“States are where the rubber meets the road, the laboratories of democracy,” began Energy Secretary Granholm in her address to the nation’s State and Territory Energy Officials as part of the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) 2021 Annual Meeting, October 13, 2021 in Portland Maine.
“DOE is grateful to have such a deep and action-oriented partnership with NASEO,” added the Secretary, citing a number of shared state and federal energy and climate priorities including in efficient buildings, solar deployment, transportation electrification, transmission, cybersecurity, workforce development, and many other areas primed for expansion, replication, and innovation through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Build Back Better Act, key bills under consideration by Congress.
The Secretary also spoke of her experience navigating the state of Michigan through the economic downturn of its auto industry, and how it has informed her efforts at the helm of the Department of Energy. “Diversifying to the electric vehicle helped our state to rebound. We started creating jobs again,” she noted. “I accepted the role of Energy Secretary on the condition that we do everything in our power to create new opportunities for every worker, and my experience as governor taught me that we can do that by investing in this clean energy economy.”