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Biden Administration – Department of Energy

Website:

www.energy.gov/

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This profile contains Biden Administration nominations and appointments made at the U.S. Department of Energy.

Nominations and Appointments

Shalanda H. Baker was Director of the Office of Economic Impact and Diversity at the U.S. Department of Energy, where she had previously served as Deputy Director for Energy Justice. Prior to joining the administration, she was a professor at Northeastern University School of Law. She co-founded and served as co-director of the Initiative for Energy Justice.1 She has served on the board of directors of the Solutions Project2 and the Clean Energy Group,3, as a member scholar at the Center for Progressive Reform,4 and as a member of the Climate and Community Project.5

Jeremiah Baumann was Senior Advisor, Director of Policy and Implementation in the Office of the Secretary at the U.S. Department of Energy, where he had previously been chief of staff in the Office of the Under Secretary for Infrastructure. Before that, he was director of federal policy at Energy Innovation, and worked on state clean energy policy at Bloomberg Philanthropies. He also formerly served as legislative director for U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR).6 Before that, Baumann served as director of Environment Oregon, and as co-director of the New Voters Project.7 From 1998 to 2003, he was an environmental program director at U.S. Public Interest Research Group.8

Sam Brinton was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition in the Office of Nuclear Energy. Before that, Brinton was director of global political strategy at Deep Isolation, head of advocacy and governmental affairs and later vice president of advocacy and government affairs at the Trevor Project, a senior policy analyst at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a clean energy fellow at Third Way, and also founded a consulting firm called Core Solutions Consulting.9 Brinton identifies as gender non-binary.10

In December 2022 the Department of Energy announced that Brinton was no longer an employee of the department, after having been criminally charged with stealing luggage at airports in both Nevada and Minnesota.11

Brad Crabtree was Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy and Carbon Management. He previously served as vice president for carbon management at the Great Plains Institute and as director of the Carbon Capture Coalition. He has served on the board of directors of Clean Air Task Force Action (CATF Action).1213

David Crane was previously nominated to serve as Under Secretary for Infrastructure. He is the chief executive officer of Climate Real Impact Solutions, and serves on the boards of Heliogen Inc., Source Global, JERA Co. Inc., Tata Steel Ltd, Elemental Excelerator, and The Climate Group North America, and is a member of The B Team. He was formerly the chief executive officer of NRG Energy, and of International Power Plc.14 He has also served as a member of the leadership council of Vote Solar.15

In August 2022, the Washington Free Beacon noted that Crane was also a member of the board of directors of the Saudi Electricity Company, having joined in January 2021. The Beacon observed that Crane was the only American board member at the state-owned enterprise, and that the Saudi Electricity Company was both a major consumer of fossil fuels and a major partner of the Chinese government, having borrowed $1.5 billion from the state-owned Industrial and Commercial Bank of China in 2016. Crane pledged to step down from the board of the Saudi Electricity Company upon Senate confirmation of his nomination.16

Jennifer Granholm was Secretary of Energy. Granholm served as the 47th Governor of Michigan from 2003-2011, and as Attorney General of Michigan from 1999-2003.17 She was also a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, and a senior research fellow at the Berkeley Energy and Climate Institute and the Berkeley Center for Information Technology Research in the Interests of Society.18 She is the founder of the American Jobs Project, where she also served as Board Chair,19 and has served as an advisor to the Clean Energy Program at the Pew Charitable Trusts.20 She was a member of the presidential transition team for President Obama in 2008,21 and was a co-chair of Hillary Clinton’s transition team in 2016.22 She also served in leadership positions at the pro-Hillary Clinton Super PACs Priorities USA Action and Correct the Record.23

Andrew Light was Assistant Secretary for International Affairs. He has served as a professor at George Mason University since 2008. During the Obama Administration, he served in the U.S. Department of State as senior advisor and India counselor to the U.S. Special Envoy on Climate Change, as well as a staff climate advisor in the Office of Policy Planning. Light has also held positions as a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress and a distinguished senior fellow at the World Resources Institute.24 At the Center for American Progress, he served as chief advisor on international climate policy to John Podesta.25

Shara Mohtadi was Chief of Staff for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. She most recently served on the environment team at Bloomberg Philanthropies, where she led work on America’s Pledge. Before that, she was a senior advisor on climate and energy policy for the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. During the Obama Administration, she served as an energy and environment advisor in the Office of Management and Budget.2627

