View source for Ralph Regula

{{Short description|American politician (1924–2017)}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name          = Ralph Regula
|image         = Ralph Regula congressional portrait.jpg
|state         = [[Ohio]]
|district      = {{ushr|OH|16|16th}}
|term_start    = January 3, 1973
|term_end      = January 3, 2009
|predecessor   = [[Frank Bow]]
|successor     = [[John Boccieri]]
|state_senate1 = Ohio
|district1     = [[Ohio's 29th senatorial district|29th]]
|term_start1   = January 3, 1967
|term_end1     = January 3, 1973
|predecessor1  = Constituency established
|successor1    = [[Richard Reichel]]
|birth_name    = Ralph Straus Regula
|birth_date    = {{birth date|1924|12|3}}
|birth_place   = [[Beach City, Ohio]], U.S.
|death_date    = {{death date and age|2017|7|19|1924|12|3}}
|death_place   = [[Bethlehem Township, Stark County, Ohio|Bethlehem Township, Ohio]], U.S.
|party         = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
|spouse        = Mary Rogusky
|education     = [[University of Mount Union]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])<br>William McKinley School of Law ([[Bachelor of Laws|LLB]])
|allegiance    = {{flag|United States|1912}}
|branch        = {{flag|United States Navy}}
|serviceyears  = 1944–1946
|battles       = [[World War II]]
|module        = {{Listen|pos=center|embed=yes|filename=Rep. Ralph Regula Speaks on FY1991 Appropriations for the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State.ogg|title=Ralph Regula's voice|type=speech|description=Regula speaks on FY1991 appropriations for the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State<br/>Recorded June 20, 1990}}
}}
'''Ralph Straus Regula''' (December 3, 1924 – July 19, 2017) was an American politician from [[Ohio]]. A member of the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]], he served in the [[Ohio House of Representatives]], the [[Ohio State Senate]] and the [[United States House of Representatives]]. He represented [[Ohio's 16th congressional district]] for 18 terms from 1973 to 2009. In the [[110th Congress]] (2007–2009), he was the second longest serving Republican member of the House of Representatives (after [[Bill Young (Florida politician)|Bill Young]] of Florida).

==Early life==
Regula was born in [[Beach City, Ohio|Beach City]], Ohio on December 3, 1924. He served in the [[United States Navy]] during [[World War II]]. After his service, he attended [[Mount Union College]] using his [[GI Bill]]. He met his wife, the former Mary Rogusky, while at Mount Union. After graduating in 1948, he became a schoolteacher while studying at the William McKinley College of Law in Canton.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mountunion.edu/remembering-ralph-regula-48 |title=Remembering Ralph Regula '48 |publisher=University Of Mount Union |access-date=2018-05-13}}</ref> He was an [[Episcopal Church (United States)|Episcopalian]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.mlive.com/wrightstuff/2006/12/religion_in_the_house_by_state.html|title=Religion in the House by state and by faith|last=Whiteside|first=Mary Ann Chick|date=2006-12-16|work=M Live|access-date=2024-07-31}}</ref>

==Career==
He was elected to the [[Ohio Board of Education]] and served on that body from 1960 to 1964. He was elected to the [[Ohio House of Representatives]] in 1964 and served one term before winning a seat in the [[Ohio State Senate|State Senate]].<ref name="BioGuide">{{cite web |url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=r000141 |title=Regula, Ralph Straus |work=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress |access-date=2018-05-13}}</ref>

In 1972, President [[Richard Nixon]] nominated longtime 16th district Congressman [[Frank T. Bow]] as the [[United States Ambassador to Panama]], which opened the door for Regula to run for the seat.<ref name="Bow">{{cite web |url=https://mobile.nytimes.com/1972/11/14/archives/rep-frankt-bow-0f-ohio-dies-at-7i-leader-of-budgetcutting-bloc.html |title=Rep. Frank T. Bow of Ohio Dies at 71 |work=New York Times |date=1972-11-14}}</ref> Regula went on to win 18 terms in Congress.

Regula was ranking minority member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee for Labor, Health, Human Services and Education funding in the 110th Congress. The subcommittee's budget, the largest discretionary domestic account, was over $140 billion. Regula, a former teacher and principal, was a Congressional leader in pushing for alternative solutions in improving reading skills, developing teacher training and increasing [[Pell Grant]] funding so that poorer and middle class students can obtain two and four year degrees. He increased by millions of dollars the amount of federal money committed to research in fighting cancer, heart disease and birth defects.<ref>{{USCongRec|2009|6362}}</ref> Regula was a member of the moderate [[Republican Main Street Partnership]] and supported stem cell research.

