Learn more about Power Across Texas and our mission here.
Our Chairman
Rebecca A. Klein
Rebecca A. Klein is principal of Klein Energy LLC, a consulting company whose clients include international and domestic companies focused on penetrating and expanding in the North American power sector. She was formerly Managing Parter and Of Counsel to the Loeffler Tuggey Rosenthal Law Firm in Texas and Washington, DC.
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In 2001, Gov. Rick Perry appointed her as a commissioner and subsequently chairman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas during which time she oversaw the impelementation of electric power deregulation in the State. Ms. Klein served in the White House from 1989 to 1992, where she spearheaded the office that recommends and recruits sub-cabinet level appointments to all agencies related to national security.
She is currently chairman of the board of the Lower Colorado River Authority, a public power utility and also serves as a Board Director of Avista Corporation, a publicly traded utility based in the State of Washington.
Ms. Klein chairs the non-profit, Power Across Texas that serves as a learning center for energy issues throughout Texas. Ms. Klein is a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force Reserve. She received a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University, a master’s degree from Georgetown University and a law degree from St. Mary’s University.
Our Vice Chairman
Missy Mandell
Missy Mandell is principal and founder of Mandell & Associates, an Austin-based government relations and political outreach consulting firm specializing in electric utility, energy, water, environmental and resource conservation issues.
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Prior to her consulting practice assisting corporations, non-profits, agencies and associations in a myriad of complex policy issues, Missy was a member of the Lower Colorado River Authority’s (LCRA) senior management team. Missy served as LCRA’s Executive Director of Conservation and Environmental Protection as well as Executive Manager of Federal Governmental Relations, where she was the liaison between LCRA and the U.S. Congress, federal regulatory agencies, elected officials, industry organizations and interest groups.
A veteran of state and federal politics, Missy served as campaign manager for U.S. Representative J.J. “Jake” Pickle in Austin and press secretary in Texas for U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen in his candidacy for the vice presidency of the United States. Her political skill and acumen date back to former President Jimmy Carter’s successful 1976 campaign in which Missy, at the age of 25, was hired to run his DC and mid-Atlantic regional offices. When Carter was elected President, Missy joined his White House staff as Special Assistant to the Deputy Director for Budget in the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Additionally, Missy has owned and managed a cable and satellite television company in Central Texas, Bluebonnet Cable, and owned a public relations company with clients in both public and private industries.
Missy Mandell is a graduate of the University of Texas.
Our Advisory Board Members
Representative Phil King
As State Representative for the 61st District, Phil King represents the people of Parker and Wise counties in the Texas Legislature. He has earned a reputation as a principle-driven conservative who consistently provides key leadership in passing some of Texas’ most sweeping public policy legislation.
King currently serves as a member of the House Committee on Ways & Means and the House Committee on Public Safety.
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King served as Chairman of the Regulated Industries Committee, one of the key committees in the Texas House, for three legislative sessions, where he worked to promote competition in the electricity and telecommunications markets. King was also co-chair of the Electric Utility Restructuring Legislative Oversight Committee, a joint committee of the Texas House and Senate, and served on the Select Committee on Electric Generation Capacity and Environmental Effects. Additionally, he is on the board of directors for the Tower Institute for Strategic Analysis and Action in Public Policy and the Texas Conservative Coalition, organizations that encourage the principles of economic liberty, limited government, and personal responsibility.
Since his election in 1998, King has made an impact on Texas public policy. In 1999, he was named “Freshman Legislator of the Year” by his colleagues, “Rookie Legislator of the Year” by Texas Monthly, and “Crime Fighter of the Year” by the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas. In his second term, he was named a “Fighter for Free Enterprise” by the Texas Association of Business for his work on pro-business issues, and was honored by the Texas State Rifle Association for legislation implementing a firearms safety program in public schools.
During the 78th Legislature and the following Special Sessions, King authored the congressional redistricting legislation. King was also recognized as “Legislator of the Year” by the Texas Association of Builders.
