Heather Reams is the executive director of Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions (CRES), a right-leaning environmentalist advocacy group funded by and connected to other center-left environmentalist organizations. CRES works to lobby Republican-controlled legislatures at the federal and state levels to adopt environmentalist policy. ¹

Background

Heather Reams received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Washington. ² Following college, she interned with former U.S. Senator Slade Gorton (R-WA) before working as a staff assistant to former U.S. Senator Bob Smith (R-NH). Following her experience in Congress, she worked for various lobbying and communications firms, such including the Carmen Group, Powell Tate Bork and Associates, Dezenhall Resources, the Bushwick Group, and Conexus Strategies. She also provided government affairs services for education-related non-profit organizations, including the Association of American Educators, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, and the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. ³

Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions

Heather Reams began work as the managing director of Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions in 2016. In 2019, she was promoted to executive director of the organization. ⁴

Under her tenure, CRES has supported the Electric Vehicle Mobility Area Planning Act, which would support government funding for the construction of charging stations for electronic vehicles. ⁵ CRES has also supported the Utilizing Significant Emissions with Innovative Technologies (USE IT) Act, a bill which seeks to direct government funds towards carbon capture and storage research in order to combat climate change. ⁶

Under Reams’ leadership, CRES has also supported increased government funding for environmentalist energy projects. CRES has supported the Better Energy Storage Technology (BEST) Act,⁷ which would increase government research into developing storage systems for environmentalist energy sources, and the Solar Energy Research and Development Act, which would provide government funding for research into the further commercialization of environmentalist energy. ⁸

In 2020, Reams led the National Clean Energy Week, a forum at which policy organizations and trade associations from both the conventional and environmentalist energy sectors came together to develop bipartisan strategies to reduce carbon emissions. ⁹

Political Contributions

In 2021, Reams contributed $2,000 to the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC). ¹⁰ Reams also supported former President Donald Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign, contributing $950 to the Donald Trump for President PAC and $1000 to the Make America Great Again PAC. Reams also gave $1,000 to WINRED, a right-of-center PAC that directly passes donations along to the contributor’s intended political figure’s campaign. ¹¹

1. Glueck, Katie. “Kelly Ayotte’s back — as an environmental advocate.” McClatchy DC. July 17, 2017. Accessed June 6, 2021. https://www.mcclatchydc.com/news/nation-world/national/article161457993.html
2. “Heather Reams” LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/in/heatherreams/
3. “Heather Reams” LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/in/heatherreams/
4. “Heather Reams” LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/in/heatherreams/
5. “Legislative Opportunities to Advance Clean Energy” Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions. https://citizensfor.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/CRES-Endorsed-Legislation-116-FINAL.pdf
6. “CRES Statement on Senate Passage of the USE IT Act” Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions. https://citizensfor.com/pressreleases/cres-statement-on-senate-passage-of-the-use-it-act/ June 27, 2019. Accessed June 6, 2021.
7. “CRES Statement on the Better Energy Storage Technology Act” Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions. https://citizensfor.com/pressreleases/cres-statement-on-better-energy-storage-technology-best-act/ May 22, 2019. Accessed January 6, 2021.
8. “CRES Applauds House Panel For Passing Solar, Wind and Fossil Energy Research Bills” Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions.  https://citizensfor.com/pressreleases/cres-applauds-house-panel-for-passing-solar-wind-and-fossil-energy-research-bills/ July 24, 2019. Accessed January 6, 2021.
9. “About” National Clean Energy Week. https://nationalcleanenergyweek.org/about/
10. “Heather Reams” Federal Election Commission. https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=Heather+Reams&contributor_employer=AAE&contributor_employer=CITIZENS+FOR+RESPONSIBLE+ENERGY+SOLUTI&contributor_employer=CRES
11. “Heather Reams” Federal Election Commission. https://www.fec.gov/data/receipts/individual-contributions/?contributor_name=Heather+Reams&contributor_employer=AAE&contributor_employer=CITIZENS+FOR+RESPONSIBLE+ENERGY+SOLUTI&contributor_employer=CRES