Harrison “Ryan” Block

Profile

Harrison “Ryan” Block practices in the McNees Energy and Environmental Law Group, a team that addresses business, regulatory and legal needs within the energy industry.

Prior to joining McNees, Ryan worked as a law clerk with the Energy Markets Division of the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s Office of the General Counsel. There, he drafted memoranda on reactive power ratemaking, enforcement authorities and uncontested audit proceedings; assisted with a proposed rulemaking for natural gas transportation tariffs; analyzed agency deference cases for contract interpretation; and tracked recent developments in utility regulation.

Ryan also worked as a law student with the Energy Delivery and Resilience team with the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of the Assistant General Counsel researching legislation and regulations pertaining to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and conducted ongoing projects pertaining to LNG and utility ratemaking. With the Environment team as an undergraduate student intern, Ryan contributed to various confidential reports for the DOE on energy-related issues and created an incentive for the Feds Feed Families Campaign that was executed at DOE offices across the country. And while interning with Maryland State Senator Roger Manno during graduate school, Ryan drafted energy and environmental legislation, delivered issue briefings on related topics, responded to relevant constituent questions and represented the senator at state and local government meetings.

Before becoming an attorney, Ryan was a program associate with the National Energy Assistance Directors Association in Washington, D.C., where he worked on state and utility energy efficiency, renewable energy, energy affordability and energy assistance programs for low-income households in the U.S. He analyzed economic factors relating to energy consumption and consumer finance and researched the intersection of public health, rising temperatures and energy usage.

Ryan has written energy pieces for industry publications: “Why Domestic RECs Should Take Precedence in Maryland” and “Why 100% Renewable Energy Goals Are Not Practical Policies” in Renewable Energy World and “Lost in Transmission: How to Bring More Clean Energy onto the Grid” in Environmental Law Review.