Governor Perdue Announces Appointments to the Governor's Energy Policy Council

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Contact: Office of Communications 404-651-7774

Governor Perdue Announces Appointments to the Governor’s Energy Policy Council

SAVANNAH, Ga. — Governor Sonny Perdue announced today appointments to the Governor’s Energy Policy Council at the Georgia Chamber of Commerce First Annual Georgia Environmental Conference. The Governor’s Energy Policy Council will work the with Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA) to oversee the development of the State Energy Strategy. The council will prepare for the Governor a report that outlines the most important near-term and future policy action items identified in the strategy.

The Governor has appointed eighteen individuals to serve as members of the council, and four state officials will serve ex officio. Lee Thomas, retired president and COO of Georgia Pacific, will chair the council.

Brief biographies of the Governor’s appointees are below.

Chairman

Lee M. Thomas, 62, Atlanta, GA – Thomas is the retired president and chief operating officer of Georgia Pacific. He serves on the board of directors for Airgas, Inc., Rayonier, Inc., the GEFA, World Resources Institute, Resolve, Inc. and the Alliance for Climate Protection. Thomas received a bachelor’s degree from the University of the South and a master’s degree from the University of South Carolina. He and his wife, Dorothy, have five grown children and four grandchildren.

Industry Representatives

Thomas “Tommy” N. Bagwell, 61, Cumming, GA – Bagwell is the owner of American Proteins, Inc. He serves on the board of trustees for Lanier Tech and the Elachee Nature Center. Bagwell is a Paul Harris Fellow and a Will Watt Fellow. He is a founding member of the northeast Georgia Council BSA Foundation and the charter president of Forsyth County Rotary Club. Bagwell received a bachelor’s degree from Clemson University. He and his wife, Chantal, have four children.

Robert H. Demere, Jr., 58, Savannah, GA – Demere is president of Colonial Group, Inc. He serves as vice chairman of the board of trustees for St. Joseph’s/Candler Hospital, and is on the board of directors for the Mighty Eighth Air Force Heritage Museum, the Bethesda Endowment and the Savannah Benevolent Association. He is vice president of the Independent Fuel Terminals Owners Association. Demere received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia. He and his wife, Celeste, have four children.

Oscar C. Harper, IV, 41, Peachtree City, GA – Harper is the vice president of resource planning and nuclear development for Georgia Power, responsible for economic evaluations of demand side programs, forecasting energy load growth and acquiring resources to meet current and future energy needs. Prior to his current position, Harper worked for Georgia Power in marketing, power delivery, competitive generation and regulatory affairs. Harper received a bachelor’s degree from Auburn University and a master’s degree from Brenau University. He and his wife, Patricia, have two children.

Michael “Mike” M. Kumpf, 64, Marietta, GA – Kumpf serves as the director of state government affairs for BP America, responsible for government and political activities in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia. He is a member of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, the Cobb Chamber of Commerce and the American Petroleum Institute. Kumpf received a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University. He and his wife, Gail, have two grown children.

Davis L. Cosey, 54, Perry, GA – Cosey is the chief executive officer of Davis Oil Company. He served as director of the Georgia Oilmen’s Association and the Southeastern Oil Jobbers Cooperative. Cosey was vice chairman of the E50.01 committee for the American Society of Testing Materials. Cosey is treasurer of the Perry Downtown Development Authority and the director for the Uptown Perry Partnership. He received a bachelor’s degree from West Georgia College. He is married to Diane Cosey.

Gary D. Nichols, 45, Dalton, GA – Nichols is energy manager for Shaw Industries. He is a registered professional engineer in Georgia and Tennessee. He is a senior member of the Association of Energy Engineers and the Chattanooga Engineer’s Club. He serves on the board of directors for the Associated Valley Industries and is on the PURE Committee for the Georgia Textile Manufacturers Association. Nichols received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. He and his wife, Leisa, have one child.

Carl Seville, 48, Decatur, GA – Seville is a green builder and consultant for the residential construction industry. He founded and served as vice president of SawHorse, Inc., a design/build firm. Seville received the 2005 Green Building Advocate of the Year award, numerous Environmental Design and Construction Magazine Excellence in Design awards and the 2006 EarthCraft House Leadership Award. He served on the board of directors of the Greater Atlanta Homebuilders Association, and is a contributing editor for Greenbuilder Magazine and HGTVPro.com. Seville received a bachelor’s degree from the Rhode Island School of Design. He has one child.

Suzanne Sitherwood, 46, Marietta, GA – Sitherwood is senior vice president of Southern operations and president of Atlanta Gas Light, Florida City Gas and Chattanooga Gas. She is a member of Leadership Atlanta’s Class of 2006 and serves as a board member for the Emory Hospital Visiting Committee, Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Livable Communities Coalition and Neighborhood Development Partnership, Inc. She received a bachelor’s degree from Southern College of Technology and a master’s degree from Brenau University. Sitherwood and her husband, Guy Griswold, have one child.