In 2005, King was the House sponsor of Senate Bill 5, which modernized Texas’ telecommunications laws. SB 5 has been hailed nationally for its groundbreaking provisions in opening the cable television market to greater competition, and has also been the subject of wide praise for its impact on technology investment in Texas. For his leadership on SB 5, King was named a “Legislator of the Year” by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a bi-partisan organization of over 2,400 state legislators committed to Jeffersonian principles of limited government, free enterprise, federalism, and individual liberty. ALEC adopted the principles of SB 5 as “model legislation” to be considered in other states.
King serves as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Texas State Guard, one of three branches of the Military Forces of the State of Texas. The Guard assists and augments the Texas National Guard and Texas civil authorities during state emergencies and in homeland security.
Prior to serving in the legislature, King served as a Captain in the Fort Worth Police Department, an instructor at Dallas Baptist University and a Parker County Justice of the Peace. He received a BA and MBA from Dallas Baptist University and a law degree from Texas Wesleyan University. In 2001, King received the Outstanding Alumni award from Dallas Baptist University, and in 2006, Texas Wesleyan University awarded King with the Distinguished Alumni award. King is a frequent speaker on telecommunications and energy policy.
Currently, he is a practicing attorney in Weatherford with the firm of Eggleston Flowers & King, LLP. Representative King and his family are active members of Trinity Bible Church. Phil and his wife Terry are the proud parents of six children and one granddaughter and three grandsons.
Ralph Cavanagh
Ralph Cavanagh is a senior attorney and co-director of Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) energy program, which he joined in 1979. Ralph has been a Visiting Professor of Law at Stanford and UC Berkeley (Boalt Hall), and a Lecturer on Law at the Harvard Law School; he has also been a faculty member for the University of Idaho’s Public Utility Executives Course for more than a decade.
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From 1993-2003 he served on the U.S. Secretary of Energy’s Advisory Board. His current board memberships include the Bipartisan Policy Center, the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, the California Clean Energy Fund, the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies, the Energy Center of Wisconsin, the Northwest Energy Coalition, and the Renewable Northwest Project. He is a member of the National Commission on Energy Policy, which the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation established in 2002.
Ralph has received the Heinz Award for Public Policy, the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ Mary Kilmarx Award, the Yale Law School’s Preiskel-Silverman Fellowship, the Lifetime Achievement in Energy Efficiency Award from California’s Flex Your Power Campaign, the Northwest Energy Coalition’s Headwaters Award, and the Bonneville Power Administration’s Award for Exceptional Public Service. He is a graduate of Yale College and the Yale Law School. He is married to Deborah Rhode, who is the MacFarland Professor of Law at Stanford Law School.
Fred Cohagan
Fred Cohagan manages the international business operations of Plains Exploration & Production (PXP). He currently serves as Deputy General Manager of PXP’s southeast asia operating company and evaluates expansion opportunities in southeast asia and new venture opportunities globally.
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Prior to PXP, Mr. Cohagan worked as a Principal in the Global Commodities group of Bank of America where he was responsible for business development in the electricity and emissions markets. Mr. Cohagan has worked in a legal or commercial capacity in the wholesale energy markets since 1998.
Mr. Cohagan serves as a board member of Power Across Texas, served as a Commissioner on the City of Austin’s Resource Management Commission, and as a member of the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce Clean Energy Council.
Mr. Cohagan graduated with high honors from the University of Texas School of Law and holds a Master of Environmental Management degree from Duke University
E. Linn Draper
E. Linn Draper currently serves as Corporate Director for TransCanada’s Board of Directors. Dr. Draper retired as Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Columbus, Ohio-based American Electric Power Co., Inc. in 2004, a position which Dr. Draper held since April 1993.
Dr. Draper previously served as Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Gulf States Utilities Company, Beaumont, Texas from 1987 to 1992. Dr. Draper holds a Bachelor degree in Chemical Engineering from Rice University and a Ph.D. in Nuclear Science and Engineering from Cornell University.
John Hofmeister
Founder/Chief Executive, Citizens for Affordable Energy, Washington, D.C.
