Clifford Miller

Clifford J. Miller, 88, died Sunday, January 27, 2013, at Penn Hall in Chambersburg.
He was born April 7, 1924, in Duluth, Minnesota, the son of the late Henry Miller and Bregetta Furlong Miller. He had one brother and one sister, who preceded him in death. He married Audrey Kolowrat in Kendall, Wisconsin, in 1947. He is survived by nine children, 29 grandchildren, and 20 great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by Audrey, son Donald, and grandsons James and Christopher Sinclair.

During World War II, he served in the Pacific with the First Marine Division. He made the landing on Okinawa, and was wounded during the battle there. He was awarded the Purple Heart and other medals. Cliff earned a BA at the University of Minnesota, an MS at Syracuse University, and a PhD at American University, all on the GI Bill. He earned a diploma at the National War College in Washington, D.C, in 1966, where he was president of his class.

He worked for the Federal Government in Washington from 1949 to 1979, beginning in the Rural Electrification Administration from 1949 to 1955, where he served in the budget office. From 1955 to 1968, Cliff worked in the Bureau of the Budget (now Office of Management and Budget), part of the Executive Office of the President, primarily on Defense logistics. During his last year at the Bureau, he developed long-range forecasts of overall federal spending, a new activity then. In 1961-62, Cliff was detailed to the House Appropriations Committee for a special study, and in 1966 he was assigned to the White House for several months for a Vietnam project.

From 1968 to 1979, as Deputy Comptroller of the Department of Defense, he was responsible for developing budget and financial policies, the Defense Budget Manual, and for determining annual budget ceilings for each military service and Defense agency. He handled communications with Congress during the authorization and appropriation cycles. He introduced methods for dealing with inflation in defense budgeting. He was the principal author of The Economics of Defense Spending, a book which was widely read during the peace-dividend controversies following the war in Vietnam. He helped implement the Congressional Budget Act and other major changes, and served with many study groups, including the one which developed the proposals for ending the draft. He often appeared before congressional committees, sometimes as chief witness. On three occasions, he was awarded the Defense Distinguished Civilian Service Medal, the highest award which can be earned by a civilian employee of the Department of Defense.

After retiring from the Federal government, Cliff served in Wisconsin state government from 1979 to 1987, developing major changes in the state’s unemployment compensation program. Cliff and Audrey came to the Chambersburg area in 1989, and moved to Luther Ridge in 1999. Cliff moved to Penn Hall in 2012.

In his leisure time, Cliff wrote the lyrics for gridiron-type musical spoofs of the goings-on in Washington, and he enjoyed reading about history, politics, and military and government affairs. Cliff and Audrey traveled extensively, including several trips to Europe, to see the world and to keep up with their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. Cliff had fond memories of each of his offspring, which he loved to recall with them. They are left with memories of the “Made-up stories,” which Cliff loved to tell at bedtime.

Cliff was a member of Corpus Christi Church, was active for many years in the Institute for Retired Persons at Wilson College, and participated in many activities at Luther Ridge. For several years, Audrey and Cliff found great enjoyment in studies of the history of their families, and they published several family stories which they shared with friends and family.

A Memorial Mass will be offered on Friday, February 1, 2013 at 11 AM in Corpus Christi Catholic Church, 320 Philadelphia Ave. Chambersburg, PA, where Rev. Fr. James R. O’Brien will officiate. Interment will follow in Parklawns Memorial Gardens. Arrangements are entrusted to Thomas L. Geisel Funeral Home and Cremation Center, Chambersburg, PA.