COSTON — As promised in her inaugural speech Thursday, one of Gov. Maura Healey’s first actions as governor was to issue an executive order creating the country’s first Cabinet-level climate chief.

The order announced Friday, Healey’s first full day in office, also established a new Office of Climate Innovation and Resilience within the governor’s office and secretariat-level climate officers within each of the state’s executive offices to develop agency-specific plans to advance climate policies.

Healey made lofty climate promises on the campaign trail, such as achieving a 100% clean electricity supply by 2030 and electrifying public transportation with clean power by 2040. She will also have to work toward the target the Department of Environmental Protection set to cut waste disposal by 30% by 2030 and 90% by 2050, and the state’s commitment to have net-zero emissions by 2050.

As previously announced, the first climate chief will be Melissa Hoffer, an alumnae of President Joe Biden’s Environmental Protection Agency and Healey’s Energy and Environment Bureau in the state’s attorney general’s office.

Hoffer will report directly to Healey, advising her on policy matters, legislation, regulations, initiatives, capital investments and funding opportunities related to Healey press secretary Karissa Hand said.

“We’re the first state in the nation to have a set position at the Cabinet level,” Healey said. “Chief Hoffer is responsible for driving climate policy across executive department agencies and offices and ensuring that climate change is considered in all relevant decision-making.”

With the goal of achieving a “decarbonized and clean energy future,” according to the executive order, Hoffer will have the power to review the capital plans for all executive offices and agencies and issue advice and recommendations to the governor concerning approval of their plans and implications for the climate.

Hoffer will develop public information campaigns and apply for and administer federal funds for climate projects.

Keeping with a promise made in her inaugural speech Thursday that the climate chief would “work across government and with every city and town,” Healey’s executive order specifies that the chief will also work with municipalities to apply for grants for climate projects.

“Because Massachusetts will be most successful in securing federal support for climate projects throughout the Commonwealth by coordinating efforts and not competing against itself, the Climate Chief shall also engage with, and provide technical support to municipalities in order to facilitate the coordination, aggregation, and prioritization of applications for federal funding to municipalities,” it says.

Within the first 180 days of the governor’s administration, the climate chief will conduct a review of each executive office, analyzing staffing and policy-making practices, and present Healey with a report with recommendations for modifications to better align the offices with the state’s climate goals.

The newly formed Office of Climate Innovation and Resilience will “centralize policy-making on climate issues to support a whole-of-government response.”

This includes reviewing and making recommendations to the governor and the secretary of administration and finance concerning capital expenditures, developing climate-related legislation, and tracking the executive offices’ progress toward climate goals.

“Our focus is going to be really on making sure that we’re driving climate policy across, as much as we can, the executive branch and through and across all the agencies and departments,” Healey said. “One thing we know that we talked a lot about is our focus on environmental justice. There’s a lot of work to be done in this space.”

The office will also have oversight related to ensuring state government itself is adopting sustainable climate practices.

“The climate crisis threatens every aspect of Massachusetts life, our environment, economy, businesses, health, transportation, housing infrastructure. It is our greatest challenge. But it is also our greatest opportunity,” Healey said.

“Massachusetts can and will be a global leader in the fight against climate change, and will partner with businesses and workforce to build that climate corridor of research innovation manufacturing across the state.”

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