[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 187 (Friday, December 7, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S15030]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       REMEMBERING UTAH SENATOR 
                                ED MAYNE

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I rise today to speak in honor of Utah 
State Senator Ed Mayne, who, after a 9-month battle with lung cancer, 
passed away on the morning of Sunday, November 25. I speak on behalf of 
many citizens of my State who, over the years, had grown to respect 
Senator Mayne's support for American workers and his dedication to the 
State of Utah.
  Senator Mayne was born in Magna, UT, in 1945. He graduated from 
Granger High School in West Valley City and played football for 2 years 
at Snow College in Ephraim, UT. In the mid-1960s, he got a job working 
on the track gang for Kennecott Copper in the Bingham Canyon mine. It 
was then that Senator Mayne became involved in organized labor.
  In his early years at Kennecott, he became active in the local 
chapter of the United Steel Workers of America, quickly becoming the 
president of Local 485. In 1977, he became president of the entire 
chapter and, later that year, at the age of 32, he was named president 
of the AFL-CIO of Utah. He was, at that time, the youngest AFL-CIO 
chapter president in the country.
  In 1994, Ed was elected to serve in the Utah State senate and was in 
the midst of his fourth term when he died. Throughout his time in the 
senate, he remained dedicated to improving the lives of workers and, 
while he had strong personal ties to organized labor, he was committed 
to serving both union and nonunion workers alike. He also devoted 
himself to serving poor people in Utah, working to, among other things, 
maintain State Medicaid benefits and to protect low-income borrowers 
from the exploitation of predatory lenders.
  Ed Mayne was somewhat of an anomaly in Utah. He was a tried and true 
Democrat in one of the most Republican States in the country. However, 
even the most conservative Utah Republicans never doubted Ed's 
convictions, even when we disagreed with his position on certain 
issues. He left an indelible mark on the State of Utah and was a good 
example for all of us, Republicans and Democrats, who aspire to serve 
the public.
  I had known Senator Mayne for his entire career in the Utah State 
senate. We disagreed with each other on many occasions, but there was 
never any animosity or hatred, just respect and friendship. We also 
agreed on several things and I cherished the opportunities I had to 
talk to him about pressing matters facing the State of Utah and sharing 
ideas of how to fix them.
  The sentiments shared at Ed's funeral summarize our relationship very 
well when the eulogizer mentioned that Ed and I were very close friends 
and we liked each other very much. That is truly the way I felt about 
Ed.
  I express my deepest condolences to Senator Mayne's family and my 
thanks for his years of service to the great State of Utah. I am 
grateful to have known such an outstanding public servant.

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