Kevin Harrington, Massachusetts Senate President, was First President of NCSL

by Karl Kurtz

Kevin Harrington, the president of the Massachusetts Senate, 1971-78, died last week at age 79.  His obituary in the Boston Globe tells all about his contributions to Massachusetts state government but fails to mention that he was the National Conference of State Legislature's first president in 1975 when the organization was first formed as a result of a merger of three previously competing organizations of state legislators and staff. 

Since each of the three organizations had presidents who still had time left in their terms of office, one of the sticking points of the merger negotiations was who would lead the new organization.  Negotiators decided to line the three presidents up on a ladder in the new organization with Sen. Harrington, who was president of the National Conference of State Legislative Leaders, going first, followed by Tennessee Rep. Tom Jensen representing the National Society of State Legislators in 1975-76 and Minnesota Speaker Martin Sabo from the National Legislative Conference in 1976-77.

Although I was around at the time, I don't remember why Sen. Harrington was chosen to go first.  Perhaps it was because he was the longest serving of the three leaders and from the largest of the three states.  Perhaps it was because the Leaders Conference was the organization that was least certain that it wanted the merger to occur and choosing Sen. Harrington was a way of honoring their role in the new organizations.  Or perhaps it was because he was the biggest guy around--at 6'9" he literally towered over everyone.

As the leader of NCSL, he presided over some of the new organization's most critical decisions including the hiring of Earl S. Mackey as executive director, the selection of Denver as the headquarters, an emphasis on a strong Washington office of state-federal relations, and the structuring of a budget for a new organization and an appeal for funding from the states.  The strength and stability of his leadership contributed to the fact that 46 states paid their dues in the first year, and within two years all 50 states were on board.

After he left the Massachusetts legislature he became a lobbyist and later taught at various colleges in the area.  He helped found the Institute of Politics at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire.  I was pleased that a year or two ago he called me to ask for information and advice about setting up civic education programs for St. Anselm students.  In that phone call he was as vigorous, courtly, formal, intelligent and clever as I remembered him being as president of NCSL.

Photo: A painted portrait of Kevin B. Harrington that hangs in the Massachusetts Senate library. (John Tlumacki/Boston Globe)

Comments

[stephen n. blesofsky]

If Kevin was your friend, you could count on him no matter what. He should have been Governor instead of Edward King. I was a huge beneficiary of his wisdom and support. Kevin taught me the meaning of a motto I continue to live with " under promise and over deliver".