MEET
The Team
Ryan McGowan
Chief Executive Officer
As CEO, Ryan McGowan leads the Institute for Legislative Analysis and oversees all financial and organizational operations. Prior to ILA, Ryan held the top finance position at the American Conservative Union where he served for over 6 years. Before joining the ACU, Ryan worked in the private and public accounting sectors, as well as management consulting where he assisted his clients in the areas of IPO readiness, mergers and acquisitions, revenue recognition, and audit readiness. He holds a B.S. in Accounting and Finance and a Master of Accountancy degree from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.
rmcgowan@limitedgov.org
Jim Renacci
Senior Advisor
As Senior Advisor, Jim Renacci represents the ILA before the U.S. Congress and on various television and radio networks. Renacci previously represented Ohio’s 16th district as a four-term member of congress (endorsed by President Trump) and continues to serve as a national political figure. Renacci also has an extensive business background, having owned numerous automobile and motorcycle dealerships, nursing home and real estate companies.
Bill Dotson
Senior Advisor
As Senior Advisor, Bill Dotson represents the ILA before Federal and State lawmakers, Governors and the business community. Over the past 15 years Dotson has served as a conservative political strategist and is actively involved with the Republican Governors Association (RGA). Dotson is the founder and CEO of Modern Door and Equipment, a company that has grown to over 300 employees and become the leader in space management products for the mid-Atlantic.
bdotson@limitedgov.org
Fred McGrath
President
Fred McGrath serves as ILA’s President, overseeing the organization’s policy, research and scorecard operations. He previously served as the Director of the Center for Legislative Accountability at the American Conservative Union (CPAC), where he spent a decade leading the creation of the nation’s first and only legislative scorecard program covering all 8,000 federal and state lawmakers. In addition to his work at the ACU, he served as an Economic Advisor to the Ben Carson campaign, and was a Koch Associate and Fellow at the Charles Koch Institute. Prior to ACU, Fred worked as a research assistant at George Mason University’s Department of Economics and at the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). Fred holds Bachelor’s degrees in both Economics and Communication from George Mason University.
fmcgrath@limitedgov.org
Francis Finnegan
Vice President & Database Manager
Francis Finnegan directs the ILA’s data and analytics operations. During his decade of service at the American Conservative Union he served in multiple capacities including Data Director, Python Developer and Legislative Analyst. An expert in SQL and Python programming, he constructed ACU’s database of 16,000 lawmaker profiles, 19,000 bills and 1.7 million votes – the largest conservative policy database in existence. He holds multiple master’s degrees: (1) a M.A. in Philosophy and Social Policy from American University and (2) a M.S. in Database Management and Business Intelligence from Boston University. He also has two B.A.s from the University of Portland: one in Philosophy, one in Drama.
ffinnegan@limitedgov.org
Bryan Axler
Director of Policy Analysis
Bryan Axler serves as the ILA’s Director of Policy Analysis where he plays a critical role in managing the review of policy and legislative procedure across the scorecard creation process. He holds a J.D. from Penn State Law and earned his Bachelor’s in Business Administration from Kennesaw State University and previously served at the ACU for nearly two years.
baxler@limitedgov.org
Zoe Reese
Director of Legislative Research
Zoe Reese serves as the ILA’s Director of Legislative Research and directs the research processes for ILA’s congressional and 50 state scorecards. She is responsible for managing the organization’s review of the over 105,000 bills introduced across the nation annually. She holds a Bachelors degree in Political Science and Government from Southern Virginia University and previously served at the ACU for over two and a half years.
zreese@limitedgov.org