Former President, Shell Oil Company, Houston, Texas
John Hofmeister, upon retirement from Shell Oil Company in July, 2008, founded and heads the not-for-profit (501(c)(3) pending), nation-wide membership association, Citizens for Affordable Energy. Click to read moreClick to hide
This Washington, D.C.-registered, public policy education firm will exist to promote sound U.S. energy security solutions for the nation, including a range of affordable energy supplies, efficiency improvements, essential infrastructure, sustainable environmental policies and public education on energy issues.
Hofmeister was named President of Houston-based Shell Oil Company in March 2005, heading the U.S. Country Leadership Team, which included the leaders of all Shell businesses operating in the United States. He became President after serving as Group Human Resource Director of the Shell Group, based in The Hague, The Netherlands.
As Shell President, Hofmeister launched an extensive outreach program, unprecedented in the energy industry, to discuss critical global energy challenges. The program included an 18 month, 50-city tour across the country during which Hofmeister led 250 other Shell leaders to meet with more than 15,000 business, community and civic leaders, policymakers, and academics to discuss what must be done to ensure affordable, available energy for the future.
A business leader who has participated in the inner workings of multiple industries for over 35 years, Hofmeister also has held key leadership positions in General Electric, Nortel and AlliedSignal (now Honeywell International).
Hofmeister serves as the Chairman of the National Urban League and is a member of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technical Advisory Committee. He also serves on the boards of the Foreign Policy Association, Strategic Partners, LLC, and the Center for Houston’s Future. Hofmeister is a Fellow of the National Academy of Human Resources. He also is a past Chairman and serves as a Director of the Greater Houston Partnership.
Hofmeister earned Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Political Science from Kansas State University.
Hunter Hunt
Hunter Hunt is senior vice president of Hunt Oil Company and president of Hunt Power, L.P., both subsidiaries of Hunt Consolidated, Inc. of Dallas, Texas. Other Hunt Consolidated business activities include petroleum refining, real estate development, private equity and agricultural farming and ranching.
Hunt Oil Company was founded in 1934 by H.L. Hunt and is one of the largest privately-owned energy companies in the world.Click to read moreClick to hide
Hunt’s responsibilities at Hunt Oil are focused on its LNG efforts, its special project initiatives and its general administrative and managerial operations.
Hunt Power was established in 1998 to seek opportunities in the electric utility industry. Hunt Power’s largest project to-date has been the creation of Sharyland Utilities, L.P., a transmission and distribution electric utility located in South Texas. Sharyland Utilities was the first new electric utility created in Texas in more than 30 years, and since its creation, it has consistently been recognized as one of the most reliable electric utilities in ERCOT, as reported to the Public Utility Commission of Texas. Hunt serves as president of Sharyland Utilities.
Sharyland Utilities currently owns and operates a 150 MW High Voltage Direct Current interconnection with Mexico, which allows power to flow between the two countries while keeping any disruptions on either electric grid localized (in effect, a “firewall”). Completed in October 2007, the DC interconnection provides reliability benefits to both sides of the border, and is the first interconnection with Mexico anywhere along the US-Mexican border that supports commercial-sized trade of electricity.
Hunt Power has four subsidiaries. MeterSmart provides meter data management services and demand response products to more than 40 different utilities across the U.S. and to large industrial customers. It is an active player in the demand response industry. Hunt Transmission Services assists Sharyland Utilities in actively searching for new opportunities to grow its existing operations beyond its current service territory. Hunt Generation Investments is a limited partner of US Power Generating Company (“USPG”), an entity that controls more than 20 percent of the electric capacity in the New York City area and 50 percent of the electric capacity in Boston, Massachusetts.
Hunt serves on the board of USPG. Hunt Energy Enterprises invests in early stage energy technology ventures that focus specifically on the use of technology applications to produce disruptive business opportunities both in the traditional energy industries and in the renewable and cleantech power markets.
