Beryl Anthony, Jr.

Infobox_Congressman
name= Beryl Franklin Anthony, Jr.


state= Arkansas
district= 4th
term= 1979 – 1993
preceded= Ray Thornton
succeeded= Jay Dickey
date of birth= February 21, 1938
place of birth= El Dorado, Arkansas
date of death=
place of death=
spouse= Sheila F. Anthony
profession= Lawyer
religion=Episcopalian
party= Democrat|

Beryl Franklin Anthony, Jr. (born February 211938), is a former representative from Arkansas to the United States House of Representatives.

Early life and education

Anthony was born in El Dorado, Arkansas on in 1938. He attended the Union County public schools, graduating from El Dorado High School in 1956. In 1961, he received a Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, where he became a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity. He obtained a Juris Doctor from the same university in 1963.

Legal career prior to Congress

Anthony was admitted to the Arkansas bar in 1963 [http://www.infoplease.com/biography/us/congress/anthony-beryl-franklin-jr.html ANTHONY, Beryl Franklin, Jr. (1938—)] , via Infoplease.com] and began practice in El Dorado. He became assistant attorney general from 1964 to 1965; deputy prosecuting attorney in Union County from 1966 to 1970; prosecuting attorney for the 13th Judicial District from 1971 to 1976 and legal counsel to Anthony Forest Products Co. in 1977. He started his own private practice of law in 1977

Political career

Anthony was a delegate to Arkansas State Democratic conventions from 1964 to 1978. In November 1978, he was elected as a Democrat to the United States House of Representatives and served sevem terms, from January 3, 1979 to January 3, 1993. He lost his renomination in November 1992 and was replaced by Republican Jay W. Dickey.

Vice president of his freshman class in Congress, Anthony was a founding member of the Sunbelt Coalition, a group that monitored the legislative impact upon southern states. After one term, he was appointed to the House Ways and Means Committee. He also served on the Oversight and Trade Subcommittees as well as the Select Committee on Children, Youth, and Families.

As a member of the Ways and Means Committee, Anthony pursued a variety of important issues. In the 1980s, he played a major role in restructuring the Social Security trust fund. He championed legislation for improved rural health care, for which he was given awards by both the Arkansas Hosptial Association and the American Hospital Association. In his last terms, he focused on international trade, working on the North American Free Trade Agreement and on legislation for the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade.

In 1988, Congress created the bipartisan Anthony Public Finance Commission, composed of mayors, governors, local government officials, and members of the finance community, to recommend legislation to enable local governments to better finance the building of roads, schools, hospitals, and wastewater treatment facilities. The commission's Arbitrage Relief Provision, enacted in 1989, substantially lessened the borrowing costs for infrastructure investments.

Activities after leaving Congress

In January 1993, Anthony became a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Winston & Strawn. His clients have included major trade associations, governmental entities, and national and multinational corporations. On Capitol Hill and before the White House and executive agencies, Anthony has worked on matters involving health care reform, Superfund, trade relations with China, tax law changes affecting pharmaceuticals, and authorization and funding of major weapons systems. He was a member of the board of directors of Beverly Enterprises, which in 2006, before its acquisition by a private equity firm, operated 345 skilled nursing facilities, 18 assisted living centers, and 56 hospice/home care centers.

Personal

Anthony's wife, Sheila Foster Anthony, is the sister of Vince Foster, the deputy White House counsel who committed suicide in 1993. The couple's first child was born in 1964. She was a teacher before getting a law degree. In 1993, after working in the U.S. Commerce Department as the nominated Assistant Secretary for Legislation and Intergovernmental Affairs for several months, she moved to the U.S. Department of Justice in a similar position, where she worked for two years. From 1997 to 2002, she was a commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission. [Andrew Dowdle, [http://libinfo.uark.edu/specialcollections/pryorcenter/projects/clinton/anthonysfclinton.pdf "Interview with Sheila Foster Anthony"] , Hendersonville, North Carolina, 22 July 2004, for the William Jefferson Clinton History Project]

Notes

External links

*
* [http://www.stennis.gov/Congressional%20Bios/berylanthony.htm Biography] , Stennis Center for Public Service, a [http://www.stennis.gov/missionpage.htm federal, legislative branch agency] , accessed October 15, 2007USRepSuccessionBox
state=Arkansas
district=4
before=Ray Thornton
after=Jay W. Dickey
years=January 3, 1979-January 3, 1993