Harris W. Fawell Congressional Papers

Harris W. Fawell was born March 29, 1929 in West Chicago, DuPage County, Illinois. He attended public schools through high school, then North Central College in Naperville, graduating from Chicago-Kent College of Law with his law degree in 1952. From 1952-1957, Fawell served as Assistant State's Attorney for DuPage County. He then practiced law privately in his own firm located in Naperville until 1984. Fawell was elected to the Illinois State Senate in 1963 and served continuously until January 1977. While in the Illinois State Senate, Fawell was a member of several commissions related to public education and child welfare and was active in legislation related to anti-crime, mental health, open housing, open space, parks and recreation, and public and special education. After an unsuccessful candidacy for the Illinois Supreme Court in 1976, Fawell retired from public service to devote time to his law firm until deciding to run for Congress. In 1984, he won the Republican primary and general election for the 13th Congressional District seat that was vacated when John Erlenbohn retired after 20 years as U.S. Representative. Congressman Fawell was elected to the next six Congresses, serving until 1998, when he retired. Once elected, Congressman Fawell was assigned to the House Science and Technology and the Labor and Education Committees. He served on both committees throughout his tenure in office. He also served on the Select Committee on Aging from 1985-1993. (The Select Committee on Aging was dissolved as part of the streamlining measures of the 103rd Congress.) On the Labor and Education Committee, Fawell was recognized as the leading expert on the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) statute that protects workers' pensions and health insurance benefits as well as a supporter of small business issues. Fawell served as the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations from 1995-1998, and was a member of the Subcommittee on Workforce Protections. Since the Illinois 13th Congressional District includes Argonne National Laboratory, the Science and Technology Committee was a natural fit for Congressman Fawell. Energy policies and technological advancement were predominant issues for the committee. Balancing the federal budget and cutting waste in government spending were also major concerns of Congressman Fawell. To this end, he was an organizing member of the "Porkbusters Coalition," a bi-partisan group of congressmen actively fighting to cut unapproved spending in the government's budget. Fawell and his wife, Ruth, have three children and eight grandchildren and reside in Naperville, Illinois.

Committee Membership

99th Congress (1985-1986) -Committee on Education and Labor: -Subcommittees: Elementary, Secondary, and Vocational Education Labor-Management Relations -Committee on Science and Technology: -Subcommittees: Energy Development and Applications Energy Research and Production -Select Committee on Aging -Subcommittee: Retirement Income and Employment 101st Congress (1989-1990)

-Committee on Education and Labor: -Subcommittees: Elementary, Secondary, and Vocational Education Labor-Management Relations Labor Standards -Committee on Science, Space and Technology: -Subcommittees: Energy Research and Development International Scientific Cooperation -Select Committee on Aging

102nd Congress (1991-1992) -Committee on Education and Labor: -Subcommittees: Human Resources Labor-Management Relations Labor Standards -Committee on Science, Space and Technology: -Subcommittees: Energy and Power Science -Select Committee on Aging -Subcommittee: Human Services 103rd Congress (1993-1994) -Education and Labor: -Subcommittees: Labor Standards, Occupational Health and Safety Labor-Management Relations Select Education and Civil Rights -Committee on Science, Space and Technology -Subcommittee: Energy 104th Congress (1995-1996) -Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities -Subcommittees: Employer-Employee Relations (Chair) Oversight and Investigations Workforce Protections -Committee on Science -Subcommittee: Energy and Environment 105th Congress (1997-1998) -Committee on Education and the Workforce -Subcommittees: Employer-Employee Relations (Chair) Oversight and Investigations Workforce Protections -Committee on Science -Subcommittee: Energy and Environment