David Garman was nominated by President George W. Bush to serve as Assistant Secretary on April 30, 2001 and was confirmed unanimously by the United States Senate on May 25, 2001. On April 19, 2004, Mr. Garman was directed by the President to perform the additional duties of the office of Under Secretary of Energy.
As Acting Under Secretary, Mr. Garman has overall responsibility for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) operations in Energy, Science, and Environment, with an annual budget of $14 billion.
In his dual capacity as Assistant Energy Secretary, Garman leads the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) comprised of over 500 federal employees in Washington, DC and six regional offices, supported by thousands of federal contractors both in and outside the National Laboratories. EERE’s $1.2 billion technology portfolio is the largest energy research, development, demonstration and deployment portfolio at the Department of Energy.
Assistant Secretary Garman was instrumental in the development of the FreedomCAR cooperative automotive research partnership and the President’s Hydrogen Fuel Initiative. In recognition of his role, he was awarded the National Hydrogen Association’s 2002 Meritorious Service Award, and the Electric Drive Vehicle Association’s 2003 “E-Visionary” Award. Concurrent with his duties as Assistant Secretary, Garman also serves as Chairman of the FreedomCAR Executive Steering Committee and as Chairman of the Steering Committee for the 15-nation International Partnership for a Hydrogen Economy.
Prior to joining the Department of Energy, Mr. Garman served in a variety of positions on the staff of two U.S. Senators and two Senate Committees during a career spanning nearly 21 years, including service on the Professional Staff of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Immediately prior to his current position, Mr. Garman was Chief of Staff to Frank Murkowski, then Chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, now Governor of Alaska. In addition to his normal Senate duties, Mr. Garman represented the Senate leadership at virtually all of the major negotiations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change from 1995-2000.
Assistant Secretary Garman has testified before Congress as an Administration witness on more than twenty-five occasions; and been featured as a key Administration spokesman on future energy technologies in print, television and radio. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy from Duke University, and a Master of Science in Environmental Sciences from the Johns Hopkins University.