Jigar Shah Christine Wormuth was Secretary of the Army. He was most recently a senior fellow at the RAND Corporation, and served as Director of the International Security and Defense Policy Center in the RAND National Security Research Division. Director of the Loan Programs Office. He was previously the co-founder and president of Generate Capital, and before that founded the company SunEdison and was the chief executive officer of Carbon War Room.28 He has served on the boards of the Progressive Multiplier Fund,29 the Progressive Multiplier Action Fund,30 Climate Hawks Vote,31 the Cleantech Leaders Roundtable,32 the Rocky Mountain Institute,33 the Earth Day Network,34 and Greenpeace USA.35

Shah was president of the Cleantech Leaders Roundtable prior to joining the Biden Administration, which led to some questions after it was revealed that Shah had been a guest speaker for at least ten roundtable events after having taken up his position at the Department of Energy. Some members of the Cleantech Leaders Roundtable represented companies that were seeking loans from the Loan Programs Office, and the Washington Free Beacon noted that questions were being raised “about whether the organization’s members are getting favorable treatment in the loan process.”36 In November 2023, Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) sent a letter to the Department of Energy requesting “an official ethics review of Mr. Shah’s relationship with Cleantech Leaders Roundtable, as well as other external organizations Mr. Shah has engaged with in his official capacity.”37

David M. Turk was Deputy Secretary of Energy. He formerly served as Deputy Executive Director at the International Energy Agency, where he had previously served as head of the Energy Environment Division and head of the Strategic Initiatives Office.38 He also formerly served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Climate and Technology at the U.S. Department of Energy, as Deputy Special Envoy for Climate Change at the U.S. Department of State, and Special Assistant to the President during the Obama Administration. He has worked for Senators Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Joe Biden (D-DE), and for Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA).39

Aimee Witteman was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs at the U.S. Department of Energy. She most recently served as director of U.S. states policy at Energy Innovation, and before that was a program director at the McKnight Foundation and executive director of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.40

