Danny Ray Brouillette ( born August 18, 1962) is an American government official and businessman who served as the

United States Secretary of Energy The United States secretary of energy is the head of the United States Department of Energy, a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and fifteenth in the United States presidential line of succession, presidential line of succession. The po ...

from 2019 to 2021. He previously served as the

Deputy Secretary of Energy The deputy secretary of energy is a high-ranking position within the United States Department of Energy. The Deputy Secretary is the second-highest-ranking official of the Department and assists the secretary of energy in the supervision and dire ...

from August 2017 to December 2019.

Early life and education

Brouillette is originally from

Paincourtville, Louisiana Paincourtville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Assumption Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 911 at the 2010 census. History Legend says an early traveler, unable to buy a single loaf of bread there, facetiously called th ...

. He graduated from the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of Mary ...

in 1995.

Career

Following his service in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

, Brouillette served as Rep. Billy Tauzin's legislative director from 1989 to 1997. From 1997 to 2000, he was Senior Vice President of R. Duffy Wall & Associates, a DC-based independent lobbying firm. Brouillette was Assistant Secretary for Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs in the

U.S. Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and manages the research and development of nuclear power and nuclear weapons in the United States. ...

from 2001 to 2003 under

President George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

. He then served as chief of staff under Rep. Billy Tauzin and was also staff director for the

House Energy and Commerce Committee The Committee on Energy and Commerce is one of the oldest standing committees of the United States House of Representatives. Established in 1795, it has operated continuously—with various name changes and jurisdictional changes—for more than ...

from 2003 to 2004, when Tauzin chaired the committee. Brouillette was involved in crafting provisions included in the

Energy Policy Act of 2005 The Energy Policy Act of 2005 () is a federal law signed by President George W. Bush on August 8, 2005, at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The act, described by proponents as an attempt to combat growing energy problems ...

, specifically with respect to the Department of Energy loan guarantee program and federal authorization of importation and exportation of liquid natural gas. From 2004 to 2006, Brouillette was a vice president at

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...

, running the company's domestic policy teams. He also served on Ford's North American Operating Committee. In 2006, Brouillette was hired as head of public policy and senior vice president at United Services Automobile Association, which offers financial services to people and families that serve, or served, in the

United States military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

. Brouillette also served as a member of Louisiana's State Mineral and Energy Board from 2013 to 2016. Dan Brouillette was awarded the 2020 Distinguished Alumnus Award by the

University of Maryland Global Campus The University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC, formerly University of Maryland University College) is a public university in Adelphi, Maryland. It is the largest of the University System of Maryland campuses. Established in 1947, UMGC focuses on ...

Alumni Association An alumni association or alumnae association is an association of graduates or, more broadly, of former students (alumni). In the United Kingdom and the United States, alumni of universities, colleges, schools (especially independent schools), ...

. In 2021, he joined the American Council for Capital Formation's board of advisors.

Deputy Secretary of Energy (2017–2019)

On April 3, 2017, President Donald Trump announced he would nominate Brouillette as

United States Deputy Secretary of Energy The deputy secretary of energy is a high-ranking position within the United States Department of Energy. The Deputy Secretary is the second-highest-ranking official of the Department and assists the secretary of energy in the supervision and dire ...

in the

United States Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and manages the research and development of nuclear power and nuclear weapons in the United Stat ...

. Brouillette was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on August 3, 2017. He was sworn in as the Deputy Secretary for Energy on August 8, 2017.

Secretary of Energy (2019–2021)

Dan Brouillette sworn in as Secretary of Energy

On October 18, 2019, President Trump announced he would nominate Brouillette as

to replace

Rick Perry James Richard Perry (born March 4, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 14th United States secretary of energy from 2017 to 2019 and as the 47th governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015. Perry also ran unsuccessfully for the Republica ...

, who had announced he would step down by the end of the year. On November 7, 2019, President Trump sent his nomination to the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. Perry formally resigned as Energy Secretary on December 1, 2019, making Brouillette the acting secretary as his nomination was still pending before the U.S. Senate. On December 2, 2019, the Senate confirmed his nomination by a vote of 70–15. Brouillette was formally sworn in on December 11, 2019. Brouillette delegated the powers and responsibilities of Deputy Secretary to then-Under Secretary of Energy

Mark Menezes Mark Wesley Menezes is an American lawyer and government official who served as the United States Deputy Secretary of Energy from 2020 to 2021. Prior to his current role, he served as Under Secretary of Energy from 2017 to 2020 and was the vice ...

. Menezes serving as Acting Deputy Secretary of Energy was confirmed as Deputy Secretary on August 4, 2020. Secretary Dan Brouillette

Brouillette traveled extensively, both domestically and internationally, during his year as Secretary. In February 2020, he traveled to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

to attend the

Munich Security Conference The Munich Security Conference (MSC; german: Münchner Sicherheitskonferenz) is an annual conference on international security policy that has been held in Munich, Bavaria, Germany since 1963. Former names are ''Wehrkundetagung'' and ''Münchner ...

;

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, to attend the

IAEA The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is an intergovernmental organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons. It was established in 1957 ...

's International Conference on Nuclear Security;

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, to tour the

Port of Sines The Port of Sines is the largest artificial port in Portugal, and a deep water port, natural backgrounds to -28 m ZH with specialized terminals that allow the movement of different types of goods. Besides being the main port on the Atlantic seaboa ...

and meet with various officials and industry representatives;

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

to attend the U.S.-

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Energy Forum; and

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

to attend the U.S.-

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Energy Cooperation Roundtable. Brouillette also traveled frequently within the United States in 2020, including to

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the Native Americans in the United States, indigenous Dakota people, Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north a ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, and

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. On Jan 7, 2021, Brouillette promised a seamless handover between the

Trump Trump most commonly refers to: * Donald Trump (born 1946), 45th president of the United States (2017–2021) * Trump (card games), any playing card given an ad-hoc high rank Trump may also refer to: Businesses and organizations * Donald J. T ...

and Biden administrations. On Jan 15, 2021, Brouillette issued a letter to the US Governors in which he highlighted the need of critical energy workers' health and preferential Covid vaccination, to ensure an uninterrupted energy supply to the Nation's communities.

Personal life

Brouillette and his wife, Adrienne, are U.S. Army veterans and the parents of nine children, all of whom the couple homeschooled. They reside in

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

. He served in the Army from 1982 to 1987 as a tank commander in Germany in the "

Fulda Gap The Fulda Gap (german: Fulda-Lücke), an area between the Hesse-Thuringian border (the former Inner German border) and Frankfurt am Main, contains two corridors of lowlands through which tanks might have driven in a surprise attack by the Sovi ...

" and as a

Drill Sergeant A drill instructor is a non-commissioned officer in the armed forces, fire department, or police forces with specific duties that vary by country. Foot drill, military step, and marching are typically taught by drill instructors. Australia Austr ...

in the

Army Reserve A military reserve force is a military organization whose members have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve ...

in South Carolina.

References

External links

* * , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Brouillette, Dan 1962 births Living people 21st-century American businesspeople American lobbyists Ford executives People from Assumption Parish, Louisiana Businesspeople from San Antonio Political chiefs of staff Texas Republicans Trump administration cabinet members United States Army non-commissioned officers United States Army reservists United States Deputy Secretaries of Energy United States Secretaries of Energy United States congressional aides University of Maryland, College Park alumni Washington, D.C., Republicans