Gary Guzy brings three decades of experience in environmental law, regulation, and public policy through his leadership in government, business, and academia. He is skilled at creating strategic partnerships and is known for bringing together diverse groups and resolving challenging public policy controversies through his close work with industry and environmental community leaders. He is also a frequent speaker on emerging trends in environmental law.
Mr. Guzy recently served as Deputy Director and General Counsel of the White House Council on Environmental Quality. In this position, he helped develop and guide the Obama administration’s environmental, public health, and clean energy agenda, bringing business insights to government policy and coordinating policy across government agencies. For example, he spearheaded negotiations that achieved the Obama administration’s historic agreement to double motor vehicle fuel efficiency standards and significantly cut greenhouse gas emissions through the year 2025 with the support of automobile manufacturers, states, labor unions, environmental and consumer groups, and Congress. Mr. Guzy also led CEQ’s efforts to modernize the National Environmental Policy Act, by pioneering novel procedures designed to enhance coordination with other statutes, focus on information necessary to decisionmakers, and ensure more transparency, all while expediting the pace of environmental reviews. Additionally, he has counseled federal agencies on how to fulfill their NEPA obligations for dozens of high profile decisions and has assisted in resolving NEPA controversies at numerous complicated sites.
Mr. Guzy was General Counsel of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Counselor to the EPA Administrator during the Clinton Administration. He served as a member of the Administrator’s senior policy team, setting regulatory, legislative, and communications strategy. He led efforts to design regulatory approaches to protect children’s environmental health, develop and defend new air quality and motor vehicle standards, defend EPA from Congressional oversight investigations, and protect iconic ecosystems such as the Everglades and Yellowstone National Park. He also authored climate change opinions that were later ratified by the U.S. Supreme Court in its landmark decision finding that greenhouse gases are pollutants under federal law.
Mr. Guzy has served as the chief legal officer, sustainability officer, and climate strategist for a variety of business organizations.