[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 6]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 7887]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING JERRY PRIETO, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. GEORGE RADANOVICH

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Tuesday, May 6, 2008

  Mr. RADANOVICH. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Jerry Prieto, 
Jr. upon being honored with the ``Fresno County Farm Bureau 
Distinguished Service Award'' at the Fresno County Farm Bureau's Annual 
Banquet to be held on Thursday, May 8, 2008.
  Jerry Prieto, Jr. is a native of Corcoran, California. He is the son 
of a former migrant farm worker and was raised in a small town with a 
small family. Mr. Prieto attended California State University, Fresno 
and obtained his Bachelor's of Science degree in Plant Science. In 1974 
he began working for the Fresno County Department of Agriculture and 
six years later he obtained the position of Deputy Agricultural 
Commissioner. After nine years he went to work for Fresno County 
Personnel Department as a Senior Personnel Analyst. In 1993, Mr. Prieto 
was appointed Fresno County Resource Manager. He was responsible for 
solid waste issues throughout the county and operated the American 
Avenue Regional Landfill, the Southeast Regional Landfill and the 
Coalinga Landfill. He was also responsible for providing road 
maintenance, street lighting, garbage collection, parks, sewer and 
water services to ninety special districts.
  In 1999, Mr. Prieto was appointed to the position of Fresno County 
Agricultural Commissioner/Sealer of Weight and Measures exactly twenty-
five years after he began working for the department. He was 
responsible for promoting and regulating the nation's number one 
agriculture producing area. Mr. Prieto also served as a member of 
Governor Gray Davis' State Committee on Terrorism and the Western 
Weights and Measures Association Board of Directors. He served as the 
first Chairman of the California Agriculture Commissioners and Sealers 
Association's Food Safety and Agriculture Security Committee. For four 
years he served as Chairman of the Fresno County Department Heads 
Council. Currently, Mr. Prieto is a member of the Fresno County Farm 
Bureau, the Fresno County Council of Governments Farmland Conservation 
Steering Committee, Chairman of the Fresno County Council of 
Governments Farmland Preservation Advisory Committee, and the Fresno 
County Land Conservation Committee. He is the immediate President of 
the California Agricultural Commissioners and Sealers Association and 
was the first Agricultural Commissioner to serve two terms as 
President. Mr. Prieto is the Chairman of Secretary Kawamura's AB 771 
Honeybee/Seedless Mandarin Co-Existence Working Group.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and congratulate Jerry Prieto 
upon being awarded with the ``Fresno County Farm Bureau Distinguished 
Service Award.'' I invite my colleagues to join me in wishing Mr. 
Prieto many years of continued success.

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