[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 11] [Senate] [Page 15356] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]TRIBUTE TO KATHY A. RUFFING Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, I take a moment to recognize someone who has provided invaluable assistance to the Budget Committee for many years. After 25 years of service at the Congressional Budget Office, or CBO, as we call it, Kathy A. Ruffing will be retiring at the end of this month. During her tenure at CBO, Ms. Ruffing earned a well-deserved reputation for tirelessly producing high-quality analyses on a wide range of topics including interest costs and the Federal debt, Federal pay, immigration, and Social Security. In particular, Members and their staffs came to depend on Kathy's thorough knowledge of the Social Security Program as they developed proposals for addressing the program's financial status and benefit structure. She also made major contributions to CBO's reports on the economic and budget outlook and the reestimates of the President's budget. Her analyses always displayed those characteristics of CBO's reports that we in the Congress most value--impartiality, clarity, and comprehensiveness. In fact, Kathy was a principal architect of the formats of many tables on which the Budget Committee has come to rely so heavily. The Congress will feel the loss of a dedicated public servant who selflessly worked extraordinary hours in helping us advance the legislative process. We will miss Kathy's expertise and counsel. I know that I speak for all of the Members who have served on the Budget Committees of the House and Senate during the past 25 years and all of our staff when I express our gratitude to Kathy for all of her contributions to the legislative process. ____________________