State Sen. Mike Dmitrich of Price, is being hailed, deservedly, for his 40 years in the State Legislature.

The senator from the 27th District, which includes part of Utah County as well as Carbon County, has announced his retirement after four decades in the Utah Legislature. First elected to the state House in 1968 at age 31, he rose to the post of minority leader, which he held from 1983 to 1990. Appointed to the state Senate in 1991, he won election the following year, and became Senate minority leader 10 years later.

His tenure in office is said to be the second longest in the Legislature's history. That's 1,800 days of legislative sessions, plus many days and hours for special sessions, meetings, campaigns and other duties, not to mention calls from constituents. Anyone who's seen what legislators go through at a session can only be impressed by such dedication. Voters complain, rivals snipe, journalists question -- and while there's no doubt that it's all a healthy part of the democratic process, there's also no doubt that it can be a wearing profession. Dmitrich deserves respect for enduring over that time, while remaining an engaging, active legislator.

Another way to understand that span of time is to look back at a political Utah that seems in many ways far away. When Dmitrich was first elected, Utah had a little more than 1 million residents, and two congressional districts. Richard Nixon beat Hubert Humphrey for president, and Democratic Gov. Calvin Rampton was re-elected easily.

Utah has changed much since then. The population doubled to 2 million by 1996, and has now soared to 2.7 million with 3 million in sight. It now has three congressional districts, and there have been efforts to add a fourth. The last Democratic governor, Scott Matheson, left office 23 years ago. Yet despite all the changes, Dmitrich has continued to help lead his party, and has remained well-liked and effective.

What made him able to serve so long, and, in the main, so successfully? Part of it must come from his background. He started his working life as a miner, as his father and a grandfather had been; he has also been a mining executive and consultant, and worked in banking. That gave him a well-rounded look at what people of his area need, and of what it takes to provide for those needs. He has never let partisanship keep him from pursuing real answers to problems.

His avocation as a high school football and basketball referee may also have come in handy. He plainly is a man who is willing to make the tough calls, and to be fair. Testimonials to his skill and evenhandedness come from colleagues on both sides of the aisle and from the press. We doubt anyone could last four decades as a lawmaker unless he or she was able to rise above the occasional quarrels and the inevitable defeats, while keeping the respect of all his or her peers and the friendship of many in both parties.

Consider his role in this last session. He sponsored Senate Bill 224, the Coal Mine Safety Act, which created the Utah Office of Coal Mine Safety. Passed by the Legislature, it creates a one-person Utah Office of Coal Mine Safety and a 13-member technical advisory committee. A response to the Crandall Canyon mine disaster, the law aims to improve mine safety without creating a cumbersome and ineffective bureaucracy. By all indications, Dmitrich's concern for the people who work in the mines, his skill as a legislator, and well as his understanding of how legislation can be really effective played crucial roles in this effort to keep miners safe.

We thank Mike Dmitrich for his four decades of service. We doubt we will see many, or any, like him again in the Utah Legislature.