Many regulatory studies have highlighted the value of state and federal mandates in encouraging local governments to adopt policies governing climate change and other public risks (May 1991).  Yet Wilson (1980) argues that since the benefits from these policies are widely dispersed and the costs are highly concentrated, the successful implementation of these policies requires a skilled entrepreneur to mobilize latent public support and associate the policy with widely shared values. 

 As the United States continues to struggle with providing national solutions to address climate change impacts, state and local governments have emerged as leaders in both mitigation and adaptation policy.  A significant body of existing research has focused on why some states and localities are more actively engaged in climate protection than others, with somewhat mixed results.  This paper uses a unique climate change policy dataset gathered from a survey of over 200 local governments in 11 states of the Great Plains region to test Wilson’s assertions regarding the need for, and impact of, policy entrepreneurs on climate protection policy.  We test a range of hypotheses in the model, including distinguishing between influences on mitigation and adaptation policies.  We see the findings as useful to both the policy entrepreneurs literature as well as contribute to the ongoing discussion on how to motivate citizens and policymakers to engage more fully with climate protection policies.