Ms. Ann R. Klee was a panelist on the Forum’s discussion on Climate Change.
She has been Vice President of Environment, Health & Safety of General Electric Company since February 2008. Ms. Klee served as Vice President of Corporate Environmental Programmes at General Electric Company since February 1, 2008.
Ms. Klee’s practice covers all aspects of environmental law and policy, including legislation, regulatory developments, general counseling and litigation under the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act, Superfund and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).
She has more than 20 years of experience in environmental law and policy. She was a Partner with Crowell & Moring LLP., since August 2006 until 2008 and provided counseling, litigation and legislative representation to a wide range of companies, trade associations and state and local governments. She was General Counsel of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for two years since May 2004. She has been a Director of The Environmental Law Institute since January 2012. She was Chief Counsel of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works and served as the Counselor and Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Department of the Interior (DOI). As General Counsel of the EPA, she led nearly 350 lawyers and support staff in the D.C. headquarters and 10 regional offices across the country in providing legal advice to the administrator and the EPA’s program offices.
Her work included serving as the agency lead on numerous Supreme Court and federal court briefs, including two landmark decisions concerning wetland protection under the Clean Water Act as well as developing immediate guidance on novel legal issues to facilitate post-Hurricane Katrina and Rita clean-up. Her work also included supervising the legal implementation of the Clean Air Mercury Rule and the Clean Air Interstate Rule; developing agency legal opinions regarding water transfers and application of pesticides to U.S. waters; and review of legal issues relating to permitting of energy development projects, including oil and gas leases, liquid natural gas facilities and power plant licensing. From 2001 to 2004, she served as Counselor to the Secretary of DOI under Secretary Gale Norton and was responsible for advising the Secretary and developing policy options on major issues pending before the Department on matters such as the Endangered Species Act, Indian water rights settlements, oil leasing, mining and the Everglades.
She served as Chief Counsel to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and was responsible for developing legislative strategies for the Chairman on the Clean Water Act, hazardous waste issues, NEPA, the Endangered Species Act, general oversight and enforcement issues. She served as Counsel to Senator Dirk Kempthorne’s Subcommittee on Drinking Water, Fisheries and Wildlife. She joined Senator Kempthorne’s staff in 1995 as environmental counsel, worked on legislation to reauthorize the Safe Drinking Water Act. In the 105th Congress, she was one of the principal staff responsible for drafting and negotiating the Endangered Species Recovery Act of 1997. She was a Co-Chair of the Environmental Group in the D.C. office of Crowell & Moring, she rejoined it in 2006. She has represented transportation, mining and timber trade associations, as well as individual companies in the mining, timber, engineering, high tech and waste management industries. She is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia. She received her J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1986 and her B.A. with High Honors from Swarthmore College in 1983.
