Debra Ann Jacobson

Debra Jacobson One of John Dingell's "Junkyard Dogs", dies at age 69 Debra Ann Jacobson, a lawyer who worked on Capitol Hill for nearly 20 years and specialized in energy and environmental issues, died on September 15, 2021 at her family home in McLean, Virginia. She was 69 years old. The cause was complications from liver cancer, said her husband, David Jacobson.

Ms. Jacobson started her career as an intern for Rep. Bob Eckhardt (D-Tex) and advanced to become his legislative assistant and, later, one of his investigative counsels on the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. She continued in this later position for 14 years after Rep. John D. Dingell assumed Chairmanship of the Subcommittee in 1981. On August 26, 1991, U.S. News and World Report ran an article on Dingell that dubbed him "Congress's most feared Democrat." The article detailed the skills of Dingell's investigative "junkyard dogs," including Debra Jacobson, "a lawyer who knows more about the EPA than most of its bosses." The most noteworthy investigation of Ms. Jacobson's career involved her work as a member of the legal team that overcame President Reagan's claim of executive privilege over Superfund documents in 1983 and led to the resignation of the Administrator and more than 20 high-ranking officials for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). After her career on Capitol Hill, Ms. Jacobson worked at the U.S. Department of Energy on clean energy and other issues. Following her retirement from public service in 2000, she co-taught an Energy Law course for 12 years at George Washington University and engaged in private consulting. Debra (Denkensohn) Jacobson was born in Kingston, New York on March 20, 1952. She graduated from the University of Rochester in 1974 and from The George Washington University Law School in 1977. She lived in Northern Virginia from 1977 until her death.

Ms. Jacobson married David Jacobson in 1975. In addition to her husband of McLean, Virginia, survivors include one son, Andrew Jacobson (of Montclair, New Jersey) and his wife as well as one grandson. She also is survived by one sister, Sheri Denkensohn, and a brother, Michael Denkensohn. In 1981, Ms. Jacobson was one of the co-founders of the Women's Council on Energy and the Environment, a women's networking and educational organization, that still exists today. For several years, she served in leadership roles in the local and state Sierra Club groups. From 2017 to 2020, Ms. Jacobson also served as a member of the Fairfax County Environmental Quality Advisory Council, and she played a key role in convincing the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors to install solar arrays on more than 100 county buildings and schools. She also worked on activities to promote voter registration and early voting and to assure voter protection in numerous Federal and Virginia elections.

A funeral service will be held at the chapel at National Memorial Park, 7482 Lee Highway, Falls Church, VA, 22042 on Monday, September 20 at 10:15 a.m.

The family asks that everyone attending the service be fully vaccinated and masked for the duration of the service because there are multiple immunocompromised individuals in the immediate family. A graveside service will follow.

Donations may be made in Debra's memory to https://bit.ly/3h7lNnE (1) the Energy Law and Policy Fund at The George Washington University Law School (Director, Office of Development, GW Law, 2000 H Street, NW, Washington, DC 20052); (2) The Rondout Valley Scholarship Fund, Esther and Charles Denkensohn Scholarship Fund (P.O. Box 96, Stone Ridge, NY 12484); or (3) The Rondout Valley Education Foundation (P.O. Box 3, Stone Ridge, NY 12484).