He subsequently entered state politics, serving in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1996 to 2003 and holding ministerial office in the government of Bob Carr.
[5] He was elected as chair of the ALP caucus's primary industry and resources committee, where he served as a spokesman for other rural and regional MPs.
[6] He also attracted attention in 1994 by publicly opposing environment minister David Beddall's decision to approve the expansion of the woodchipping industry on the North Coast.
[7] Woods narrowly retained his seat at the 1993 election, despite the Forest Products Association and other logging industry bodies actively campaigning against him for his anti-woodchipping stance.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, he was "regarded as an extremely effective grassroots political campaigner, often driving hundreds of kilometres a day to attend meetings and visit constituents".