NEXT GENERAL CLUB MEETING: THURSDAY JUNE 4, 2015 at 7:30 PM

PUBLIC FORUM: ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Are the Lights Going Out on New York?

This forum will shed light on New York State Energy and
Environmental policy issues that have kept New Yorkers in the dark.

Guest Speaker: Doug Lee
Computer systems management professional. Frequent speaker on energy and environmental issues and outspoken advocate for farmers and rural communities in NYS. Former Republican State Assembly candidate.

Guest Speaker: Maureen Koetz
Principal Partner in Koetz and Duncan LLC. Environmental Counsel for the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Environmental Policy Director for the Nuclear Energy Institute. Represented the nuclear industry at the Kyoto Climate Change Conference. Former Republican State Assembly candidate.

Guest Speaker: Michael Benjamin
Works for ShareNY, a pro-nuclear energy group. Public affairs consultant and contributing columnist to the NY Post, City and State NY and others. Managing Editor, The Bronx Chronicle. Former NYS Assemblymember.

Additional biographical information on our speakers can be found below.

MEETING AT: Knights of Columbus – St. Anne’s Council
263-15 Union Turnpike, Glen Oaks, NY 11004
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ARE THE LIGHTS GOING OUT ON NEW YORK?

We rescheduled the May Club Meeting for June 4th, but the agenda is the same. It’s a public forum on Energy and the Environment, with the addition of one outstanding panelist, Michael Benjamin, a former guest speaker of ours. He’s an energy policy expert who works for a pro-nuclear energy group that opposes Governor Cuomo’s efforts to close down Indian Point Energy Center in Buchanan, NY.

This forum will shed light on the environmental and political issues impacting energy development and will also address policy elements for Sustainable Republicans. There will be a question and answer session. All viewpoints are welcome to be aired on these controversial issues.

New York State has significant deposits of natural gas. Gas development would create jobs, lower taxes and stimulate the economy for the entire state. While gas development using hydraulic fracturing has been proven to be safe, special interest groups have succeeded in effecting a state-wide ban. Solar energy has been touted as a clean alternative to natural gas. Despite significant public subsidies, the technology is barely producing the same amount of energy used in its own production, while producing significant pollution as part of its manufacturing process. Oblivious to the increased pollution, Albany is mandating massive conversion of the state’s power grid to renewables like solar, at significant cost to tax payers. Cuomo’s fracking ban and push to shut down Indian Point will continue to drive up our electric bills, kill off jobs, businesses and economic recovery.

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DOUG LEE

Doug Lee is a frequent speaker on energy and environmental issues. A nature lover, Doug enjoys hiking in the Catskills and fishing on Long Island. He is for responsible development of the State’s rich natural resources with the dual goals of economic development and environmental conservation. He worked closely with government and academic institutions in New York and Pennsylvania to study the environmental impact of various energy sources. He lectured on energy matters at the Joint Landowners Coalition of NY, and gave a seminar on solar energy pollution to the faculty and graduate students of Cornell University. He is an outspoken advocate for farmers and rural communities in the State, and organized a 1,000 person rally to defend landowner rights. A computer systems management professional, Doug has a BS in biology and a MBA in Accounting. He also had his first attempt in politics last year running for the State Assembly as a Republican candidate in the 16th Assembly District in Northwestern Nassau.

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MAUREEN KOETZ

Maureen T. Koetz is the Principal Partner in Koetz and Duncan LLC, providing strategic advice and consultation on sustainability risk and value management using innovative and first-mover capabilities in risk analytics, infrastructure asset management, and green procurement.

Prior to forming Koetz and Duncan, Ms. Koetz served as a Presidential appointee as both the Acting Assistant Secretary, and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Installations, Environment, and Logistics of the United States Air Force, managing a 10 million acre/$200 billion asset portfolio in support of sustainable operations for the largest energy consumer in the federal government. Her responsibilities included energy acquisition policy, natural capital management, energy efficiency (including maintenance policy), installation energy recovery, and operational energy programming. Under her leadership, the Air Force was the largest renewable energy purchaser in the nation.

Ms. Koetz has also held positions as Environmental Counsel for the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and Counsel to U.S. Senator Pete Domenici, covering issues such as electricity restructuring, Department of Energy programming, and federal capital extraction policy. As Environmental Policy Director for the Nuclear Energy Institute, she developed the first analytic models for “Emissions Avoidance,” the results of which have remained a key management and policy element supporting Nuclear: the Clean Air Energy. She has represented the nuclear industry at the Kyoto Climate Change Conference, multiple other international conventions, and the United Nations Council on Sustainable Development.

Ms. Koetz is an Adjunct Professor of Environmental Finance at NYU-Poly and a veteran of active duty service with the U.S. Navy, as well as a published author in several areas related to sustainability, and a frequent speaker on public and private enterprise sustainability, including the key role of natural capital in sourcing energy.

Ms. Koetz has a Juris Doctor from the Washington College of Law at American University, a Bachelor of Arts degree from the American University, and is a member of the Bar of the State of New York.She is a former Republican State Assembly candidate runing in the 65th District in Lower Manhattan.

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MICHAEL BENJAMIN

Michael Benjamin is a public affairs consultant and contributing columnist to the NY Post, City and State NY and other publications. He is a former Member of the New York State Assembly (2003-2010) and once led the Bronx Board of Elections. His columns focus on corruption, government, education, politics, redistricting, nuclear energy and race.  He works for ShareNY, a pro-nuclear energy group that opposes Governor Cuomo’s efforts to close down Indian Point Energy Center in Buchanan, NY. Since leaving office, he has collaborated with the Rockefeller Institute on Government and City and State NY on an orientation program for new legislators.  Michael is a proud graduate of The Bronx High School of Science and Syracuse University where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in political science.