Dave McCurdy joined the American Gas Association (AGA) as president and CEO in February of 2011. Founded in 1918, AGA represents more than 200 local energy utility companies that deliver natural gas to 177 million Americans nationwide. AGA was named one of the top 15 trade associations in the United States in the APCO Worldwide TradeMarks survey of over 300 leading policymakers and opinion leaders in Washington, D.C. AGA was recognized as a Top Workplace for the third consecutive year by the Washington Post. He received the 2017 Business-Government Relations Award by the Bryce Harlow Foundation for honesty, integrity and strategic smarts in his 18-year career as an association CEO.
McCurdy joined AGA after serving for four years as president and CEO of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (Alliance). He led the Alliance during a period of unprecedented economic, environmental and regulatory challenges for the auto industry. During his tenure, the Alliance recorded significant achievements and McCurdy was instrumental in developing the historic agreement between automakers and the Obama administration establishing the national program to increase fuel economy by 40 percent and decrease greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2016.
Prior to his work at the Alliance, McCurdy served for eight years as president and CEO of the Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA), where he helped promote the market development and competitiveness of the U.S. high-tech industry by crafting both domestic and international programs and policies for EIA’s nearly 1,300 member companies. McCurdy also had a successful business consulting and investment practice as chairman and CEO of the McCurdy Group, L.L.C.
Before his tenure at EIA, McCurdy had a distinguished career in Congress, spending 14 years (1981-1995) in the House of Representatives as the Member from the Fourth Congressional District of Oklahoma. He attained numerous leadership positions, including Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. As a House Member, McCurdy played a major role in enacting numerous important legislative initiatives, including: the 1988 National Superconductivity Competitiveness Act; the 1985 Goldwater-Nichols Act, which reorganized the Department of Defense; the Nunn-McCurdy Amendment in 1982, requiring congressional notification of Department of Defense cost overruns of 15 percent or more; and the 1993 National Service Legislation, which originated in a bill introduced by Representative McCurdy and Senator Nunn.
Dave McCurdy was appointed by Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to the Defense Policy Board and served on the board from 2008-2011 in both the Bush and Obama administrations. He currently serves on a number of not-for-profit boards including: Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, the Center for Energy Workforce Development, LMI (Logistics Management Institute), the United States Energy Association and Vice President, Resource Development of The Economic Club of Washington D.C.
McCurdy is a 1972 graduate of the University of Oklahoma and received his J.D. in 1975 from Oklahoma Law School. As a Rotary International Graduate Fellow, he studied international economics at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. He also held a commission in the United States Air Force Reserve, attaining the rank of major and serving as a Judge Advocate General (JAG).
McCurdy and his wife, Dr. Pam McCurdy, a physician specializing in child psychiatry, live in McLean, VA. They have three grown children, Josh, Cydney and Shannon and two sons-in-law and three grandsons.