References

  1. “Shalanda H. Baker.” U.S. Department of Energy. Accessed August 10, 2022. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/diversity/person/shalanda-h-baker
  2. “Our Team.” The Solutions Project. August 13, 2020 (accessed via Wayback Machine). Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20200813120628/https://thesolutionsproject.org/our-team/
  3. “Board of Directors.” Clean Energy Group. August 7, 2020 (accessed via Wayback Machine). Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20200807091703/https://www.cleanegroup.org/board-of-directors/
  4. “CPR Member Scholars.” Center for Progressive Reform. June 8, 2020 (accessed via Wayback Machine). Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20200608043750/https://progressivereform.org/about-cpr/cpr-scholars/
  5. Climate and Community Project official website. Accessed August 10, 2022. Available at: https://www.climateandcommunity.org/
  6. “Jeremiah Baumann.” U.S. Department of Energy. Accessed January 30, 2024. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/person/jeremiah-baumann
  7. “Jeremiah Baumann.” Climate One. Accessed August 6, 2021. Available at: https://www.climateone.org/people/jeremiah-baumann
  8. “Jeremiah Baumann.” Linkedin. Accessed August 6, 2021. Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremiah-baumann-9659a414
  9. “Sam Brinton.” Linkedin. Accessed December 15, 2022. Available at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samuelbrinton
  10. Victor Nava. “Non-binary Biden Nuclear Official Sam Brinton Fired After Multiple Luggage Theft Charges: Reports.” The New York Post. December 12, 2022. Available at: https://nypost.com/2022/12/12/non-binary-biden-nuclear-official-sam-brinton-fired-after-multiple-luggage-theft-charges-reports/
  11. Geneva Sands, Maegan Vazquez, and Jeremy Diamond. “Top Energy Department Official No Longer Employed After Luggage Theft Accusations.” CNN. December 13, 2022. Available at: https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/13/politics/sam-brinton-department-of-energy/index.html
  12. “Statement by Secretary Granholm on U.S. Senate Confirmation of Brad Crabtree.” U.S. Department of Energy. April 28, 2022. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/articles/statement-secretary-granholm-us-senate-confirmation-brad-crabtree
  13. “About us.” CATF Action. Accessed May 2, 2022. Available at: https://www.catfaction.org/about-us/
  14. “Statement by Secretary Granholm on President Biden’s Nomination of David Crane.” U.S. Department of Energy. August 3, 2022. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/articles/statement-secretary-granholm-president-bidens-nomination-david-crane
  15. “Who We Are.” Vote Solar. Accessed August 24, 2022. Available at: https://votesolar.org/who-we-are/
  16. Chuck Ross. “Pariah No Longer: Biden Admin Taps Saudi Energy Company Board Member for Top Energy Department Post.” The Washington Free Beacon. August 23, 2022. Available at: https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/pariah-no-longer-biden-admin-taps-saudi-energy-company-board-member-for-top-energy-department-post/
  17. “Jennifer Granholm.” Ballotpedia. Accessed December 18, 2020. Available at: https://ballotpedia.org/Jennifer_Granholm
  18. Reed, Bora. “Berkeley Scholar Jennifer Granholm Expected to Serve as Biden Energy Secretary.” Berkeley News. December 16, 2020. Accessed December 18, 2020. Available at: https://news.berkeley.edu/2020/12/16/berkeley-scholar-jennifer-granholm-expected-to-serve-as-biden-energy-secretary/
  19. “Board.” American Jobs Project. Accessed December 18, 2020. Available at: http://americanjobsproject.us/about/board
  20. “Climate Nominees and Appointees: Fmr. Governor Jennifer Granholm.” Biden-Harris Transition. Accessed December 18, 2020. Available at: https://buildbackbetter.gov/nominees-and-appointees/jennifer-granholm/
  21. Galer, Sarah. “Institute of Politics to Host Bipartisan Panel on 2012 Presidential Election.” UChicago News. May 17, 2012. Accessed December 18, 2020. Available at: https://news.uchicago.edu/story/institute-politics-host-bipartisan-panel-2012-presidential-election
  22. Becker, Amanda and Lopez, Luciana. “Clinton Names Close Confidants, Obama Veterans to Transition Team.” Reuters. August 16, 2016. Accessed December 18, 2020. Available at: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-clinton-transition/clinton-names-close-confidants-obama-veterans-to-transition-team-idUSKCN10R11X
  23. Vogel, Kenneth P. “Granholm Resigns From Pro-Clinton Super PAC.” Politico. August 14, 2015. Accessed December 18, 2020. Available at: https://www.politico.com/story/2015/08/jennifer-granholm-resigns-from-pro-clinton-super-pac-121366
  24. “Andrew Light.” U.S. Department of Energy. Accessed November 12, 2021. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/ia/person/andrew-light
  25. “Andrew Light.” George Mason University. Accessed November 12, 2021. Available at: https://philosophy.gmu.edu/people/alight1
  26. “Shara Mohtadi.” U.S. Department of Energy. Accessed June 28, 2021. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/contributors/shara-mohtadi
  27. “Shara Mohtadi.” Washington University in St. Louis. Accessed June 28, 2021. Available at: https://midwestclimatesummit.wustl.edu/people/shara-mohtadi/
  28. “Jigar Shah.” U.S. Department of Energy. Accessed October 16, 2023. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/lpo/person/jigar-shah
  29. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). Progressive Multiplier Fund. 2021. Part VII.
  30. Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990). Progressive Multiplier Action Fund. 2020. Part VII.
  31. “We Are Climate Hawks.” Climate Hawks Vote. February 26, 2021 (accessed via WayBack Machine). Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20210226213053/http://climatehawksvote.com/about/
  32. Cleantech Leaders Roundtable. December 22, 2021 (accessed via WayBack Machine). Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20211222032059/https://www.cleantechleaders.org/
  33. “Board of Trustees.” Rocky Mountain Institute. December 26, 2015 (accessed via WayBack Machine). Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20151226070051/http://www.rmi.org/Board%20of%20Trustees
  34. “Board of Directors.” Earth Day Network. April 25, 2013 (accessed via WayBack Machine). Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20130425051944/http://www.earthday.org/board-directors
  35. “Governance.” Greenpeace USA. December 22, 2012 (accessed via WayBack Machine). Available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20121222161533/http://www.greenpeace.org/usa/en/about/governance/
  36. Alana Goodman. “Biden’s Energy Loan Czar Founded a Trade Association. Now It’s Selling Access to Him.” Washington Free Beacon. October 6, 2023. Available at: https://freebeacon.com/biden-administration/bidens-energy-loan-czar-founded-a-trade-association-now-its-selling-access-to-him/
  37. Letter from Sen. John Barrasso to Susan Beard. United States Senate. November 8, 2023. Available at: https://freebeacon.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/11.8.2023-Letter-to-DOEs-lead-ethics-official-re-LPO-Directors-potential-ethics-violations.pdf
  38. “Leadership.” IEA. December 18, 2020. Accessed January 22, 2021. Available at: https://www.iea.org/about/leadership
  39. “David Turk.” U.S. Department of Energy. Accessed January 22, 2021. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/ia/contributors/david-turk
  40. “Aimee Witteman.” U.S. Department of Energy. Accessed August 6, 2021. Available at: https://www.energy.gov/person/aimee-witteman
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