Bill Emerson | |
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 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMissouri | |
| In office January 3, 1981 – June 22, 1996 | |
| Preceded by | William Dean Burlison |
| Succeeded by | Jo Ann Emerson |
| Constituency | 10th district (1981–1983) 8th district (1983–1996) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1938-01-01)January 1, 1938 Saint Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | June 22, 1996(1996-06-22) (aged 58) Bethesda, Maryland, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Lyn Zwahl |
| Children | 4 |
Norvell William Emerson (January 1, 1938 – June 22, 1996) was an American politician. He served as a member of theUnited States House of Representatives fromMissouri from 1981 until his death from lung cancer inBethesda, Maryland in 1996. He was succeeded in the House by his widow, Jo Ann Emerson. Emerson was aRepublican.
Emerson was raised inJefferson County, Missouri and attended public schools in nearbyHillsboro. He served as aHouse Page and graduated fromWestminster College inFulton, Missouri in 1959. Emerson attended law school at theUniversity of Missouri and theUniversity of Baltimore, graduating with hisLL.B from Baltimore in 1964. He was also a captain in theUnited States Air Force Reserve from 1964 to 1992.
He was serving as a congressional page serving on the floor during the 1954United States Capitol shooting incident involving Puerto Rican terrorists.[1] While in law school, Emerson served as a Congressional aide to U.S. RepresentativeRobert Ellsworth, and after graduation he served on the staff of U.S. SenatorCharles Mathias. Throughout the 1970s he worked in governmental affairs for several companies, and formed his own consulting group in 1979. In 1980, he was elected to Congress and was re-elected seven times. Emerson served on theHouse Committee on Rules.
In 1988, after anintervention with his family and friends, Emerson acknowledged hisalcoholism and spent a month at theBetty Ford Center. He later helped create the House Employee Assistance Program which provides legislative and administrative support services for the House, later expanded to the Senate, and helps alcoholics find treatment.[2]
Emerson died oflung cancer in 1996.[3] He was succeeded by his widow, Jo Ann Emerson.
TheBill Emerson Memorial Bridge, which crosses theMississippi River atCape Girardeau, is named after him, as is Emerson Hall, the main assembly room in the House Page School in theJefferson Building of theLibrary of Congress and Emerson Hall, an upperclass residence hall at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, his alma mater.
TheBill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act of 1996 was named after the congressman, who fought for the proposal but died of cancer before it was passed. This act encourages the donation of food and grocery products to nonprofit organizations for distribution to needy individuals by protecting donors from liability when donating to a nonprofit organization, so long as the product is donated in "good faith," even if it later causes harm to the needy recipient.
The nationalFood Security Wheat Reserve (1980–1996), later expanded to the Food Security Commodity Reserve (1996–1998), was renamed theBill Emerson Humanitarian Trust (1998–) in his memory.
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
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| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMissouri's 10th congressional district 1981–1983 | Succeeded by District dissolved |
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromMissouri's 8th congressional district 1983–1996 | Succeeded by |
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