[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 194 (Wednesday, December 14, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S7196]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                          TRIBUTE TO AL JAEGER

 Mr. CRAMER. Mr. President, I want to honor the 30 years of 
distinguished service of a remarkable North Dakota public servant who 
is retiring from office at the end of December.
  Alvin Jaeger took office as North Dakota's 14th secretary of state in 
January 1993, when I was the executive director of the North Dakota 
Republican Party. That year, he and newly elected Governor Ed Schafer 
became the second and third Republicans to be voted in to a State 
office after several years of Democrats occupying them. Today, all 
State office holders are Republicans, the significance of which is not 
lost on neither Al nor me.
  A Beulah, ND, native, Al came to the Secretary of State's office 
having previously served in the North Dakota National Army Guard and 
having been a business analyst for the Mobil Oil Corporation, a Fargo 
real estate broker, and a high school teacher in western North Dakota.
  In his 30 years in office, Al has brought wisdom, intelligence, and 
dedication to everything he has undertaken. He has served on the State 
Board of University and School Lands, the North Dakota Emergency 
Commission, and the State Historical Society of North Dakota, making 
his participation in the work of these boards a top priority. Al has 
also been active in the National Association of Secretaries of State 
and most recently was a member of its executive committee.
  When first elected, Al oversaw the development of the office's first 
website and subsequently supervised the ever evolving modernization and 
digitization of services and information that we now expect to be found 
online. He led in updating North Dakota's election code and developing 
more sophisticated tracking of election results. He has become the 
``go-to'' authority on issues related to election security and uniform 
voter identification. And he and his staff have set a high standard for 
election integrity in North Dakota not enjoyed by many other States.
  One of the projects Al championed and which will be among the 
greatest legacies of his years in office is the North Dakota Blue Book. 
This publication traces back to the Territorial Legislature in 1887, 2 
years before North Dakota became a State, with early titles more 
commonly referred to as ``legislative manuals or handbooks.'' They were 
put out sporadically until Al came to office in 1993, when he committed 
to resuming a biannual publication of the book. Over these past 30 
years, each book has provided a comprehensive chronology of all current 
and State office holders, a summary of significant laws passed during 
that biennium's legislative session, as well as historical features and 
data about the State. With each edition providing information about 
North Dakota not readily available elsewhere, the value of the 
commitment by the Secretary of State's office to regularly publish 
these books cannot be overstated.
  When Al Jaeger retires on December 31, he will become the second 
longest serving secretary of state in North Dakota, overseeing and 
codifying the laws of 15 legislative sessions. It is going to take a 
long time for the impact of his years of service to be adequately 
measured. On behalf of all North Dakotans, I thank him for his years of 
service as secretary of state. I congratulate him on his well-earned 
retirement and wish him many years of health and happiness in the 
future.

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