Arkansas Environmental Personnel Moves: Division of Environmental Quality Associate Director for Office of Air Quality Stuart Spencer Joining Mitchell Williams Law Firm

Arkansas Department of Environment and Energy Secretary Becky Keogh announced at the September 27th Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission meeting that the Division of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) Associate Director for Office of Air Quality, Stuart Spencer, is leaving to enter the private sector.

Stuart will be joining Allan Gates, Jordan Wimpy and myself in the Environmental practice in the Little Rock, Arkansas office of the Mitchell Williams Law Firm.

Stuart has served in various legal and managerial positions at DEQ since 2010. Prior to becoming Associate Director, his positions included:

• Attorney Specialist
• Legal Policy Advisor/General Counsel
• Air Division Chief
• Acting Senior Associate Director

Two judicial clerkships included:

• Pulaski County Chancery Judge Robin Mays
• Pulaski Circuit Judge Dick Moore

Stuart participated in a private law firm practice from 2006 to 2010.

As Associate Director for the Office of Air Quality he has been the agency’s Senior Manager addressing Clean Air Act issues. Programs or activities addressed included New Source Review, Ozone Re-Attainment, Clean Power Plan, ACE Rule, Regional Haze, and Title V Permitting.

Additional activities have included:

• Testimony before the Subcommittee on Environment of the United States House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee
  • New Source Review Permitting Challenges for Manufacturing of Infrastructure
• Testimony before the Arkansas General Assembly addressing:
  • Proposed Legislation
  • Proposed Regulations
  • Ozone
  • Vegetative Burning
  • Startup/Shutdown Malfunction Regulations
• Participation in White House event addressing “red tape reduction”
• Participation in EPA Press Conference announcing rollout of the ACE Rule
• Guest Adjunct Instructor of Environmental Law at University of Arkansas at Little Rock School of Law

His experience has included leadership roles in two national organizations.

Stuart recently concluded his terms as 2019 Past President and was previously President in 2018 and Vice President in 2017 of the Association of Air Pollution Control Agencies (“AAPCA”). AAPCA is a national, non-profit consensus-driven organization focusing on assisting state and local air quality agencies and personnel with implementation and technical issues associated with the Clean Air Act. It represents more than 40 state and local air agencies.

Stuart was also on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Air Control Agencies.

Articles published in the Air and Waste Management Association’s Environmental Management magazine include the subjects of personal air sensors and National Ambient Air Quality Standards. A forthcoming article will address Regional Haze.

Stuart received a B.A. in Political Science and Minor in Biology at Harding University. He received his Juris Doctorate at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Bowen School of Law.

Stuart will join Mitchell Williams on October 14th.