. 
Today, DTRA performs many important missions. It is partnered with the 
Commanders-in-Chief of the combatant commands, the Services, and the 
Department of Energy on the maintenance of the physical and doctrinal 
components of our nuclear deterrant. It provides the warfighters the 
offensive and defensive tools to prevail against WMD. DTRA also 
executes all arms control treaty inspections, cooperative agreements 
and technology control activities in the Department of Defense. in 
addition, jay has been instrumental in leading and defining the Defense 
Department's role in supporting local and state agencies in WMD 
terrorism response operations. Under his leadership, DTRA has 
contributed significantly to the evolving concept of homeland defense.
  Jay has twice been awarded the Distinguished Public Service Medal by 
the Secretary of Defense, DoD's highest civilian award, for his 
contributions to national security.
  He and his wife Mary soon will return to the good life of the 
Livermore valley. I am happy to report that the nation will not lose 
his services, however. Effective July 1, 2001, Jay will return to 
Lawrence Livermore Laboratory to become the first National Security 
Fellow at the Lab's Center for Global Security Research. In this new 
position, Jay will do what he does best--bringing together scientists 
and technologists with policy analysts to study ways in which 
technology can enhance national security. I congratulate Jay on all his 
accomplishments at DTRA and wish him the best in his future endeavors 
at Lawrence Livermore Lab.

                          ____________________