Elliott P. Laws Reappointed to 5-Year Term Leading RACER Trust

Elliott P. Laws was appointed to a fourth five-year term as Administrative Trustee of RACER Trust, an organization he has led since its inception in 2011.

DETROIT, MI, UNITED STATES, March 31, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Elliott P. Laws was appointed to a fourth consecutive five-year term as Administrative Trustee of RACER Trust, an organization he has led since its inception in 2011.

RACER — for Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response — was formed to take ownership and remedial responsibility for properties abandoned by the former General Motors Corp. after its 2009 bankruptcy. Under Mr. Laws’ leadership, RACER has completed 99 property sales, resulting in redevelopments that have produced nearly 70,000 recurring jobs and $22.3 billion in total annual output. In addition, RACER has achieved regulatory closure for remedial activities at 60 locations, improving environmental conditions and reducing risk to human health.

“Elliott is a respected and effective leader whose success at RACER Trust has generated tremendous benefits to communities throughout RACER’s 14-state footprint,” said Steven Cook, Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Office of Land and Emergency Management at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which supported Mr. Laws’ reappointment by Judge Martin Glenn of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. “I have been pleased to know Elliott as a colleague and friend for many years, and I know the standards he sets. We’re fortunate to have him leading an institution that is doing vital work.”

“I appreciate the confidence and support of RACER’s many stakeholders, which we’ve built over 15 years of consistently and tenaciously pursuing our dual mandate of remediating legacy environmental impacts and recruiting buyers to invest in redevelopment and job creation,” Mr. Laws said. “As we address some critical challenges across both parts of that mandate, I’m honored to lead a team so focused on delivering real results for our communities. At this pivotal moment in RACER’s work, I’m proud to continue contributing to these efforts.”

In addition to his service as RACER’s Trustee, Mr. Laws is a retired partner in the Washington, D.C., office of the law firm Crowell & Moring, where he co-chaired the firm's Environment and Natural Resources Group and was a member of the Government Affairs Group, helping guide clients through complex negotiations and development of innovative resolutions at the highest levels of the federal government.

Mr. Laws previously served as Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response — now the Office of Land and Emergency Management — at the EPA, and as President of Safety, Health and Environment for Texaco Inc., where he developed and oversaw worldwide environmental and safety policies and positions and served as principal advisor to the CEO and other senior corporate officials on environmental policy matters.

He is a member of the recently launched WSJ Board of Directors Council, a global community of corporate board leaders tackling the most pressing issues facing companies today. He also is on the board at Reworld Waste, formerly Covanta, a private energy-from-waste and industrial waste management services company, and Arcwood Environmental, formerly Heritage Environmental Services, a hazardous waste management company.

Mr. Laws received one of the environmental industry’s highest honors in 2023, when he was presented the Charlie Bartsch Lifetime Achievement Award at EPA’s National Brownfields Training Conference in Detroit, where RACER is based.

About RACER Trust: The Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response (RACER) Trust was created in March 2011 by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to clean up and position for redevelopment the properties abandoned by General Motors Corp. in its 2009 bankruptcy. At its effective date, RACER Trust’s real property portfolio consisted of 336 tax parcels; 34 million square feet in 167 buildings; and 6,776 acres of land at 83 locations in 14 states. When it was formed, RACER was one of the largest holders of industrial properties in the United States, and the largest environmental response trust in U.S. history. Since then, RACER has completed 99 property sales and achieved a no further action status or similar regulatory closure for 60 components of cleanups. Investments by RACER Trust’s buyers and end users have generated annual, recurring impacts of nearly 70,000 permanent FTEs, $6.1 billion in labor income and $22.3 billion in regional economic output, creating new opportunities and revenue for RACER’s communities. For more information, please visit racertrust.org.

Bill Callen
Behan Communications, Inc.
+1 518-480-9793
bill.callen@behancom.com

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