Protect Our Communities (Orange Co.)

Local GroupLitigatorMedium activity

Retains counsel for 94-c intervenor petitions

Goshen, NYFirst tracked September 14, 2021

The only local group in the network with a standing litigation budget. Converts delay into cost: three 94-c interventions, each built from the same 41-page comment template.

Genuine NIMBYsCo-opted environmentalists

Recommended engagement strategy

Pre-answer the template. Complete decommissioning bonds and cultural resource surveys before the issues conference.

Litigator profile: Converts delay into cost. Anticipate the filing template and pre-answer it in the record.

Open counter-measure playbook

Hearing appearances

Logged in minutes

Counties active

Orange, Dutchess

Projects opposed

Solar & storage dockets

Funding received

$383K

4 traced inbound edges

Funding given

$28K

1 traced outbound edges

Arguments logged

Top: Environmental Impact

Where They OperateCounties with a tracked filing, appearance, or monitored channel, and the specific project dockets involved.Counties with a tracked filing, appearance, or monitored channel, and the specific project dockets involved.

Counties

Orange15 ev.
Dutchess8 ev.
Sullivan5 ev.
Ulster5 ev.

Project dockets

Goshen Ridge SolarOrange Co.NO DOSSIER
Milan SolarDutchess Co.NO DOSSIER
Bethel Solar FarmSullivan Co.NO DOSSIER

View on county map

What They ArgueArgument classification from filings, testimony transcripts, and monitored posts. Counts are statements, not documents.Argument classification from filings, testimony transcripts, and monitored posts. Counts are statements, not documents.

Environmental Impact20 · 29%
Home Rule / Preemption17 · 24.6%
Other / Unknown13 · 18.8%
Property Value Claims11 · 15.9%
Fire / Battery Safety8 · 11.6%

Most-repeated claim

“Prime agricultural soils are destroyed permanently.”

Who Funds ThemTraced grants, dues, contractor payments, and campaign contributions. Amounts come from 990 filings, grant letters, and NYS BOE data.Traced grants, dues, contractor payments, and campaign contributions. Amounts come from 990 filings, grant letters, and NYS BOE data.

Inbound

Outbound

Thomas J. Vance, Esq. (retainer)$28K
2025 · Legal retainer

Open in funding network

Activity Log7 entriesChronological record assembled from hearing minutes, local law filings, 990 disclosures, and monitored channels.Chronological record assembled from hearing minutes, local law filings, 990 disclosures, and monitored channels.

Coalition letter co-signedMay 28, 2025Co-signed a letter to the Dutchess County legislature opposing ORES preemption under Article VIII.
Board minutes matchedMay 21, 2025Language in Goshen board minutes matched a submission filed on Goshen Ridge Solar.
Hearing appearanceMay 9, 2025Spoke for 12 minutes against Goshen Ridge Solar at the Goshen planning board.
Intervenor petition filedApr 24, 2025Filed a 94-c intervenor petition on Goshen Ridge Solar, raising decommissioning bonds and cultural resources.
Local law draftedApr 2, 2025Circulated setback overlay text to the Goshen board; matches model legislation distributed statewide.
Payment disclosedMar 18, 2025Contractor payment from Americans for Prosperity – NY covers the same period as testimony on Goshen Ridge Solar.
First tracked activitySep 14, 2021Entered the monitor via a Orange County record referencing Milan Solar.

Aliases & AffiliationsAlternate names seen in filings and the organizations this actor is formally or functionally tied to.Alternate names seen in filings and the organizations this actor is formally or functionally tied to.

Known aliases and filing names

POC Orange
Orange County Preservation Committee

Affiliations

Americans for Prosperity – NY
DonorsTrust
Thomas J. Vance, Esq.

Network position

Classified as a local group in the three-tier model, with 5 traced funding edges.