Last month, NASEO’s Board of Directors passed the “Commitment to Equity, Access, and Inclusion,” highlighting tangible steps NASEO will take to address inequities and disparities in the costs and benefits of America’s energy systems, infrastructure, policies, and programs.
Through the Resolution, the Board encourages all State Energy Officials to recognize and eliminate disparities, inequities, injustices, and other effects of racism, oppression, and exclusion by advancing equitable and inclusive energy policies, programs, engagement, and decision-making. It also establishes NASEO’s Energy Equity Committee (first established as a Task Force two years ago), which will hold its first meeting for interested NASEO members on July 28.
The Resolution also commits NASEO to key actions, including incorporating considerations of equity, inclusion, and underserved populations and communities in the development of national policy positions; developing best practices of community engagement to ensure that recommendations on how to incorporate equity and inclusion in state energy policies are informed by the needs and perspectives of directly-affected communities and partnering with minority and women member-based professional organizations to facilitate discussions and gain input regarding the development of meaningful strategies, policies, and programs to address racial and gender disparities, inequities, and injustice.