Tell us a bit about your professional background.
I have served as Assistant Chief Counsel of Advocacy for environmental air issues since July 2024. Prior to joining the office, I was an attorney at a New England law firm where my practice focused on energy, environmental, telecommunications, government relations, and healthcare issues.
I earned my J.D. from the University of Maine School of Law and a B.A. in Government with a minor in Leadership Studies, magna cum laude, from the University of Maine. While in law school, I served as Articles Editor of the Ocean and Coastal Law Journal, Vice President of the Student Bar Association, and as a student attorney at the Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic.
Additionally, I worked in numerous offices across state government, including the Office of the Maine Attorney General and the Office of Governor Janet T. Mills. During my last year of law school, I clerked in the Office of General Counsel at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and with a large Maine firm where I focused on energy policy and compliance issues.
What regulatory issues do you work on at Advocacy?
My portfolio at Advocacy consists of environmental air issues and the effects that air regulations may potentially have on small entities. I work primarily with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on air issues related to the Clean Air Act.
What do you enjoy most about working on these issues?
I enjoy assisting small businesses with the often-complex regulatory process by ensuring that their concerns and questions are heard and considered by various federal regulating entities. Additionally, having a background in environmental law, I enjoy the subject matter of my work, including working on complicated and cutting-edge issues related to the Clean Air Act.
What do you enjoy most about working at the Office of Advocacy?
In the time that I have been at Advocacy, I have come to enjoy collaborating with stakeholders to address the very real issues facing America’s small businesses. The work that our office does has an impact on the everyday lives of small business owners, which makes this job fulfilling. Also, my colleagues are great, so working in an office with these folks makes my job that much better.
If you could give one piece of advice to a small business owner concerned about regulations, what would it be?
Reach out to our office. Assisting small businesses in advancing their concerns about regulation is why we are here, and talking with small businesses and receiving input directly from them is a huge part of our work.