In addition to his responsibilities with Hunt Oil and Hunt Power, he is also involved in special projects that occur at Hunt Refining Company, a company that controls three refineries in Alabama and Mississippi.
Prior to joining Hunt Consolidated, he worked with the investment bank of Morgan Stanley for almost eight years. He joined the Natural Resources Group in 1990, covering the major oil companies and gas transmission companies out of the New York Office. He transferred to the London office in 1991, where he covered the European integrated oil companies.
In 1993, Hunt joined Morgan Stanley’s Commodities Group in London, where he traded electricity in the deregulated electricity market of England and Wales. He returned to New York in 1996 to join Morgan Stanley’s electricity efforts in the U.S. He worked extensively on a long-term, fixed price power transaction with Oglethorpe Power Corporation, in which Morgan Stanley provided Oglethorpe long-term, fixed price power in exchange for access to their supply resources. The Oglethorpe transaction remains one of the largest power marketing transactions completed to date. Hunt left Morgan Stanley for Hunt Consolidated in 1998.
He took a leave of absence from the Hunt organization in September 1999 to work for the Bush for President Campaign in Austin, Texas. He worked in the Policy Department, serving as the primary Policy Advisor responsible for energy issues. He also closely covered taxes, budget, and Social Security. He rejoined the Hunt organization in January 2001.
Hunt serves on the boards of the SMU School of Engineering, the Dallas County Community College District Foundation, the Circle Ten Council of the Boy Scouts of America, the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, and the All Stars Program, a national community outreach charity headquartered in New York City. He is also chair of SMU’s 21st Century Council.
Sam Jones
On September 15, 2007, Sam R. Jones retired from the position of President and Chief Executive Officer of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).
Mr. Jones joined ERCOT on December 1, 1996, as its first Independent System Operations Director. In March 2000, he was appointed as Executive Vice President and COO of ERCOT. He was named President and Chief Executive Officer in May of 2006.
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Prior to joining ERCOT, Mr. Jones was employed by the City of Austin Electric Utility in Texas for over 35 years. During his career with the City of Austin, he held engineering and management positions in the areas of distribution, transmission, substation, generation and system operations. Mr. Jones retired from the City of Austin as the Director of Generation and Energy Control.
Mr. Jones has been active in inter-utility reliability work for over 27 years. He is a two-time past chair of the ERCOT Operating Subcommittee and the past chair of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) Operating Committee. He has also chaired or participated in numerous NERC and ERCOT committees and task forces, including the NERC Reliability Assessment Subcommittee.
Mr. Jones has a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and is a Registered Professional Engineer in Texas.
Erle Nye
Erle Nye is former chairman of the board of TXU Corp. His experience has been in the engineering, financial, legal, operations, and regulatory areas. Nye holds a Bachelor of science in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M University, a Juris Doctor from Southern Methodist University, and a Doctor of Science, Honoris Causa from the Baylor College of Dentistry.
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Nye was appointed by Governor George Bush, in February of 1997, to serve a six-year term on The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents and was elected as Chairman of the Board of Regents in May 2001. He was reappointed as a Regent in 2003 by Governor Rick Perry and elected Vice Chairman. Nye is past chairman of the Texas A&M University College of Engineering External Advisory and Development Council. He also serves on the Texas A&M Development Foundation Advisory Committee and is a member of The Chancellor’s Century Council of Advisors of Texas A&M University.
Nye is a member of the Development Council of the University of Texas at Dallas. For Southern Methodist University, Nye serves on the Executive Boards for the Cox School of Business and the School of Law, the Tate Lecture Series, and serves on the Executive Advisory Council of the Maguire Center for Ethics and Public Responsibility. He was formerly chairman of the board of Baylor College of Dentistry.
Nye served on the Board of Directors of the Edison Electric Institute and was co-chair of the CEO Task Force on Critical Infrastructure Protection. He is past chairman of the Board of Directors of the Electric Power Research Institute, North American Electric Reliability Council, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, and the Nuclear Energy Institute.