Regula was also a Congressional leader in alternative energy sources. He was an early champion of fuel cell technology and he has directed federal funding back to his home state, Ohio, which is recognized as a national leader in fuel cell research and development.

Beginning in 1975, Regula [[Denali naming dispute|blocked the renaming of Mount McKinley]] in [[Alaska]], named for President [[William McKinley]], to [[Denali]]. This was, in part, because [[Canton, Ohio|Canton]], McKinley's long-time hometown and resting place, fell within the boundaries of Regula's congressional district.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Lies Across America: What Our Historic Sites Get Wrong.|last=Loewen|first=James W|publisher=The New Press|year=2010|isbn=9781595586766|location=New York|page=53|oclc=811491442}}</ref> The name was eventually changed in 2015. Regula described the change as a "political stunt" by President Obama and called it "ridiculous" while also calling the President "a dictator."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/08/31/ralph-regula-denali-mckinley-obama.html|title=Obama 'thinks he is a dictator', says former Ohio congressman after Mt. McKinley name change|work=The Columbus Dispatch|access-date=August 31, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924002623/http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2015/08/31/ralph-regula-denali-mckinley-obama.html|archive-date=September 24, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref>

With his seat on the appropriations committee, he was able to use federal funds to establish and protect parks and trails in his district. He earmarked $200 million for the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area, now the [[Cuyahoga Valley National Park]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.ohio.com/akron/breaking-news/longtime-u-s-rep-ralph-regula-dies-at-92 |title=Longtime U.S. Rep. Ralph Regula dies at 92 |publisher=Akron Beacon Journal |date=2017-07-20}}</ref> In 2003, the [[Stark County, OH|Stark County]] Park District voted to rename the 25 miles of the [[Ohio and Erie Canal Towpath Trail]] within Stark County the "Congressman Ralph Regula Towpath Trail".  It was announced at the dedication of a 150-foot-long tunnel section of the trail paid by a federal grant Regula arranged.  "You really did catch me by surprise," Regula said.  The park district honored Regula for his continued support in Congress for the Ohio & Erie National Heritage Canalway.<ref name="Stark">{{Cite web|title = StarkParks: Congressman Ralph Regula Towpath Trail Park| date=4 March 2016 |url = https://starkparks.com/parks/congressman-ralph-regula-towpath-trail-park/|access-date = 2018-03-06}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cleveland19.com/story/1481654/trail-section-named-for-congressman|title=Trail section named for congressman|date=14 October 2003 |access-date=23 April 2018}}</ref>

His wife Mary helped create the [[First Ladies National Historic Site]]. After she initially raised funds to seed the museum's collection, Ralph appropriated $1.2 million to pushed development further.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://mobile.nytimes.com/2018/04/16/obituaries/mary-regula-founder-of-library-saluting-first-ladies-dies-at-91.html |title=Mary Regula, Founder of Library Saluting First Ladies, Dies at 91 |work=New York Times |date=2018-04-16}}</ref>

Regula retired from the House of Representatives when his term ended in January 2009. He was succeeded by [[John Boccieri]], a [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democrat]] from the [[Ohio General Assembly]]. After retiring from Congress, Regula [http://www.dawsonassociates.com/regula-ralph joined Dawson & Associates] in [[Washington, D.C.]] as an advisor on federal budget and permitting matters.

==See also==
* [[List of United States representatives from Ohio]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{C-SPAN|10011}}
* {{CongLinks | congbio=r000141 | votesmart= | fec=H6OH16029 | congress= }}<!--
Links formerly displayed via the CongLinks template:
* [http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.php?cid=N00003651 Financial information (federal office)] at [[Center for Responsive Politics|OpenSecrets.org]]
* [http://www.ontheissues.org/OH/Ralph_Regula.htm Issue positions and quotes] at [[On the Issues]]
* -->

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{{s-bef|before=[[Frank T. Bow]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=Member of the [[List of United States Representatives from Ohio|U.S. House of Representatives]]<br>from [[Ohio's 16th congressional district]]|years=1973–2009}}
{{s-aft|after=[[John Boccieri]]}}
{{s-end}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Regula, Ralph}}
[[Category:1924 births]]
[[Category:2017 deaths]]
[[Category:Republican Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Ohio]]
[[Category:Republican Party Ohio state senators]]
[[Category:Ohio lawyers]]
[[Category:People from Beach City, Ohio]]
[[Category:School board members in Ohio]]
[[Category:United States Navy sailors]]
[[Category:University of Mount Union alumni]]
[[Category:20th-century American lawyers]]
[[Category:20th-century American Episcopalians]]
[[Category:Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio]]
[[Category:Sigma Alpha Epsilon members]]
[[Category:21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives]]
[[Category:20th-century members of the Ohio General Assembly]]