Assistant Secretary

Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Department of Energy

Alexander "Andy" Karsner was unanimously confirmed by the Senate as Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) on March 16, 2006 and sworn-in by Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman on March 23, 2006.

Assistant Secretary Karsner manages the Department of Energy's (DOE) $1.17 billion EERE office, which promotes the development and marketplace integration of renewable and environmentally sound energy technologies, as well as the preservation and efficient use of our nation's valuable resources.  Assistant Secretary Karsner also helps lead DOE's efforts to carry out the Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI), announced by President Bush in his 2006 State of the Union address, which aims to accelerate breakthroughs in the way we power our cars, homes, and businesses.

Previously, Assistant Secretary Karsner served in the private sector on a wide range of technologies including heavy fuel oil, distillates, natural gas, coal, wood waste/biomass, wind energy and distributed generation based upon renewable technologies. He has been responsible for and taken part in large-scale power projects in North America, Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa, including unprecedented projects structuring in the Philippines and Pakistan.

In 2002, Assistant Secretary Karsner led his company, Enercorp, to win a global competition to develop the world's largest private wind farm outside the United States at that time.  He  has worked with Tondu Energy Systems of Texas, Wartsila Power Development of Finland, and prominent multinational energy firms and developers including ABB of Sweden, RES of the UK, Tacke of Germany (now known as GE Wind), and Vestas of Denmark.

Assistant Secretary Karsner also worked on behalf of the International Protocol for Hydrogen Economy, participating in meetings and ministerials to advance the President's agenda for a new energy economy.  He has played an integral role in arranging DOE's US-Morocco bilateral protocols for clean energy policy. Mr. Karsner is currently co-leading the Department's support for the Asia Pacific Pact to address global emissions with market-based mechanisms. Assistant Secretary Karsner graduated with honors from Rice University; and received an MA from Hong Kong University; Mr. Karsner resides with his wife and family in Virginia.

Under Secretary

Rural Development

U.S. Department of Agriculture

Thomas C. Dorr was appointed by President George W. Bush to be the Under Secretary for Rural Development and was sworn into office by Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns on July 27, 2005.

As Under Secretary, Mr. Dorr oversees USDA Rural Development policies and programs. Rural Development consists of three program areas -- business, utilities and housing -- that provide $15 billion annual funding authority for loans, grants, and technical assistance to rural residents, communities, and businesses and an $92 billion portfolio of existing business, housing, and infrastructure loans to rural America. Rural Development has over 6,500 employees located across the United States and in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Western Pacific Trust territories. Mr. Dorr previously served as Under Secretary for Rural Development under a recess appointment from August 2002 to December 2003. After his recess appointment ended, he was named Senior Advisor to the Secretary for Rural Development Issues. In this position, Mr. Dorr coordinated several major initiatives on behalf of the Secretary. He played critical roles in USDA disaster relief efforts in response to the hurricanes in Florida; he worked closely with the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights to reach out to minority farmers; and he provided key leadership on various activities to improve program management and business practices throughout the USDA.

Mr. Dorr has broad agricultural, financial and business experience. He has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the 7th District Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the Iowa Board of Regents from 1991-1997, and as a member and officer of the Iowa and National Corn Growers Associations. Prior to his current service at the Department of Agriculture, Mr. Dorr was the President of a family agribusiness company consisting of a corn and soybean farm, a state licensed commercial grain elevator and warehouse, and two limited liability companies.

Mr. Dorr, from Iowa, graduated from College with a B.S. degree in business administration. He is married to Ann Dorr and has two children.