Join us for the annual Wayne Morse Chair lecture featuring Representative Peter DeFazio, 2023-24 Wayne Morse Chair. 

Rep. DeFazio served for 36 years as the U.S. Representative for Oregon’s 4th congressional district, making him the longest-serving member of Congress in Oregon history.

Congressman DeFazio chaired the influential House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which has jurisdiction over highways and transit, ports and water resources, railroads, aviation, economic development, and the Coast Guard. Among his many accomplishments as committee chair, he increased federal investment in America’s infrastructure by more than $550 billion. 

Rep. DeFazio previously served as the ranking member on the House Natural Resources Committee, where he focused on energy, federal lands, ocean and fisheries, and Native American issues. A native of Massachusetts and a veteran of the United States Air Force Reserve, he previously was a county commissioner in Lane County.  

Rep. DeFazio voted against and refused to accept every congressional pay raise while the government was deficit spending. Instead, he used his pay raises to fund scholarships at five southwestern Oregon community colleges.