Joseph P. Kolter

Joe Kolter
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 4th district
In office
January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1993
Preceded byCharles F. Dougherty
Succeeded byRon Klink
Member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
from the 14th district
In office
January 7, 1969 – November 30, 1982
Preceded byConstituency established
Succeeded byBarry L. Alderette
Personal details
Born
Joseph Paul Kolter

(1926-09-03)September 3, 1926
McDonald, Ohio, U.S.
DiedSeptember 8, 2019(2019-09-08) (aged 93)
Hershey, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseDorothy
Children3
EducationGeneva College (BS)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1944–1947

Joseph Paul "Joe" Kolter (September 3, 1926 – September 8, 2019) was an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives for Pennsylvania from 1983 to 1993.

Early life and career

Kolter was born in McDonald, Ohio.[1] He graduated from New Brighton High School in 1944 and Geneva College in 1950.

He served in the United States Army Air Forces from 1944 to 1947.[2]

He was a New Brighton city councilman from 1961 to 1965, and a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1969 to 1982.[1]

Congress

A Democrat, Kolter was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1982, defeating incumbent Eugene Atkinson, a Republican who had been elected twice as a Democrat, but switched parties in 1981. He was reelected four times, before he was defeated in the Democratic primary by Ron Klink in 1992.[2]

Kolter was implicated in the Congressional Post Office scandal that also ensnared Ways and Means Committee chairman Dan Rostenkowski of Illinois. He pleaded guilty to conspiring with the House Postmaster to embezzle $9,300 in taxpayer funds and received a six-month prison sentence.[2][3][4] Kolter was also fined $20,000 and ordered to pay restitution for the amount converted.[5]

Death

Kolter died on September 8, 2019, at age 93, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.[2][6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b KOLTER, Joseph Paul, (1926 - ). Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
  2. ^ a b c d J.D. Prose, Former state lawmaker, U.S. Rep. Joe Kolter dead at 93 Archived 2019-12-18 at the Wayback Machine, Beaver County Times (September 13, 2019).
  3. ^ Michael York, Ex-Aide to Kolter Indicted in House Post Office Probe, Washington Post (November 25, 1992).
  4. ^ Ex-Congressman Gets 6 Months in Prison, Associated Press (August 1, 1996).
  5. ^ CQ Guide to Congress, Vol. 1 (7th ed. CQ Press), p. 1189.
  6. ^ Joseph P. Kolter obituary
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Pennsylvania's 4th congressional district
1983–1993 		Succeeded by