Sessions
Panel: Legislative Action for Solar & Storage
2:15 PM - 2:30 PM Wed
William Villafañe is an attorney, a father of two boys and husband of a psychologist. He is the son of a former baseball player and a retired teacher from the public education system. In his early years, he was a young Catholic who attended Luis Muñoz Rivera High School where he founded and served as Editor of the student newspaper Despierta Juventud. In addition, he founded and chaired student councils, managed a student cooperative, and was a member of the Congress of Leaders of Puerto Rico. He was also a missionary, Christian retreat speaker, civic leader, and baseball player. He was admitted to the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus where he obtained his bachelor's degree in Accounting. Finally, he obtained a Juris Doctor degree from the School of Law of the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico. He began his career in public service at the age of 21 in the Treasury Committee of the House of Representatives, which he considers an instructive experience of what the Government of Puerto Rico is. He also led the Housing and Urban Development, Comptroller's Reports, Family and Communities legislative committees. He was in charge of advising agencies and departments of the Government of Puerto Rico, such as the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, the Office of the Commissioner of Municipal Affairs, and the Housing Financing Authority. He then went on to become the Chief Executive Officer of the Public Service Commission, where he developed the tools necessary to broaden his perspective and executive skills. He served as Secretary General of the New Progressive Party during the 2016 electoral process. Then, in November 2016, he was appointed Executive Director of the Transition Committee for the incoming government and Fortaleza Chief of Staff. He practiced law privately for a year and a half. In November 2019, he returned to public service as a senator at large. He chaired the Energy and Public-Private Partnerships commissions. He is currently serving as senator at large.