CONGRESSMAN BISHOP MOURNS THE LOSS OF FORMER CHIEF OF STAFF AND APPROPRIATIONS EXPERT, MICHAEL REED

WASHINGTON – Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (GA-02), Ranking Member of the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, the Food & Drug Administration, and Related Agencies, issued this statement regarding his former Chief of Staff and Appropriations expert, Michael Joseph Reed, who passed away on Monday, January 15:

“It is with great sadness and a heavy heart that we mourn the passing of Michael Joseph Reed. A veteran of public service and Capitol Hill, he left an indelible mark on Congress – from the countless Members and staff he helped and guided to the many appropriations bills this body has passed and which went on to fund a wide range of programs that touch the lives of every single American.

“In 2003, when I was selected to serve on the House Appropriations Committee and was searching for a seasoned Appropriations Specialist and Legislative Policy Advisor, I was blessed to hire Michael as my Special Assistant for the Appropriations Committee. He served in that capacity for twelve years. I appointed him Deputy Chief of Staff in 2011 and Chief of Staff in 2015, a position in which he served until his retirement from public service in 2021.

“Throughout that time, he was a dependable and determined member of my team. While I may have been his boss, I was matriculating in the ‘Michael Reed School of Budgetary Policy.’  For nearly two decades, I benefited from the wisdom he garnered over many years – first as a Presidential Management Intern at the U.S. Department of Transportation and then as a staffer for former Congressman and Appropriator, Louis Stokes of Ohio and former Congressman William Gray, also an Appropriator and Chair of the House Budget Committee. He continually honed his skill, expanded his command of the various policy fields entrusted to him, and broadened his network of professionals with whom he would work to get the job done for the American people.

“I can say without a shred of doubt, that Georgia’s and all of America’s agriculture industry benefited from his work. This included bolstering our Congressional agriculture disaster relief to include typhoons, volcanic eruptions, wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, droughts, and other exigencies.

“Former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm once said, ‘service is the rent we pay for the space we occupy on this earth.’ Michael paid his rent and paid it well.

“It was a privilege to work with him and an honor to know him. He will be greatly missed.

“My wife, Vivian, and I along with my entire Congressional office and committee staff, current and former colleagues and proteges of Michael, want to convey our deepest sympathies to his loving wife, Diane Fields Reed and the entire Reed family.”

A Celebration of Life service is being planned and details are pending.

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