national governors association proposes response to energy challenges

Taking in a wide array of issues that include modernizing power grids and increasing the use of smart technologies, the National Governors Association has issued a roadmap to help states address their 21st century energy needs.

That roadmap is part of a larger combined report and initiative just issued by the NGA called Ahead of the Curve: Innovation Governors.

The report, released during the recent NGA summer meeting in Santa Fe, looks at the technology, cyber threat, and workforce training issues, among other topics, that the nation’s governors can be expected to face in coming decades.

The part of the initiative dealing strictly with energy issues notes that governors are going to be increasingly tasked with coming up with ways of building their states’ microgrids, enhancing energy storage, and modernizing both natural gas and coal use.

The initiative puts an emphasis on collaborative planning with interested parties and the use of incentives for industries that align with public policy goals.

In issuing the report, Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval, chairman of the NGA, said the proposed roadmaps are intended to provide both governors and senior state policy officials with “ideas for how they can prepare their states for the ongoing technology disruption associated with a more connected and automated future.”

Sandoval added that the specific energy and transportation roadmaps also highlight “existing state efforts from across the country that can serve as examples for other governors to follow.”

The NGA serves as a collective voice of the nation’s governors, irrespective of the political parties they belong to, representing the states’ interests in Washington on any number of public policy issues.

By Garry Boulard