Baldwin, Johnson Lead Senate in Passing Resolution Honoring the Life and Legacy of Senator Herb Kohl

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Ron Johnson (R-WI) led their Senate colleagues in unanimously approving a bipartisan resolution honoring the life and legacy of the late Senator Herb Kohl. The resolution highlights Senator Kohl’s business success; passion for the Milwaukee Bucks; generous philanthropy; legislative track record of delivering for Wisconsin farmers, students, and families; and life of public service. Senator Kohl served Wisconsin in the Senate for 24 years.

“Senator Kohl served in this body for 24 years, but served the people of Wisconsin and our country throughout his entire life,” said Senator Baldwin on the Senate floor. “In the Senate, he didn’t care how long the fight would take, how long the odds were, or who he was up against – if it would help the people of Wisconsin, it was a worthy fight for him. His mantra throughout his service was, ‘Nobody’s Senator But Yours,’ and his record in Washington reflected that commitment to a tee.”

Senator Baldwin’s remarks on the Senate floor honoring Herb Kohl can be found here.

Full text of the Senate Resolution is available here and below:

Honoring the life and legacy of the late Senator Herb Kohl.

Whereas Herb Kohl grew up in the Sherman Park neighborhood of Milwaukee, Wisconsin;

Whereas Herb Kohl earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin, which is now home to the basketball and hockey center that bears his name, as well as the Herb Kohl Public Service Research Competition to advance evidence-based policy and governance research by faculty members and students, which were supported through his gifts to the University;

Whereas, as president of the Kohl’s Corporation, Herb Kohl followed in his father’s footsteps and built with his brothers a chain of over 50 Kohl’s grocery stores across the Midwest;

Whereas, when the Milwaukee Bucks were put up for sale and in danger of being bought and moved to another city, Herb Kohl stepped forward in 1985 and bought the team with the promise to Bucks fans that the team would never leave—a promise he fulfilled when the time came to sell the team in 2014, donating $100,000,000 to help build a new arena for the community;

Whereas, in 1990, Herb Kohl started the Herb Kohl Educational Foundation, which has provided more than $34,000,000 in grants and scholarships to Wisconsin students, teachers, and schools;

Whereas Herb Kohl answered a call to public service in 1988 and ran for the United States Senate with a commitment to being ‘‘nobody’s Senator but yours’’ and working across party lines for the people of the State he loved;

Whereas Herb Kohl served Wisconsin in the United States Senate for 24 years, bringing his business experience to his Senate office and treating his more than 5,000,000 Wisconsin constituents as his customers;

Whereas Herb Kohl championed issues important for the people of Wisconsin, fighting every day for dairy farmers, working to protect kids from the threat of gun violence, helping seniors secure and keep high quality health care, and supporting education at all levels, from early childhood through adults attending technical colleges and universities;

Whereas Herb Kohl served on the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and was Chairman of the Special Committee on Aging of the Senate;

Whereas, throughout his Senate tenure and as Chairman of the Special Committee on Aging of the Senate, Herb Kohl championed initiatives to get individuals, families, and communities the health insurance and care they needed, focusing on the most vulnerable—children and seniors—and the most difficult to reach—rural communities;

Whereas Herb Kohl used his position as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate to advance Wisconsin’s dairy interests and strengthen nutrition programs for children, including by expanding after-school feeding programs, launching school breakfast start-up grants, expanding summer food service for students, and leading the charge to fund the special supplemental nutrition program for women, infants, and children (commonly referred to as ‘‘WIC’’), which provides nutrition assistance to pregnant women, infants, and children;

Whereas, as a member of the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate, Herb Kohl worked to provide funding for police departments across Wisconsin, advance legislation for child safety locks on handguns, strengthen efforts in the State to fight drug trafficking, and institute ratings for video games;

Whereas Herb Kohl’s office assisted Wisconsinites through individual casework for more than 2 decades, earning a reputation as having one of the best customer service operations in the United States Senate; and

Whereas, on December 27, 2023, at the age of 88, Herb Kohl died, leaving behind a legacy of dedication and service to the people of Wisconsin: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That—

(1) the Senate—

(A) recognizes with profound sorrow and deep regret the death of the Honorable Herb Kohl, former Senator for the State of Wisconsin; and

(B) respectfully requests that the Secretary of the Senate—

(i) communicate this resolution to the House of Representatives; and

(ii) transmit an enrolled copy of this resolution to the family of the Honorable Herb Kohl; and

(2) when the Senate adjourns today, it stands adjourned as a further mark of respect to the memory of the Honorable Herb Kohl.

An online version of this release is available here.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.