12.20.12

Durbin Pays Tribute to Retiring Illinois State Senator on U.S. Senate Floor

Senator Jeff Schoenberg has been a dedicated public servant to his constituents in Evanston and to the people of Illinois for over 20 years

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today honored retiring Illinois State Senator Jeff Schoenberg of Evanston on his more than two decades of service in the Illinois General Assembly.  Last year, Schoenberg announced that he will not seek re-election next year instead choosing to focus on improving the lives of children and families through an expanded role advising the J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation.

 

“Jeff has been a dedicated public servant to his constituents in Evanston and to the people of Illinois for 22 years,” said Durbin.  “Since the outset of his political career, Jeff has been inspired by the likes of Congressman and federal judge Abner Mikva and U.S. Senator Paul Simon, for whom he and I both worked.  His approach to this work is made clear by something he said last year, ‘My position in the Senate is only one point of entry into public service.’  As Jeff moves into this new role, I can only say to him: thank you.” 

Full Text of Senator Durbin's Remarks as Prepared are below

Senator Richard J. Durbin

Retirement of Illinois State Senator Jeffrey M. Schoenberg

December 20, 2012

 

I rise today to honor my friend, Illinois State Senator Jeff Schoenberg, on his more than two decades of service in the Illinois General Assembly. 

 

Jeff was elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in 1990 at the age of 30.  He served six terms there before being elected to the Illinois Senate in 2003, where he rose through the ranks to serve as Assistant Majority Leader, held the Chairmanship on the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability, and served as Vice Chairman of Appropriations Committees. 

 

More importantly, Jeff has been a dedicated public servant to his constituents in Evanston and to the people of Illinois for 22 years. 

 

During his time in the Illinois General Assembly, Jeff sponsored a bill that would provide better access to quality health care and give consumers the opportunity to make smarter choices about their health.  He also helped secure more than $5 billion in federal funds for safety net hospitals such as Mt. Sinai, Mercy, and Holy Cross. 

 

Jeff supported the Illinois Safe Choice Zones Act, helped pave the way for Illinois’ pioneering work in stem cell research, and insisted on greater accountability and oversight at the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority. 

 

A father of two himself, Jeff was critical to the passage of a measure allowing schools to keep and administer epinephrine for anaphylactic shock, following the death of a 13-year-old girl from Chicago who had an allergic reaction to peanut oil at school. 

 

Jeff also was active in foreign policy issues, including supporting successful legislation to divest state pension funds from foreign companies doing business with Iran’s energy sector and drawing attention to the genocide in Cambodia.   Jeff visited Cambodia last month as part of a delegation representing the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

 

Incoming State Senator Daniel Biss will have large shoes to fill, given how well Jeff has served The Illinois Senate’s 9th district. 

 

Since the outset of his political career, Jeff has been inspired by the likes of Congressman and federal judge Abner Mikva and U.S. Senator Paul Simon, for whom he and I both worked.

 

Jeff’s dedication to service now takes on a new focus -- improving the lives of children and families through an expanded role advising the J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation on its philanthropic initiatives involving early childhood development.

 

His approach to this work is made clear by something he said last year, “My position in the Senate is only one point of entry into public service.” 

 

As Jeff moves into this new role, I can only say to him: thank you.

 

While you may be retiring from the Illinois State Senate, your constituents and I know that you will never retire from working for the public good.  

 

Thank you for the time you and your family have given – and will continue to give – to the people of Illinois.