Jeremy Payne

Jeremy Payne brings a wealth of knowledge in political and legislative advocacy. He also has deep experience in clean energy, economic development and environmental policy. For nearly two decades he has appeared regularly before the Maine Legislature, the Maine Public Utilities Commission and other regulatory agencies.

He joined Cornerstone in October 2022 after serving as the executive director of the Maine Renewable Energy Association where he led the local and statewide energy policy debate in Maine. He helped grow the industry into a multi-billion-dollar economic engine across the state. He efficiently managed the association budget, served as the industry’s chief lobbyist and developed a strategic plan to help guide the association in two-year cycles by monitoring and representing the industry in front of the Maine Legislature, the Public Utilities Commission, and other regulatory agencies advocating for predictable investment climate to support new and existing renewable energy investment.

Simultaneously, Jeremy served as a senior project manager for Bernstein Shur, leading advocacy efforts across many different law firm clients with Maine-based footprints, including but not limited to, aquaculture, energy, transportation, health care, as well as doing outreach to Maine’s congressional delegation and federal agencies. Prior to these roles, Jeremy served as a government affairs director for the Maine Association of Realtors, working closely with over 5,000 members to ensure legislative action taken at state and federal levels was beneficial to homeowners.

Jeremy holds a Bachelor of Arts in mass communication from the University of Maine at Orono.