By Senator Cam Ward
MONTGOMERY— State Senator Cam Ward (R-Alabaster) was among the attendees at a meeting to discuss the formation of a State Energy Chairs Leadership Council, the priorities of such an organization, and the growing number of energy issues contended with by State Legislators.
“This was a great opportunity for me to be at the forefront of energy issues on a national level,” Ward said. “From my position as Vice Chairman of the NCSL Energy Task Force, I can tell you these types of organizations and meetings will be vital to ensuring the competitive edge of American Energy production in the future.”
State Agriculture and Rural Leaders, or SARL, was formed out of the need for legislators dealing with those issues to share best practices, and to study and be more informed on the issues that effect those vital sectors of American life.
The confluence of Agricultural and Energy issues make the formation of a group like SARL, but composed of state level legislative energy chairs a natural outgrowth of the work SARL does.
The meeting was paid for by The Council of State Governments and The National Council of State Legislators, so the cost to the Alabama Taxpayers for attendance at this meeting was zero.
“My district is rural and suburban, and we have a ton of issues pertaining to Agriculture and Energy, from the biggest peach farm in the state to one of the largest natural gas production facilities in Alabama,” Ward said. “So even though I am the chairman of the Alabama Senate Energy Committee, I understand the connection between Agriculture, Energy and our way of life at a grassroots level. These are dinner table issues in my district, and I am just glad to have been in on the ground floor of the formation of this type of growth.”
Ward, a first term state senator, serves as The Alabama Senate Energy Committee Chairman and The National Council of State Legislators Energy Council Vice Chairman.
