Michael Bilirakis (born July 16, 1930) is an American politician and lawyer from

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from 1983 to 2007, representing

Florida's 9th congressional district Florida's 9th congressional district is a List of United States congressional districts, congressional district in the U.S. state of Florida. It stretches from eastern Orlando, Florida, Orlando south-southeast to Yeehaw Junction, Florida, Yeeh ...

Early life

The son of Greek immigrants, Bilirakis was born in

Tarpon Springs, Florida Tarpon Springs is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. Downtown Tarpon Springs has long been a focal point and underwent beautification in 2010. It is part of the Tampa Bay area. The population was 25,117 at the 2020 census. As of ...

but spent his childhood in

Clairton, Pennsylvania Clairton is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located along the Monongahela River and is part of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. The population was 6,181 at the 2020 United States ce ...

. He graduated from Douglas Business College in McKeesport, Pennsylvania in 1949. He received his bachelor's degree from the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The university is composed of seventeen undergraduate and graduate schools and colle ...

in 1959 where he was a member of

Sigma Pi Sigma Pi () is a collegiate fraternity in North America. As of 2021, it had more than 5,000 undergraduate members and over 118,000 alumni. The fraternity is headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded on February 26, 1897, at Vincennes Uni ...

fraternity. He also attended

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

in 1960. He earned a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

degree from the

University of Florida Levin College of Law The University of Florida Levin College of Law (UF Law) is the law school of the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest operating public law school in Florida and second oldest overall in the stat ...

in 1963. Bilirakis served in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

from 1951 to 1955 during the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

era and rose to the rank of staff sergeant.

Political career

Bilirakis made his first run for office in 1982, contesting the newly created 9th District. He defeated

State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...

George Sheldon by 4,300 votes. He was reelected with 78 percent of the vote in 1984 and was reelected 10 more times, never facing serious opposition. He ran unopposed in 1988, 1994, 1998 and 2004. His committee assignments include membership on the

Energy and Commerce Committee The Committee on Energy and Commerce is one of the oldest standing committees of the United States House of Representatives. Established in 1795, it has operated continuously—with various name changes and jurisdictional changes—for more than ...

as well as being vice chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee. He played a key role in enactment of the

Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act Signed into effect on 12 June 2002, the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 (PHSBPRA) was signed by the President, the Department of Health and Human Services ( DHHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture ...

and re-authorization of the

Prescription Drug User Fee Act The ''Prescription Drug User Fee Act'' (PDUFA) was a law passed by the United States Congress in 1992 which allowed the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to collect fees from drug manufacturers to fund the new drug approval process. The Act prov ...

. He was the lead congressional sponsor of The Nurse Reinvestment Act of 2002 and authored the Organ Donation Improvement Act. ''

National Journal ''National Journal'' is an advisory services company based in Washington, D.C., offering services in government affairs, advocacy communications, stakeholder mapping, and policy brands research for government and business leaders. It publishes ...

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called him one of the most "legislatively productive" members of Congress.

Retirement and later life

Bilirakis retired in 2006. His son,

Gus Gus is a masculine name, often a diminutive for Angus, August, Augustine, Gustave, Constantine, Konstantinos, Augusten, Gustavo, Gusten, Augustus, Aengus, Argus, Fergus, Gustav, Gustafson, Ferguson, and Gussie). It can also be used as t ...

, a Florida state representative, defeated

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Phyllis Busansky in the 2006 congressional race for the elder Bilirakis's House seat. In August 2009, Bilirakis was shortlisted by Governor Crist as a potential replacement for

Mel Martínez Melquíades Rafael Ruiz Martínez (born October 23, 1946) is a Cuban-American lobbyist and former politician who served as a United States senator from Florida from 2005 to 2009 and as general chairman of the Republican Party from November 200 ...

after his resignation from the U.S. Senate. Crist ultimately appointed George LeMieux.

References

External links

Voting record maintained by the Washington Post"Bilirakis Reflects on Career" in St. Petersburg Times
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bilirakis, Mike 1930 births Living people American people of Greek descent Fredric G. Levin College of Law alumni George Washington University alumni Military personnel from Florida People from Clairton, Pennsylvania People from Tarpon Springs, Florida Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida United States Air Force non-commissioned officers University of Pittsburgh alumni Eastern Orthodox Christians from the United States Greek Orthodox Christians from the United States Eastern Orthodox Christians from Florida 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives Sigma Pi members