Bill Lane

A 40-year retired Caterpillar Veteran, Bill is Chairman Emeritus of the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition which supports U.S. funding for diplomacy and development. Most recently he led a successful effort to modernize NAFTA. He is an Executive Board Member of Global Communities and a Wall Street Journal paid contributor.

 

While at Caterpillar, Bill was responsible for the company’s advocacy in support of competitiveness, economic growth and especially trade liberalization. From supporting free trade agreements to opposing unilateral sanctions and protectionist schemes, Bill has been center stage during many of the most contentious trade debates of the past three decades. He was also a company spokesman during the Caterpillar-UAW labor dispute.

 

From 2004 through 2015, Bill was named one of Washington’s top corporate lobbyists by The Hill newspaper. In 2016, he was awarded the Washington International Trade Association's Lighthouse Award. Bill is a Penn State Alumni Fellow, and earned his BS and MA from Penn State. He chaired and serves on the Penn State Global Advisory Council. Most recently, along with Rick Barger, Bill was named 2023 Penn State Fundraiser Volunteers Of The Year.