Vern Ehlers

Born in Pipestone, Minnesota, Ehlers attended Calvin College in Grand Rapids for three years before transferring to the University of California, Berkeley, where he earned an undergraduate degree in physics and, in 1960, a Ph.D. in nuclear physics. His doctoral dissertation, "The nuclear spins and moments of several radioactive gallium isotopes", is available from University Microfilms International as document number 0227304. After six years of teaching and research at Berkeley, he moved back to Michigan and took employment at Calvin College in 1966, where he taught physics for 16 years and later served as chairman of the Physics Department.

Ehlers died on August 15, 2017, at the age of 83.{{cite web|url=http://michiganradio.org/post/former-congressman-vernon-ehlers-dies|title=Former Congressman Vernon Ehlers dies|first=Sarah|last=Hulett|date=August 16, 2017|access-date=17 August 2017|work=Michigan Radio}}

Ehlers served on the Kent County Board of Commissioners from 1975 to 1982. Ehlers served from 1983 to 1985 in the Michigan House of Representatives and then served from 1985 to 1993 in the Michigan Senate.{{cite web|url=http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/26907/vern-ehlers|title=The Voter's Self Defense System|website=Vote Smart|access-date=17 August 2017}}

• Committee on Education and Labor
• Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education
• Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness
• Committee on House Administration (Chairman and Ranking Member) {{Cite web|url=https://cha.house.gov/press-release/ehlers-elected-chairman-house-administration-committee|title=Ehlers elected chairman of House Administration Committee {{!}} Committee on House Administration|website=cha.house.gov|date=February 2006 |language=en|access-date=2018-08-13}}
• Committee on Science and Technology
• Subcommittee on Energy and Environment
• Subcommittee on Research and Science Education (Ranking Member)
• Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
• Subcommittee on Aviation
• Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation
• Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment

• Co-chair of the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) Ed Caucus
• Peak Oil Caucus{{Cite web

|url=http://kicktheoilhabit.blogspot.com/2005/12/hr-507-peak-oil-caucus-is-working-for.html

|title= HR 507: The Peak Oil Caucus is working for you!

|date=2005-12-17

}}

Image:Houseadministration.jpg at a hearing of the House Administration Committee.]]

Ehlers served as chairman of the House Administration Committee in the 109th Congress after Bob Ney resigned from the position.

A portrait of Ehlers during his service as chairman of the Administration Committee is in the House collection.{{cite web|url=http://history.house.gov/Collection/Detail/30433?ret=True|title=Vernon James Ehlers - US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives|website=history.house.gov|access-date=17 August 2017}}

Ehlers was a moderate Republican. According to the National Journal, in 2006 his votes split 50-50 between "liberal" and "conservative." While strongly anti-abortion and supportive of lowering taxes, he was willing to break with his party on environmental and government spending issues. He was a member of the Republican Main Street Partnership and Republicans for Environmental Protection. He was the only member of the Michigan Congressional delegation of either party to vote to raise fuel economy standards for automobiles in 2001{{cite web

|url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2001/roll311.xml|title=Final vote results for Roll Call 311|website=clerk.house.gov|access-date=5 October 2023}} and 2005.{{cite web|url=https://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll121.xml|title=Final vote results for Roll Call 121

|website=clerk.house.gov|access-date=5 October 2023}}

Ehlers was a staunch advocate of a federal prohibition of online poker. In 2006 he cosponsored H.R. 4411, the Goodlatte-Leach Internet Gambling Prohibition Act{{cite web|url=http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:h.r.04411:|title=Thomas (Library of Congress): HR 4411|access-date=17 August 2017|archive-date=25 November 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081125231725/http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:h.r.04411:|url-status=dead}} and H.R. 4777, the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act.{{cite web|url=http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:h.r.04777:|title=Thomas (Library of Congress): HR 4777|access-date=17 August 2017|archive-date=18 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141018013459/http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:h.r.04777:|url-status=dead}}

Owing to his votes in favor of the Federal Marriage Amendment in both 2004 and 2006, as well as his votes against hate crimes legislation and prohibiting job discrimination based on sexual orientation, Ehlers was given a 0% rating by the Human Rights Campaign, indicating a voting record generally opposed to gay rights. However, in December 2010, Ehlers was one of fifteen Republican House members to vote in favor of repealing the United States military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban on openly gay service members,Chris Geidner, [http://www.metroweekly.com/poliglot/2010/12/breaking-house-passes-dadt-rep.html House Passes DADT Repeal Bill] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131021205547/http://www.metroweekly.com/poliglot/2010/12/breaking-house-passes-dadt-rep.html |date=October 21, 2013 }}, Metro Weekly (December 15, 2010),[http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/votes/111/house/2/638 House Vote 638 – Repeals 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160118070035/http://politics.nytimes.com/congress/votes/111/house/2/638 |date=2016-01-18 }}, New York Times (December 15, 2010){{cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2010/roll638.xml|title=Final vote results for Roll Call 1638

|website=clerk.house.gov|access-date=5 October 2023}} and one of eight Republicans to vote for the DREAM Act.{{cite web

|url=http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2010/roll625.xml|title=Final vote results for Roll Call 1625|website=clerk.house.gov|access-date=5 October 2023}}

{{See also|2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Michigan#District 3|2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Michigan#District 3}}

