Two Wisconsin legislators receive Emerging Energy Champion Award
Sen. Feyen and Rep. Franklin honored for taking bold action to build fusion hub
Milwaukee – Senator Dan Feyen (R-Fond du Lac) and Representative Ben Franklin (R-De Pere) are the 2026 winners of the Emerging Energy Champion Award for the bold actions they have taken to build a world-class hub around fusion energy, one of Wisconsin’s strongest areas of technological strength.
5 Lakes Institute Chairman Mark Ehrmann presented the award to the legislators on May 5, at a reception at Findorff’s Madison office following the Great Lakes Fusion Energy Summit. The Summit and reception attracted nearly 400 attendees from academia, industry and the public sector to learn about fusion technologies and discuss how to build a center of excellence with UW-Madison’s strong research at the core.
Sen. Feyen and Rep. Franklin were the lead authors and promoters of the fusion bill passed nearly unanimously by the Wisconsin legislature (just 9 of 122 legislators voted ‘no’) and signed by Governor Tony Evers on April 2. Act 165 is the first state-level sales and use tax exemption for fusion energy projects in U.S. history.
“This bipartisan legislation signals Wisconsin’s strong commitment to being a destination for the fusion industry and an enthusiastic partner in the build-out of a high-margin, high-impact supply chain across the Great Lakes region,” said Kathleen Gallagher, Executive Director of 5 Lakes Institute.
The significance of Sen. Feyen and Rep. Franklin’s legislation was emphasized in a LinkedIn post by Realta Fusion, one of four UW-Madison-associated fusion industry companies. “We’re talking thousands of high-paying jobs, billions in outside investment, and a spot at the head of the pack in the race to lead a new wave of manufacturing that will export fusion machines across the globe,” Realta said.
Wisconsin imports about 15% of the energy it needs from other states, and imports 100% of the coal, natural gas and petroleum used to fuel its in-state power plants. The development of a fusion hub here would address that imbalance and bring higher-technology, and therefore higher-margin, opportunities to the state’s industrial base.
Fusion energy, the process that powers the sun and stars, is a long-sought-after way to produce limitless clean and safe electricity. Technical challenges remain to achieving widespread power generation with fusion energy, but much progress is being made. Commonwealth Fusion Systems in April formally applied to connect the fusion plant it is building in Virginia to the electrical grid. The application targets the early 2030s for plant operation.
At the award ceremony, Sen. Feyen and Rep. Franklin each received an Emerging Energy Champions plaque and a book. Rep. Franklin received “Benjamin Franklin: An American Life.” Since Walter Isaacson has not yet written an autobiography of anyone named Dan Feyen, Sen. Feyen received an apt substitute — “The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution.”
Both legislators promised to continue working to strengthen the growing fusion energy hub in Wisconsin and the Great Lakes region. When asked specifically what he had in mind, Sen. Feyen’s response was simple and direct. “Whatever it takes,” he said.
About the Emerging Energy Champion award:
The award is given to people in the public eye who understand the energy needs of the future, have the courage to take a stand on fusion technology, and see the opportunity to leverage our region’s top-ranked nuclear energy research to build a global hub with significant opportunities for our manufacturing base and thousands of good paying jobs.
Sen. Julian Bradley and Rep. David Steffen were the 2025 winners of the Emerging Energy Champion award for their work on a package of two bills and one resolution that support nuclear development in Wisconsin.
About 5 Lakes Institute:
Founded in 2007, the Institute is a curated network of entrepreneurs, research organizations, investors and business and government leaders that drives and amplifies diverse and inclusive tech-enabled GDP growth in the Midwest and Great Lakes region.
The Institute in 2025 formed the Great Lakes Fusion Energy Alliance and in 2026 organized the Wisconsin Fusion Energy Coalition, which received an Ignite grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. (WEDC). In partnership with the Midwest Research University Network (MRUN), 5 Lakes builds programming that connects our region’s research universities with investors and highlights programs. The Institute holds conferences and mixers in tech/entrepreneurial focus areas and sponsors the Midwest Moxie podcast, which features the region’s successful startup founders.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
Mentioned in This Press Release
Recent Press Releases by 5 Lakes Institute
5 Lakes Institute Applauds Wisconsin Governor, Legislators for Groundbreaking Fusion Sales Tax Exemption Bill
Apr 3rd, 2026 by 5 Lakes InstituteThe first of its kind legislation will support development of a globally competitive fusion energy hub.
