Since joining IADA in January 2024, Mike Stieren has been the Association’s steady hand at the Capitol as Director of Legislative Affairs. He is in charge of tracking, analyzing, and advocating on the thousands of bills that pass through Springfield each session. With more than a decade of experience in state policy and government, Mike brings both deep institutional knowledge and a methodical approach to the fast-moving world of legislative work.

At IADA, Mike’s days are spent reading and drafting legislation, testifying in committees, and ensuring that dealers’ interests are represented in every policy conversation.

“There were more than 6,000 bills introduced last session,” he notes. “Our job is to stay on top of anything that could impact dealers; to protect them, go on the defense when needed, and make sure their voices are heard.”

Mike’s path to IADA was a natural progression. Born and raised in Springfield, he got his start in IT sales before joining the House Republican Research staff in 2014, where he spent eight years staffing committees and focusing on energy and environmental policy. From there, he moved to the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) as a policy analyst, working on renewable energy and implementation of the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA).

Now on the other side of the legislative process, Mike is enjoying the challenge of building relationships and learning the nuances of lobbying.

“It’s been great transitioning from staff to lobbyist,” he says. “The people here make it easy. Everyone at IADA is supportive, and our board members are so engaged and community-minded. Every representative has a dealer in their district, and dealers contribute so much to their local economies. That makes it easy to advocate for them.”

Outside the Capitol, Mike’s life revolves around his family. He and his wife Lindsey, a speech-language pathologist for a nonprofit, have been married for seven years and are raising three children. The family lives in Springfield, and their weekends are filled with soccer games at the Y and plenty of football and basketball on TV.

A lifelong sports fan, Mike played defensive end and linebacker at Western Illinois University and has since passed his love of the game on to his kids, though his household allegiance to the Green Bay Packers sometimes raises eyebrows in Bears country.

With his deep policy background and commitment to both his family and his work, Mike brings a thoughtful energy to IADA’s advocacy efforts; carrying forward the strong legacy of representation the Association has built at the Capitol.