Industry Insights Webinar

Event Details

Post-Election Policy Outlook: Energy & Environment

View the recorded webinar here.
Download the Kelley Drye slide presentation here.

President Trump took office nearly four years ago armed with an aggressive agenda to decrease environmental and other regulatory burdens on domestic industries, including oil and natural gas producers. And judging by pledges made in the course of the 2020 campaign, the incoming Biden Administration is likely to be equally aggressive in refocusing on climate change and reversing Trump-era reforms.

The scope and extent of environmental and energy policy changes that can be accomplished by the Biden Administration may depend, however, on which party holds the majority of seats in the U.S. Senate. While we won’t know which party will control the Senate until after two runoff elections in Georgia in early January, we’ve learned from multiple previous administrations that presidents can be quite effective at implementing their environmental and energy policies without seeking any new statutory authority from Congress.

This webinar will provide a recap of the 2020 election results, and the potential impacts on energy and environmental policies. We’ll look at the composition of Congress, the outlook for committee leadership, and the prospects for legislative action on issues such as climate change. We’ll identify key members of the Biden transition team, discuss initial or prospective agency appointments, and examine other early indicators of the Biden Administration’s environmental and energy policy priorities. We will also discuss which Trump Administration regulations and orders may be most susceptible to reversal and what the Trump Administration hopes to accomplish in its remaining days.

Panelists

Wayne J. D’Angelo – Partner, Kelley Drye

Wayne routinely works with clients on regulatory, permitting, compliance, and enforcement matters arising under the Clean Air Act (CAA), Clean Water Act (CWA), Endangered Species Act (ESA), National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), and the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act). Wayne brings this diverse skillset to bear in regulatory and enforcement proceedings before the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), U.S. Department of Interior (DOI), U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS), U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), and myriad other federal, state, and local agencies.

As co-chair of the firm’s Energy practice, Wayne advocates for energy companies and trade associations on a wide range of regulatory compliance, natural resource extraction and land-use matters. Wayne also represents a number of stationary source industries like steel mills, chemical companies and other manufacturing facilities in high-stakes rulemaking, permitting, and compliance matters.

Wayne is highly valued by clients and colleagues alike for developing a sophisticated understanding of his clients’ operations and for using that knowledge to develop credible, well-informed, and effective advocacy strategies. He approaches each new matter with enthusiasm, disciplined analytical skills, and a fanatical focus on details, deadlines, and client communication.

Wayne advocates for heavily regulated industrial clients through all aspects of the federal rulemaking process, including, where necessary, litigation. As a result, Wayne is frequently involved in the coordination of the firm’s legal, government relations, public relations and economics teams to develop effective, multifaceted responses to proposed regulations. Wayne also counsels clients regarding their strategic planning and compliance matters, as well as advising on multiple federal and state environmental health and safety laws and regulations.

Wayne is known for his ability to consistently provide a multidimensional understanding of the regulatory pressures that face industry now (and in the future) through insights gained working at a trade association, a federal agency, and on Capitol Hill. Prior to joining Kelley Drye, Wayne served as counsel to the American Petroleum Institute, where he managed the organization’s most critical issues, including climate change and greenhouse gas regulatory matters and litigation, energy access and leasing challenges, NEPA reviews, agency determinations under the ESA, occupational safety and health issues, and waste and remediation matters under the RCRA and CERCLA. Wayne also served as a Presidential Appointee at EPA working directly for the EPA Administrator and General Counsel. He started his career in D.C. working as legislative assistant to Congressman Bob Franks of New Jersey, handling transportation, infrastructure and environmental issues.

Dana S. Wood – Director of Government Relations, Kelley Drye

Dana Wood co-chairs the firm’s Government Relations and Public Policy group. Dana has been a public policy advocate for more than three decades, representing client interests before Congress and the Executive Branch, and developing major policy initiatives in the areas of the environment, energy, trade, health care, agriculture, tax and pensions. The longevity of Dana’s career and depth of her abilities is manifest in her successful representation of the clients she serves. Dana manages the advocacy efforts for leading manufacturing and service companies in addition to advising and assisting numerous trade associations. Notably, Dana has continuously represented multiple Fortune 500 clients for decades.

Dana is focused on navigating even the most challenging regulatory and political climates. Her ability to understand, analyze and leverage all of the issues and constituencies involved in a given initiative aid her in realizing each client’s often distinct goals. After many years in Washington, D.C., Dana has cultivated and continues to develop a multitude of relationships at all levels. Her comprehensive approach incorporates not only substance, integrity and diplomacy, but also reliability and teamwork.

Dana’s clients appreciate that she serves as the catalyst for open and constructive dialogue with government agency professionals and elected officials. In addition to productive communication with external stakeholders, Dana is also dedicated to a high degree of accountability within her team so that client ambitions become tangible results. Dana is personally committed to remaining accessible, and also holds regular meetings with client teams in order to remain on track and end-game driven.

Prior to joining the firm, Dana worked in the office of Senator David Durenberger (R-MN). On the political side, Dana has worked as an informal advisor to two Republican initiatives on the environment; served as executive director of the Women’s Coalition with the Dole for President campaign; was a member of the Government Affairs team at the 1996 Republican National Convention, the Women’s Advisory Committee for Bush/Quayle 1988, and the Women’s Leadership Network; and served on the board of directors for Leader PAC, and on the National Committee for the Women’s House Republican Victory Committee.

Maggie C. Crosswy – Government Relations Professional, Kelley Drye

Maggie Crosswy is a government relations and public policy advisor in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. She focuses her practice on monitoring and lobbying legislative issues on behalf of clients as well as developing political strategies. Maggie has more than a decade of policy and advocacy experience, primarily in the areas of manufacturing, international trade, energy and environment, and healthcare.
Most recently, Maggie served as an intergovernmental programs coordinator in the director’s office of the Boulder County (Colorado) Department of Housing and Human Services. While there, she worked on a variety of human services and housing-related policy issues as well as internal and external communications strategy.
Maggie previously served as a legislative assistant at the American Iron and Steel Institute where she helped coordinate the industry’s campaign in support of the President’s Steel Program under Section 201 of the U.S. Trade Laws. In addition, she coordinated legislative activity surrounding the industry’s broader manufacturing initiatives.