State Representative Lynn Smith (R-Newnan) was recently re-elected to serve as Chair of the Energy & Environment Committee of the Southern Legislative Conference during SLC’s 71st annual meeting. Rep. Smith is the first and only woman to serve as chair of this committee and also serves as an ex-officio member of SLC’s Executive Committee.

“I am honored to serve a second term as chair of this important committee,” said Rep. Smith. “I will continue to use this role to highlight Georgia’s diverse energy portfolio and successful stewardship of natural resources, while also providing a platform for the exchange of innovative policy practices among Southern lawmakers.”

In her second term as chair, Rep. Smith will assist in guiding the committee’s policy focus and projects and in shaping the committee’s 2018 annual meeting agenda.

As Chair of the Energy & Environment Committee, one of six SLC standing committees, Rep. Smith highlighted the innovations of the Ray C. Anderson Memorial Highway, a section of Interstate 85 poised to become one of the nation’s safest and most fuel-efficient highways, during SLC’s 2017 annual meeting.

Other topics of discussion at the committee’s sessions included coastal restoration in Mississippi and energy resilience initiatives undertaken by the U.S. military. Attendees also participated in a roundtable discussion on energy and environmental issues from the 2017 legislative sessions and toured the Pascagoula River Audubon Center, where they received a briefing on the connections between wetland conservation and the coastal economy.

The Energy & Environment Committee routinely examines clean water programs and water permitting, alternative energy, state compliance with federal clean air and water standards, the future for nuclear power, and hydraulic fracking in an attempt to craft policies that ensure sound stewardship of the regions’ resources through panel discussions and presentations.

As part of its mission to foster intergovernmental cooperation among its 15 member states, SLC met in Biloxi, Mississippi, for its 71st annual meeting from July 29 to August 2, 2017. The meeting brought together more than 1,300 legislators, legislative staff and guests from across the South.