 While in the Senate, he chaired the General Legislation Committee from 1955 to 1962, and was also a member of the Committee on Committees and the Rules Committee.Dubbed a "gruff-voiced, cigar chomping, hard-bargaining Senate veteran," Keller was a leader in forming tax policy for the state.He also actively promoted highway safety and, in 1959, introduced a bill that would have required seat belts and padded dash boards in all cars made after 1961.