Representative George Cornelius Wortley

George Cornelius Wortley (December 8, 1926 – January 21, 2014) was an American banker, publisher, and Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New York, serving four terms from 1981 to 1989. Over the course of his career he combined business leadership with public service, contributing to the legislative process during a significant period in late twentieth-century American political and economic history.

Wortley was born in Syracuse, New York, on December 8, 1926. He came of age during the Great Depression and World War II, experiences that shaped his later interest in finance, public policy, and national security. During World War II he served in the Merchant Marine Reserve and the United States Naval Reserve, with sea duty in the North Atlantic, Pacific, and Philippine theaters of operation. This early military service provided him with firsthand exposure to global affairs and maritime operations at a formative time in his life.

After the war, Wortley pursued higher education at Syracuse University, from which he graduated in 1948. While at Syracuse he was a brother of the Gamma-Iota chapter of the Kappa Sigma fraternity, reflecting an early engagement with campus and civic life. His university education, combined with his wartime experience, laid the groundwork for his later roles in publishing, banking, and government.

Prior to his government service, Wortley established himself in the publishing and financial sectors in upstate New York. He became president of the Manlius Publishing Corporation, a company that published seven weekly newspapers in upstate New York. He led this enterprise for many years and continued in that capacity until the newspapers were sold in 1992. In banking, he served on the advisory board of the Bank of New York for five years and then on the advisory board of its successor, Norstar Bank. Beyond these roles, he served on numerous civic, state, and national boards and foundations, including the board of Project ACTA and Kings Point’s Government Affairs Council. His business responsibilities took him to 35 nations, giving him broad international exposure that would later inform his work in Congress.

Wortley was elected to Congress in 1980 as a member of the Republican Party and took office on January 3, 1981, representing a New York district in the United States House of Representatives. He was reelected to three additional terms, serving continuously until January 3, 1989. His tenure in Congress thus spanned four terms during a period marked by significant developments in domestic economic policy and international finance. In the 1986 election he successfully ran for reelection against Democratic challenger Rosemary S. Pooler, underscoring his continued support among constituents. Throughout his service, he participated actively in the democratic process and represented the interests of his district while engaging in national legislative debates.

Within the House of Representatives, Wortley became particularly influential on financial and banking issues. He served as the leading minority member of the House Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs Committee, where he was actively involved in working with European, Latin American, and Pacific Rim leaders on financial and development bank matters. His committee work reflected both his professional background in banking and his international experience. He also served on the House Ethics Committee and the House Select Committee on Aging. In the latter role he was instrumental in the development and passage of legislation enacting the first federal program to provide reverse mortgages to seniors, a significant policy innovation aimed at helping older Americans access home equity while remaining in their homes.

After leaving Congress in 1989, Wortley remained active in public affairs, consulting, and policy advisory work. He was a director of Dierman, Wortley & Zola, Inc. (DWZ), Morgan Casner Associates, a political and public affairs consulting firm, and Washington Solutions, which provided consulting on public policy and financial strategies. He also served on the advisory board of National Security Studies, a U.S. Department of Defense executive development program, reflecting his continued engagement with defense and strategic issues. In addition, he worked as a senior policy advisor with The Carmen Group and with the Financial Institutions Services Corp. (FISC), roles that allowed him to draw on his legislative and financial expertise to advise clients on regulatory and policy matters.

George Cornelius Wortley died at a hospice in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on January 21, 2014, at the age of 87. He was later buried at the Congressional Cemetery in Washington, D.C., a resting place for many figures in the nation’s legislative history. His career spanned military service in World War II, leadership in publishing and banking, four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from New York between 1981 and 1989, and subsequent decades as a consultant and policy advisor, reflecting a lifelong engagement with public service, finance, and national policy.