HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 93-4622, by Representatives R. Meyers, Heavey, Ebersole, Locke, Wineberry, Ballard, Brough, Dyer, Foreman, Chandler, Silver, Wood, Wang and Anderson

   WHEREAS, The House of Representatives wishes to honor a great man, John L. O'Brien, who devoted over fifty years of his illustrious life to this institution; and

   WHEREAS, This man served as a Member of the House of Representatives beginning in 1939 during the presidency of Franklin Roosevelt; and   

   WHEREAS, He is number one in longevity, with no individual among the more than seven thousand state legislators having served longer in any legislature in the United States; and

   WHEREAS, The man we honor served the people of his state, his district, and this assembly longer than anyone else has ever served as a member of the legislature of the great state of Washington; and

   WHEREAS, He served in the House of Representatives for half the time that Washington has been a state and for well over half the days the legislature has met in its history; and

   WHEREAS, John L. O'Brien served twenty-six terms in service to his constituents as State Representative from the 33rd District, renumbered the 35th District, now the 37th District; and

   WHEREAS, Representative O'Brien served four terms as Speaker, nine terms as Speaker Pro Tempore, as both majority and minority leader, and on every major committee in the House of Representatives; and

   WHEREAS, Every major piece of legislation in our state over the past fifty years was guided by his leadership and parliamentary skills; and

   WHEREAS, In the course of his extensive involvement with colleagues across the country, John L. O'Brien was elected in 1968 as President of the National Conference of State Legislative Leaders; and

   WHEREAS, He served as Chairman of the Washington State Legislative Council from 1955 to 1962; and

   WHEREAS, John L. O'Brien was responsible for many innovations and reforms in the operation of the House, a prominent example of which is the electronic roll call voting machine in chambers; and

   WHEREAS, The face of state government, through every state building program during his tenure, was influenced by Representative O'Brien's committee work; and

   WHEREAS, John L. O'Brien was instrumental in gaining official state recognition in 1977 of Mother Joseph, a Catholic sister and outstanding Washington pioneer; and

   WHEREAS, His leadership of a fund raising drive enabled the placement of a statue of Mother Joseph as this state's second and final representative in Statuary Hall in the nation's capitol; and

   WHEREAS, In the 1982 Session, the House of Representatives prevailed upon John L. O'Brien to write a book about his legislative experience so that others might benefit from some of his knowledge; and

   WHEREAS, The House of Representatives in 1988 honored its longest-serving member by establishing the John L. O'Brien Postgraduate Legislative Fellowship Program; and

   WHEREAS, On St. Patrick's Day, 1989, to honor John L. O'Brien's Irish heritage, the House of Representatives celebrated his fifty years of public service as a legislator, honored his wife Mary O'Brien for her many contributions to the state, and renamed the House Office Building as the John L. O'Brien Building; and

   WHEREAS, In 1990, the long-awaited biography appeared as Speaker of the House, The Political Career and Times of John L. O'Brien, by Daniel Jack Chasan; and

   WHEREAS, John L. O'Brien is famous for the unsurpassed leadership and skill he exercised as Speaker which shaped this institution and become a part of its history; and

   WHEREAS, He is the epitome of the dignified, elder statesman and is the most outstanding parliamentarian this body has ever produced; and

   WHEREAS, John L. O'Brien's command of House rules is unmatched and rarely challenged; and

   WHEREAS, This venerable man has been and will continue to be an irreplaceable source of knowledge, understanding, and lore about the legislative process in this state for current and future members of the legislature and all state citizens; and

   WHEREAS, The members of this assembly, veteran and new legislator alike, will miss their most esteemed colleague and need his knowledge, his expertise, and his continuing guidance in understanding the legislative process;

   NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That on this St. Patricks Day, March 17, 1993, John L. O'Brien is conferred the perpetual title of Honorary Speaker Emeritus of the Washington State House of Representatives for the honor and learning that it is our hope he may continue to bestow upon this institution; and

   BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution be immediately transmitted by the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives to the Honorable John L. O'Brien, Honorary Speaker Emeritus of the House of Representatives.

________________________________                                                                                                                           ______________________________

                Brian Ebersole,                                                                                                                                                            Ron Meyers,

                    Speaker                                                                                                                                       Speaker Pro Tempore

I hereby certify this to be a true and correct copy of Resolution 4622 adopted by the House of Representatives March 17, 1993.

________________________________

Alan Thompson, Chief Clerk