First Regular Session
Sixty-second General Assembly
LLS NO. M990976.01 Bob
Lackner
STATE OF COLORADO
BY REPRESENTATIVE Gordon;
also SENATOR Feeley.
HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 99-1001
MEMORIALIZING FORMER UNITED STATES SENATOR AND STATE
REPRESENTATIVE FLOYD K. HASKELL.
WHEREAS, By the Will of Divine Providence, our beloved
former United States Senator and member, Floyd K. Haskell, departed
this life August 25, 1998, at the age of 82; and
WHEREAS, Senator Haskell was born in 1916 in Morristown,
New Jersey; and
WHEREAS, Senator Haskell graduated from Harvard College
and Harvard Law School; and
WHEREAS, Senator Haskell served in the United States
Army during World War II, saw action in Asia, achieved the rank
of major, and was awarded a Bronze Star Medal for intelligence
work; and
WHEREAS, In 1941, Senator Haskell married Eileen
Nicoll, and, after his service in World War II, he and his wife
moved to Colorado, where he practiced law, specializing in tax
law, and participated in community affairs; and
WHEREAS, Senator Haskell and his wife Eileen had
three daughters, Ione, Evelyn, and Pamela; and
WHEREAS, Although he had built a successful law practice,
Senator Haskell saw public service as a duty, and, in 1964, while
residing in Littleton, Colorado, Senator Haskell was elected to
the Colorado House of Representatives as a registered Republican,
representing what was then house district number 6 in Arapahoe
County, and was reelected to an additional twoyear term
in 1966; and
WHEREAS, While a member of the House of Representatives,
Senator Haskell served in 1967 and 1968 as Assistant Majority
Leader and as Chair of the House Judiciary Committee and also
served as a member of the House Education and Finance Committees;
and
WHEREAS, In 1970, having returned to private life,
Senator Haskell changed his party registration to the Democratic
Party in opposition to the Vietnam War; and
WHEREAS, In 1972, Senator Haskell was elected to
the United States Senate from Colorado; and
WHEREAS, During his six years in the United States
Senate, Senator Haskell served as a member of the Senate Finance
and Energy and Natural Resources Committees, where, among other
things, he was recognized for his expertise and successful advocacy
in the areas of tax reform and environmental protection, having
helped create wilderness areas and encouraged the development
of alternative energy sources; and
WHEREAS, Among Senator Haskell's more significant
legislative accomplishments while serving as a member of the United
States Senate are the Payment in Lieu of Taxes Act, the Taxpayer
Privacy Act, and the Jobs Tax Credit Act; and
WHEREAS, Upon completion of his single term in the
United States Senate, Senator Haskell practiced law, served on
the board of Common Cause, and was active with a bipartisan group
of lawmakers seeking changes in campaign finance laws and trying
to break congressional gridlock; and
WHEREAS, In 1979, Senator Haskell married Nina Totenberg,
the legal affairs correspondent for National Public Radio; and
WHEREAS, Senator Haskell was deeply respected by
members of both parties in the United States Congress and the
Colorado General Assembly for his acumen, his scholarly understanding
of complex problems, his thoughtful approach to contested issues
and, above all, his patriotism, integrity, modesty, and fundamental
decency; and
WHEREAS, A man of grace and dignity, Senator Haskell
also showed himself to be a person of incredible grit and determination
as he fought valiantly against two long illnesses during the latter
years of his life; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives
of the Sixtysecond General Assembly of the State of Colorado,
the Senate concurring herein:
That, in the death of Floyd K. Haskell, the people
of the state of Colorado have lost a dedicated public servant
and outstanding citizen, and that we, the members of the House
of Representatives and the Senate of the Sixtysecond General
Assembly, do hereby extend our deep and heartfelt sympathy to
the members of his family and pay tribute to a man who served
his nation and state well and faithfully.
Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Joint Memorial be sent to Senator Haskell's wife, Nina Totenberg, and daughters Ione Haskell, Evelyn Maxwell, and Pamela Haskell.