Mr. Speaker, I, along with House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. and Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations Ranking Member Robert C. ``Bobby''…
Mr. Speaker, I, along with House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. and Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security and Investigations Ranking Member Robert C. ``Bobby'' Scott, would like to take this opportunity to thank Bobby Vassar for his work with the House Committee on the Judiciary and Congressman Scott's Congressional office for the past 19 and \1/2\ years.
Bobby came to Representative Scott's Congressional office on February 1, 1994 to serve as Senior Counsel and Legislative Director. He joined the staff of the Crime Subcommittee of the House Committee on the Judiciary in March of 1999 as Minority Chief Counsel. From January 2007 to January 2012, Bobby served as Majority Chief Counsel for the Subcommittee.
Prior to joining Representative Scott's office in 1994, he worked for three Virginia governors, starting as Chairman of the Virginia Parole Board in 1982 and ending as Acting Secretary of Health and Human Resources in 1994. Prior to 1982, he worked as Executive Director of the Peninsula Legal Aid Center in Hampton, Virginia, for which Congressman Scott served as Chairman of the Board. He also held positions previously as Assistant Vice Chancellor for Administration at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as a staff attorney with the Laborer's Pre-paid Legal Services Plan of Washington, D.C. and Vicinity, and as a Reginald Heber Smith Community Lawyer Fellow at the Roanoke Virginia legal Aid Society. Bobby is a graduate of Norfolk State University and the University of Virginia School of Law.
Bobby's ability to work well with his colleagues, especially across the aisle and across the Capitol, made him a valuable staff asset to passing many key pieces of legislation. He had the lead staff responsibility in the House for several significant bipartisan bills that were enacted into law including the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment, and Crime Reduction Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-416); the Fair Sentencing Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-220); the Deaths in Custody Reporting Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-297); the Juvenile Accountability Block Grant Program (Public Law 107-273); the Second Chance Act of 2007 (Public Law 110-199); along with dozens of other bills enacted into law over the years. He also led the development of the Youth Prison Reduction through Opportunities, Mentoring, Intervention, Support and Education (PROMISE) Act which was introduced in the 110th Congress and has been reintroduced every subsequent Congress; H.R. 1695, the Justice Safety Valve Act of 2013; H.R. 2656, the Public Safety Enhancement Act of 2013; and many promising bipartisan bills pending in the House and Senate.
We are deeply appreciative of the service and contributions Bobby has provided the Crime Subcommittee, the Judiciary Committee and the Congress over the past two decades. Throughout that time, many people both on and off Capitol Hill have been fortunate to call him a colleague and friend. He will be missed. We wish him the best of fortunes and fulfillment in his future endeavors.
