Political Quotes

“I rise today to honor Janet Coit, one of Rhode Island's most respected environmental advocates. Ms. Coit is the newly appointed Assistant Administrator for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Marine Fisheries Service. She joined NOAA after a decade of committed service leading the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management under three Governors. After graduating from Dartmouth College and Stanford Law School, where Ms. Coit was a member of the Environmental Law Journal, she served as counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works. She went on to serve as counsel and environmental coordinator for the late Senator John Chafee and, subsequently, his son Senator Lincoln Chafee. Ms. Coit then returned to Rhode Island and began a decade of work as the State director for the Nature Conservancy, where she oversaw some of the State's largest land conservation projects. Ms. Coit went on to be appointed by Governor Lincoln Chafee to serve as director of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. Governors Raimondo and McKee wisely kept her in that position. Her legacy at DEM includes streamlined permitting processes, new opportunities for families to connect with nature, and improved customer service. As the longest serving chief executive in DEM's history, she focused on public parks, promoting local food systems, Rhode Island's fishing and shellfish industries, and climate solutions.…”