[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 15]
[Senate]
[Page 21335]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       TRIBUTE TO TIM MASSANELLI

  Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, as we close out the year, I want to take 
today to honor the work and career of Tim Massanelli.
  Last month, Tim stepped down from his position as parliamentarian of 
the Arkansas House of Representatives, a place where he has worked 
since 1973--39 good years of valuable public service.
  When Tim first came to work for the Arkansas House of 
Representatives, things were much different than they are today. My 
longtime friend Dale Bumpers was our Governor and Richard Nixon was 
President. I was in the fourth grade.
  Upholding the mantra of citizen legislators, the Arkansas House had 
no permanent employees and only a small support system in the Bureau of 
Legislative Research. With our Nation and state modernizing, full-time 
employees were needed in the house, and Tim was in the right place at 
the right time. He was also exactly the right man for the job.
  Growing up in Pine Bluff, AR, Tim's family raised him to be civically 
engaged and active in his community-- traits he has since passed on to 
his three sons. With a background in small business and politics and an 
expertise in parliamentary procedure, Tim was a natural fit for the 
parliamentary position. However, he did not start there. His first 
session, he worked for the house soundboard. Tim, through his hard work 
and smarts and charismatic personality, transformed the office and role 
of parliamentarian. He took on the responsibility for making the house 
operations run as smoothly as possible, whether the legislature was in 
or out of session.
  Naturally, the parliamentarian advises the speaker and all 100 
members of the State's house about procedural matters. Tim did a great 
job of that over the years, but he became much more important to the 
body than that. During his time of service, 19 speakers of the house, 7 
Governors, and over 1,000 members of the Arkansas House came to rely on 
Tim for his knowledge and skills in navigating the legislative process.
  In years past, the Arkansas General Assembly was dominated by senior 
legislators with sometimes decades of experience each. When Arkansas 
adopted term limits in 1992, members could only serve three terms, so 
the constant turnover meant dramatically increased reliance on Tim's 
skills and knowledge. He established a more rigorous orientation for 
each new class of new legislators that taught them how to be good and 
effective representatives. Without his experience and insight, the 
Arkansas House and the current members would not be nearly as strong as 
they are today.
  On a personal note, let me say this about Tim Massanelli: I consider 
him a friend. When I was a 27-year-old freshman representative, I was 
determined to learn the rules, and Tim was my teacher. You know the old 
saying that there is no such thing as a dumb question. Well, I put that 
to the test a few times. But he was a mentor, a counselor, a father 
figure, and he just took care of me. Truthfully, he made himself 
available to anybody who needed anything. I suspect that same 
commitment he has to others and to the institution he loves makes him 
the best deacon Our Lady of the Holy Souls Catholic Church has ever 
had.
  He has helped me in many, many ways over the years, but I think the 
biggest favor he ever did for me was when he told me that his son Randy 
would be a good hire in the attorney general's office. We hired a lot 
of good people in that office, but everybody agrees that Randy 
Massanelli was the best hire I ever made. He is still the best hire I 
ever made. The qualities that make Randy so valuable to others were 
engrained in him by Tim Massanelli, and I bet Dottie had a little bit 
to do with that as well.
  Whether it is his sense of humor, wise counsel, or his skills in 
parliamentary procedure, I know Tim's daily presence will be missed 
around the Arkansas State House of Representatives. I wish him the best 
in his transition and thank him for his many years of service to the 
State of Arkansas.
  I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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