[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 192 (Monday, December 12, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7092-S7093]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                      Tribute to Lonnie Stephenson

  Madam President, next month, the pride and joy of Rock Island, IL, 
and my good friend Lonnie Stephenson is stepping down from his post as 
president of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. While 
Lonnie's leadership will be missed, he leaves behind a legacy of 
amazing service and commitment to working families.
  Lonnie is the son of factory workers from Moline, IL. He knows as 
well as anyone the challenges working families face. He saw right 
through the failed practices and policies of trickle-down economics, 
which led to a shrinking middle class and crumbling infrastructure. 
Only the rich got richer.
  Lonnie started off as an apprentice wireman with the electricians, 
and even then, he knew the value of a union. He rose through the ranks 
of IBEW Local 145, becoming vice president before taking over as 
business manager in 1991.
  All the while, he fought to make things better for families in his 
home area of the Quad Cities through safe working conditions, fair 
wages and benefits, and a secure retirement. He spent countless hours 
organizing and grew his local from 700 to more than 1,100 members. He 
gave back to his community in so many different ways--organizing annual 
blood drives, encouraging community service among his members, 
supporting the Red Cross when historic flooding hit the Quad Cities.
  I remember joining Lonnie for Labor Day parades in the Quad Cities, 
where his standing in the community and respect of his fellow union 
members was legendary.
  A good friend of mine, former Senator Paul Wellstone of Minnesota, 
who tragically died in a plane crash 20 years ago, used to say, ``We 
all do better when we all do better.'' No one has embodied this policy 
more than Lonnie Stephenson throughout his nearly five decades of 
service to the labor movement.
  Here is the good news: Lonnie steps down knowing we have one of the 
most pro-union Presidents in history carrying on his legacy to improve 
the lives of working families. Lonnie has been by President Biden's 
side from the start. Their special relationship was evident last May in 
Chicago when President Biden became the first sitting President to 
address an IBEW national convention. I was glad to be on the program.

  Last year, when President Biden signed the infrastructure bill, a 
historic investment, I saw a familiar face at the signing. Lonnie was 
right there at the White House, along with 11 other IBEW members--a 
reflection of his dedication to creating jobs. But it is not just the 
bipartisan infrastructure law; Lonnie was a driving force on many more 
pieces of historic legislation, from the CHIPS and Science Act, to the 
Inflation Reduction Act, to saving the pensions of millions of union 
members and retirees in the American Rescue Plan.
  These groundbreaking victories were no guarantee. Lonnie faced some 
daunting challenges during his tenure as president of the IBEW. The 
former Illinois Governor supported an agenda of unrelenting hostility 
to unions. That Governor is gone now, but he spearheaded a litigation 
effort that resulted in a Supreme Court decision overturning 40 years 
of law that rigged the economy against working families. And former 
President Trump made it clear he favored special interests at the 
expense of many of Lonnie's workers and their families.
  Then Lonnie was faced with a global pandemic that created an 
unprecedented economic crisis that shuttered businesses and created 
massive unemployment. For most, it would have been hard to see a silver 
lining, but not for Lonnie. He faces challenges head-on.
  He stood up for working families and organized thousands of new IBEW 
members. He made sure that his union's new membership was reflective of 
the community--strong, diverse--with an initiative to expand membership 
to traditionally underrepresented populations, like women and people of 
color, and we are seeing these gains across the country. Approval of 
labor unions is at its highest point in the last 57 years, and union 
election petitions increased 53 percent last year. That is no accident; 
it is because of the hard work of people like Lonnie. The workers are 
fortunate to have him on their side.
  More recently, Lonnie has worked to prepare IBEW members for the jobs 
and industries of the future. One example--the bipartisan 
infrastructure law. Lonnie put a provision in there that includes $7.5 
billion for construction of

[[Page S7093]]

national electric vehicle charging networks built with union labor. In 
Illinois, IBEW is leading work with community colleges and high schools 
to train the next generation of workers.
  Illinois and the entire Nation have been lucky to have had a champion 
of working families like Lonnie Stephenson. I am going to miss him 
working in a formal capacity, and I feel fortunate to consider him a 
friend. Loretta and I wish him a long and joyous retirement with his 
wife Dawn and their children, Stacey, Katie, Marty, Jacob, and Andrew.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.