Michael C. Whiteside, 64, Newnan, GA – Whiteside is the president and chief executive officer of the Coweta-Fayette Electric Membership Corporation. He serves as president of Green Power EMC, Relyco Resources, Inc. and EMC Natural Gas. He is on the board of directors for Georgia Transmission Corporation and Peachtree National Bank. Whiteside is chairman of the Georgia EMC Renewables/Energy Committee. He received a bachelor’s degree from Middle Georgia College. Whiteside and his wife, Ann, have five children.

Research Institution Representatives

Thomas “Tom” T. Adams, PhD., 58, Athens, GA – Adams is the director of the University of Georgia Faculty of Engineering Outreach Service. His research centers on bio and thermo-chemical processes for producing renewable fuels, chemicals and energy from biomass. He is a member of the American Chemical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Adams received a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Kentucky. He received a master’s degree and a doctorate degree from the University of Georgia. Adams and his wife, Carolyn, have three children.

William “Bill” A. Meffert, P.E., 50, Tucker, GA – Meffert is the manager of the Energy and Environmental Management Center at the Georgia Institute of Technology. He helped develop the first energy management system standard entitled ANSI/MSE 2000. Meffert is a member of the Association of Energy Engineers, the American Society of Heating Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers and the Georgia Energy and Environmental Committee. He received a bachelor’s degree from Covenant College and a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Meffert and his wife, Colleen, have three children.

Public Interest Group Representatives

Daniel “Dan” J. Raudebaugh, 43, Conyers, GA – Raudebaugh is the executive director of the Center for Transportation and the Environment, a non-profit organization that develops advanced transportation technologies and clean transportation solutions. He recently provided testimony to the United States Senate regarding how new transportation technologies can help address energy needs in the United States. Raudebaugh received a bachelor’s degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He and his wife, Melissa, have four children.

Jason S. Rooks, 36, Atlanta, GA – Rooks is the executive director of the Georgia Conservation Voters Education. He serves as a board member for Hands on Atlanta. Rooks co-founded and directed Avido Systems, Inc. in Silicon Valley. He received a bachelor’s degree from Duke University and a law degree from the University of Georgia. He and his wife, Amy, have one child.

Legislative Representatives

Senator Joseph Carter, 43, Tifton, GA – Carter is a partner in the law firm Carter and Richbourg, LLP and a Georgia state senator representing Senate District 13. He serves as vice-chairman of the Education and Youth Committee and is a member of the Economic Development, Public Safety and Homeland Security and Judiciary Committees. Carter is an Administration Floor Leader and served as chief deputy whip in 2006. He is a past president of the Tifton Bar Association, a Leadership Tifton participant, and serves on the board of trustees for the Tifton-Tift County Public Association. He was named one of the 25 most influential south Georgians by South Georgia Business Magazine and the 2006 Public Servant of the Year by the Georgia Optometric Association. Carter received a bachelor’s degree from Valdosta State University and a law degree from Mercer University. He and his wife, Rebecca, have two children.

Representative Rich Golick, 39, Smyrna, GA – Golick serves as southeast regional counsel for Allstate Insurance Company and is a Georgia state representative for the 34th State House District. He serves on the House Insurance, Rules, Appropriations, and Retirement Committees. He serves as senior administration floor leader. Golick is a member of the Vinings Rotary Club, the Cobb Chamber of Commerce and the South Cobb Arts Alliance. He received a bachelor’s degree from Emory University and a law degree from Georgia State University. Golick and his wife, Maria, have two children.

Local Government Representatives

Ron Cross, 65, Evans, GA – Cross is the chairman of the Columbia County Board of Commissioners and retired president and chief executive officer of CCI Construction Corporation. He serves as chairman of the general government committee of the ACCG and is a member of the citizens’ advisory committee of St. John’s Towers Retirement Home. Cross received an associate’s degree from Anderson Junior College and attended Furman University. He and his wife, Janice, have one child and one grandchild.

Michael “Mike” G. Fields, 40, Cartersville, GA – Fields is the mayor of Cartersville. He serves as the district vice president of the Georgia Municipal Association, and was a member of the Association’s Legislative Committee. Fields is a 2004 graduate of Leadership Georgia. He served as president and campaign chairman for United Way. Fields received a bachelor’s degree form Mercer University. He and his wife, Susan, have two children.

State Officials Serving Ex Officio

Paul Burks – executive director, Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority

Carol Couch – director, Environmental Protection Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources

Ken Stewart – director, Georgia Forestry Commission

Stan Wise – chairman, Georgia Public Service Commission

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