Luncheon Keynotes

The Honorable Conrad Burns, U.S. Senator (R-Montana), Washington, D.C.
Senator Burns was elected to the Senate in 1989 and is now in his third term. With a seat on the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, he has been able to bring in over $1 billion in federal funds to the state. He has pursued new markets for agricultural producers and secured millions of dollars in grants for research and marketing improvements. Serving as Chairman of the Senate Interior Appropriations subcommittee, Senator Burns has jurisdiction over the country's federal lands and the National Park Service. On the national level, he has criticized America's dependence on foreign oil supplies, calling on Congress to increase domestic production and research in fuel cell technology.

The Honorable Byron Dorgan, U.S. Senator (D-North Dakota), Washington, D.C.
Senator Dorgan was reelected to the U.S. Senate in 1998 by an overwhelming majority after serving one term in the U.S. Senate and six terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. In 1998, he was named the Chairman of the Democratic Policy Committee-the first North Dakotan ever to hold this position or to serve in the Democratic leadership. From 1996-1998, he served in the Democratic leadership as Assistant Floor Leader. Currently, he is a member of four Senate standing committees-Appropriations; Commerce, Science, and Transportation; Energy and Natural Resources; and Indian Affairs-and eleven subcommittees, including ranking member of the Subcommittee on Water and Power and, most recently, ranking member of the Subcommittee on Interior.