IV 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 753 
Commemorating the life of William D. Ruckelshaus. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 9, 2019 
Ms. JAYAPAL (for herself, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Ms. 
HERRERA BEUTLER, Mr. NEWHOUSE, Mrs. RODGERS of Washington, 
Mr. KILMER, Ms. SCHRIER, Mr. SMITH of Washington, and Mr. HECK) 
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee 
on Oversight and Reform 
RESOLUTION 
Commemorating the life of William D. Ruckelshaus. 
Whereas William D. Ruckelshaus was born on July 24, 1932, 
in Indianapolis, Indiana, the son of Marion Doyle and 
John K. Ruckelshaus; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus served for two years in the United 
States Army, as a drill sergeant at Fort Lewis in Ta-
coma, Washington; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus graduated from Princeton Univer-
sity with an A.B. (cum laude) in 1957 and from Harvard 
Law School with an LL.B. in 1960; 
Whereas, in his early career, Mr. Ruckelshaus served as dep-
uty attorney general of Indiana, where he helped draft 
the State’s first air pollution control laws and obtained 
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court orders to prohibit industries and municipalities 
from polluting the State’s water supply; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus was a longtime resident of Seattle, 
having moved his family to the Seattle area in 1975 to 
serve as Vice President of Legal Affairs for Washington 
State-based timber company Weyerhaeuser, and became 
a leading Northwest voice for the environment; 
Whereas, in 1969, former President Richard Nixon appointed 
Mr. Ruckelshaus assistant attorney general in charge of 
the Civil Division of the Department of Justice; 
Whereas, in 1970, President Nixon appointed Mr. Ruckels-
haus to serve as the founding administrator of the Envi-
ronmental Protection Agency (EPA), which he returned 
to lead again from 1983–1985; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus helped build the EPA from the 
ground up, devising its enforcement strategy and later 
developing air-pollution controls, holding companies and 
cities responsible for water pollution and banning the use 
of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) for domestic 
agriculture, a major factor in the survival and rebounding 
of the bald eagle; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus was named by Time magazine in 
2008 as among the best Cabinet secretaries in United 
States history for his work focusing the EPA’s mission 
and drawing significant public support and visibility for 
the agency; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus later said of his time at the EPA: 
‘‘At EPA, you work for a cause that is beyond self-inter-
est and larger than the goals people normally pursue; 
You‘re not there for the money, you’re there for some-
thing beyond yourself’’; 
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Whereas, in 1973, Mr. Ruckelshaus returned to the Depart-
ment of Justice to serve as the acting director of the 
Federal Bureau of Investigation, and then as top deputy 
to Attorney General Elliot L. Richardson, where he suc-
cessfully pursued corruption charges against Vice Presi-
dent Spiro Agnew; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus joined Attorney General Elliot 
Richardson in resigning and refusing to implement Presi-
dent Nixon’s unlawful order to fire the independent spe-
cial prosecutor investigating Watergate in the 1973 
events known as the ‘‘Saturday Night Massacre’’; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus’ diverse private sector career in-
cluded 12 years as chief executive of Browning-Ferris In-
dustries, where he led the company to shift away from 
the business of hazardous waste disposal and toward re-
cycling operations; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus was appointed in 2007 by Wash-
ington State Governor Christine Gregoire as the first 
leader of the Puget Sound Partnership, an environmental 
agency in Washington State, to organize the cleanup of 
the Puget Sound and salmon recovery; 
Whereas the William D. Ruckelshaus Center was established 
as a joint effort between the University of Washington 
and Washington State University to foster collaborative 
public policy in Washington State and the Pacific North-
west and continues to carry on Mr. Ruckelshaus’ legacy 
by assisting public, private, Tribal, nonprofit, and other 
leaders to build consensus, resolve conflicts, and develop 
innovative, shared solutions; 
Whereas President Barack Obama awarded Mr. Ruckelshaus 
the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015, the highest 
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civilian honor in the United States, recognizing his serv-
ice to the country; 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus died on November 27, 2019, at the 
age of 87 at his home in Seattle, Washington; and 
Whereas Mr. Ruckelshaus is survived by his wife, Jill 
Ruckelshaus, their children, Jennifer and William 
Ruckelshaus and Robin Kellogg, his daughters, Catherine 
and Mary Ruckelshaus, his sister, Marion Ruckelshaus 
Bitzer, and 12 grandchildren: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) honors William D. Ruckelshaus for his prin-
cipled service to our Nation, his commitment to the 
rule of law throughout his career, and his work to 
ensure a livable planet for future generations; and 
(2) expresses profound sorrow at the death of 
William D. Ruckelshaus and offers condolences to 
his family, friends, and colleagues. 
Æ 
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