Matt Kaplan has been nominated by the White House to be the Great Lakes Authority’s (GLA) first federal co-chair.
Congress gave the GLA authorization in 2022, and it will be run by a nine-member board consisting of one appointeed by the President and one by each of the eight Great Lakes state governors. The newly established federal organisation will support local economic growth.
Congress authorised $5 million earlier this year to start the organization’s establishment procedure. For the programme in FY2025, the Biden Administration has asked for an extra $5 million.
Kaplan has been a long-time advocate of Great Lakes ports, shipping, economic development and environmental protection. As a longtime member of Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur’s (D-OH-09) staff, Kaplan worked extensively on advancing the interests of the entire Great Lakes region in Congress and throughout the federal government.
Congresswoman Kaptur relied heavily on Kaplan’s advice when she led the Bipartisan and Bicameral Great Lakes Task Force, the Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, and wrote the legislation that established the Great Lakes Authority.
In addition, Kaplan coached and instructed undergraduate students in an Oberlin College politics course.
Kaplan is presently in charge of federal strategy for regenerative agriculture at the Natural Resources Defence Council, where he works as a Senior Attorney. He formerly worked for the senior judges of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals as a legal clerk and as an Honours Attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice. He is a graduate of Oberlin College and the University of the District of Columbia’s David A. Clarke School of Law.
