Bill Archer facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Bill Archer
Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee
In office January 3, 1995 – January 3, 2001
Preceded by	Sam Gibbons
Succeeded by	Bill Thomas
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 7th district
In office January 3, 1971 – January 3, 2001
Preceded by	George H. W. Bush
Succeeded by	John Culberson
Member of the Texas House of Representatives from the 22nd district
In office January 10, 1967 – January 12, 1971
Preceded by	Wallace H. Miller
Succeeded by	district seat abolished
Constituency	Seat 5
Member of the Hunters Creek Village City Council
In office 1955–1962
Personal details
Born	William Reynolds Archer Jr. (1928-03-22) March 22, 1928 (age 97) Houston, Texas, U.S.
Political party	Republican (after 1967)
Other political affiliations	Democratic (before 1967)
Spouse	Sharon Sawyer
Education	University of Texas, Austin (BBA, LLB)
Military service
Branch/service	United States Air Force
Years of service	1951-1953
Rank	Captain
Battles/wars	Korean War

William Reynolds Archer Jr. (born March 22, 1928) is a retired American lawyer and politician. He is often known as Bill Archer. He served in the Texas House of Representatives for four years. Later, he represented Texas in the United States House of Representatives for 30 years. For his last six years, he led an important group called the House Ways and Means Committee.

Early Life and Education

Bill Archer was born in Houston, Texas. He went to St. Thomas High School. After that, he studied at Rice University. He then moved to the University of Texas at Austin. There, he earned degrees in business and law.

After finishing law school in 1951, Archer became a lawyer in Houston. A few months later, he joined the United States Air Force. He served as a captain during the Korean War. After his military service ended in 1953, Archer worked as a business president until 1963.

Political Career

Archer started his political journey early. From 1955 to 1962, he was a councilman for Hunters Creek Village. He even served as the temporary mayor.

In 1967, Archer became a member of the Texas House of Representatives. He served there until 1971. That year, he was elected to the United States House of Representatives. He took over the seat from George H. W. Bush, who later became president. Archer won his first election with a lot of votes. He was reelected 14 times and rarely faced strong opponents. His district became very supportive of the Republican Party.

From 1995 to 2001, Archer was the chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means. This committee handles important issues like taxes and trade. As chairman, he was known for being very careful with government money. He believed the government should not take too much money from citizens. He worked to reduce the amount of money the government collected through taxes.

In 1999, Archer played a key role in giving China "normal trade relations" status. This meant that trade between the U.S. and China would be easier. He worked with then-President Bill Clinton on this. The goal was to help American farmers and businesses sell more products to China. This change helped open up a huge market for U.S. goods.

Archer decided not to run for reelection in 2000. He retired from politics on January 2, 2001.

Life After Politics

Bill Archer with Dick Armey at a meeting in 2004

After leaving politics in 2001, Bill Archer stayed involved in public life. He continued to live in Washington, D.C.

He is the namesake of a special program called the Archer Fellowship Program. This program helps students from the University of Texas System study and intern in Washington, D.C. It gives them a chance to learn about the nation's political center.

Archer also served as chairman of the International Conservation Caucus Foundation from 2006 to 2009. Today, he works as a Senior Policy Analyst at PricewaterhouseCoopers. He also gives talks as a guest lecturer sometimes.

See also

• List of American politicians who switched parties in office