States Drive Demand for OSW: The MA & RI State Legislators Who Catalyzed the Industry

Tuesday, October 18, 2022

3:45 PM – 4:45 PM ET

Location: Ballroom D/E

Moderator(s)

SK

Seth L. Kaplan

Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs
Ocean Winds NA, United States

Speaker(s)

Dawn Euer, JD (she/her/hers)

Senator
Rhode Island General Assembly
Providence, Rhode Island, United States
Jeffrey Roy, BA, JD

State Representative
Massachusetts House of Representatives
Boston, Massachusetts, United States
SR

Senator Michael Rodrigues

Massachusetts State Senator
Massachusetts State Senate
Representative Joseph J. Solomon, Jr.

State Representative
Rhode Island House of Representatives
Warwick, Rhode Island, United States

Massachusetts and Rhode Island have been early leaders in fostering the offshore wind industry in the U.S. and a key element in that leadership has been forward looking legislation that created the commercial opportunities that have been critical in moving forward the first generation of large-scale projects now moving through permitting and towards construction. Understanding the political dynamics and processes that shaped these essential laws, and what lessons can be learned from the experiences of shaping, adopting and implementing these laws, can inform efforts to bring offshore wind to other states and regions. This panel moves forward that transfer of knowledge by allowing Rhode Island and Massachusetts legislators, including the leaders of successful recent efforts to enact expansions of offshore wind procurement authority in both states, to engage with each other and conference attendees in a lively question and answer format.