In 1993 Ehlers won a special election for the 3rd District, which had been vacant since Congressman Paul B. Henry died six months into his fifth term. He won a full term in 1994 and was re-elected six times with little significant Democratic opposition. Ehlers retired from Congress in 2010.{{cite web|url=http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/mi03_ehlers/retirement.html |title=Congressman Vern Ehlers Announces Retirement |date=February 10, 2010 |access-date=15 February 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304164009/http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/mi03_ehlers/retirement.html |archive-date=March 4, 2010 }}

• {{cite journal

| last1 = V. J. Ehlers and A. Gallagher

| title = Electron Excitation of the Calcium 4227-Å Resonance Line

| journal = Physical Review A

| volume = 7

| pages = 1573–1585

| year = 1973

| url = http://link.aps.org/abstract/PRA/v7/p1573

| doi = 10.1103/PhysRevA.7.1573

| issn = 1050-2947

| first1 = Vernon| last2 = Gallagher| first2 =Alan | issue = 5

| bibcode = 1973PhRvA...7.1573E

}}

• {{cite journal

| last1 = V. J. Ehlers, Y. Kabasakal, H. A. Shugart, O. Tezer

| last2 = Kabasakal

| first2 = Yurdanur

| last3 = Shugart

| first3 = Howard

| last4 = Tezer

| first4 = Orhan| title = Hyperfine Structure of 67Ga and 72Ga

| journal = Physical Review

| volume = 176

| pages = 25–42

| year = 1968

| url = http://link.aps.org/abstract/PR/v176/p25

| doi = 10.1103/PhysRev.176.25

| issn = 0031-899X

| first1 =Vernon | issue = 1

| bibcode = 1968PhRv..176...25E

}}

• {{cite journal

| last1 = V. J. Ehlers, T. R. Fowler, H. A. Shugart

| last2 = Fowler

| first2 = Thomas

| last3 = Shugart

| first3 = Howard| title = Nuclear Magnetic Moment of 85Rb: Resolving a Discrepancy

| journal = Physical Review

| volume = 167

| issue = 4

| pages = 1062–1064

| year = 1968

| url = http://link.aps.org/abstract/PR/v167/p1062

| doi = 10.1103/PhysRev.167.1062

| issn = 0031-899X

| first1 =Vernon | bibcode = 1968PhRv..167.1062E

}}

• {{cite journal

| last1 = V. J. Ehlers, H. A. Shugart

| last2 = Shugart

| first2 = Howard| title = Hyperfine-Structure Separations and Nuclear Moments of Gallium-68

| journal = Physical Review

| volume = 127

| issue = 2

| pages = 529–536

| year = 1962

| url = http://link.aps.org/abstract/PR/v127/p529

| doi = 10.1103/PhysRev.127.529

| issn = 0031-899X

| first1 =Vernon | bibcode = 1962PhRv..127..529E

}}

• {{cite journal

| last1 = V. J. Ehlers, W. A. Nierenberg, H. A. Shugart

| last2 = Nierenberg

| first2 = W.

| last3 = Shugart

| first3 = H.| title = Nuclear Spin of Gallium-70

| journal = Physical Review

| volume = 125

| issue = 6

| pages = 2008–2012

| year = 1962

| url = http://link.aps.org/abstract/PR/v125/p2008

| doi = 10.1103/PhysRev.125.2008

| issn = 0031-899X

| first1 =V. | bibcode = 1962PhRv..125.2008E

| s2cid = 120163937

}}

• {{cite journal

| last1 = Ehlers

| title = Science Education and Our Nation's Future

| journal = BioScience

| volume = 50

| issue = 9

| pages = 731

|date=September 2000

| url = http://www.bioone.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&page=731&volume=50&issn=0006-3568&issue=9&ct=1

| doi = 10.1641/0006-3568(2000)050[0731:SEAONS]2.0.CO;2

| issn = 0006-3568

| first1 = Congressman Vernon J. | doi-access = free

}}

• {{cite journal

| last1 = Ehlers

| title = The Future of U.S. Science Policy

| journal = Science

| volume = 279

| issue = 5349

| pages = 302a–302

|date=January 1998

| doi = 10.1126/science.279.5349.302a

| first1 = V. J. | bibcode = 1998Sci...279..302E

| s2cid = 154533319

}}

{{Reflist}}

• [http://www.ehlers.org/ Vern Ehlers for U.S. Congress] official campaign site
• {{CongLinks | congbio=e000092 | votesmart=26907 | fec=H4MI03045 | congress= }}
• {{C-SPAN|33616}}

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{{s-ttl|title=Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
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{{s-ttl|title=Chairman of the House Administration Committee|years=2006–2007}}

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{{US House Administration chairs}}

{{U.S. Michigan Representatives}}

{{Peak oil}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ehlers, Vern}}

Category:1934 births

Category:2017 deaths

Category:American Calvinist and Reformed Christians

Category:Calvin University alumni

Category:Calvin University faculty

Category:County commissioners in Michigan

Category:Republican Party members of the Michigan House of Representatives

Category:Republican Party Michigan state senators

Category:Politicians from Grand Rapids, Michigan

Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni

Category:American members of the Christian Reformed Church in North America

Category:People from Pipestone, Minnesota

Category:Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Michigan

Category:21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives

Category:20th-century members of the Michigan Legislature