Nye was appointed Chairman of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council by President George Bush, served on the Advisory Committee to the President’s Commission on Critical Infrastructure Protection and on the U. S. Department of Energy’s Electric System Reliability Task Force.
Nye is a registered professional engineer and a member of local, state, and American bar associations. Nye served on the boards of The Dallas Citizens Council, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, The State Fair of Texas, The Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show, the Dallas Museum of Art, and the North Texas Public Broadcasting. Nye is also a member of the Dallas Committee on Foreign Relations, The Salvation Army’s Dallas County Advisory Board, the Dallas Symphony CEO Council, the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts Foundation, and the Dallas Business Committee for the Arts Advisory Board. Nye is a past co-chair of the Dallas Together Forum and a member of the Governor’s Business Council. Nye is a native of Fort Worth, Texas. He and his wife, Alice, have five children and ten grandchildren and are members of Highland Park United Methodist Church.
Brian Rose
Brian Rose is a Chartered Financial Analyst and has spent the last fifteen years in the finance industry.
Mr. Rose began his career in 1995 as an equity analyst with the London office of Goldman, Sachs & Co. where he had joint responsibility for the European consumer products industry. In 1997 he returned to his native Texas to join Q Investments, a firm founded by former investment managers for the Bass Family.Click to read moreClick to hide
He spent three years at Q co-heading their equity business before leaving for Dallas-based HBK Investments, a then-$10bn hedge fund where he spent five years as an equity portfolio manager. Most recently he spent three years in Chicago as Portfolio Manager for US Risk Arbitrage at Magnetar Capital, a major hedge fund where he held primary research responsibility for a core portfolio. In 2008 he returned to his home in Dallas to join a private investment firm.
Mr. Rose graduated from Cornell University’s College of Arts & Sciences in 1995 as the degree marshall for his class, the honor given to the student graduating with the highest GPA. He graduated summa cum laude from Cornell with dual degrees in economics and sociology. He also served as a marksman on the Cornell University Rifle Team, an editorial columnist for the Cornell Daily Sun campus newspaper, and a contributing writer to the conservative Cornell Review magazine, as well as a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society.
In addition to his professional duties, Mr. Rose also serves as an Executive-in-Residence in the Finance department of SMU’s Cox School of Business, where he teaches a hedge funds class to MBA students, and has been named a Senior Fellow of the Alternative Asset Management Center at SMU’s Cox School. He is also the Community Service chairman of the Cornell Alumni Association of North Texas and a member of the Dallas-Fort Worth Society of Chartered Financial Analysts. He joined the Power Across Texas board in 2009.
Robert A. Webb
Bob Webb has been an attorney and counselor focused on independent energy production, gas and electric transmission, new energy technology and competitive energy markets for 38 years. A graduate of Amherst College with a degree in economics, Mr. Webb obtained his law degree from Yale Law School.Click to read moreClick to hide
His interest has always been the economic regulation of traditional electric, gas and telephone utilities and the dynamic tension between regulation and free markets. He spent 19 years at the law firm of Baker & Botts before starting his own business in 1989. His law practice has centered upon the regulation of public utilities, energy law, and environmental law, and, more recently, the emergence of alternative energy resources, including biodiesel, biomass, solar and wind power.
For 23 years Mr. Webb taught courses on various aspects of energy regulation at the law schools of the University of Houston and the University of Texas. He has twice served as Chair of the Public Utility Section of the State Bar of Texas and has been active in various sections of the American Bar Association. He currently serves as President of the Texas Renewable Electric Industries Association (TREIA).
In 1993 he founded Gulf Coast Power Connect, Inc., the first proposed independent electric transmission company in Texas. In 1997 he co-founded Power Choice, Inc., a federally licensed power marketer, to promote competitive retail markets for electricity. Power Choice formed competitive electric distribution utilities and developed distributed generation. Power Choice has changed its name to Texas Energy Innovation, Inc. and now fosters the development of energy alternatives, including renewable energy facilities. Mr. Webb also serves as advisor and counsel to Proven Concepts, Inc. on well audits and gas production issues with gathering and pipeline companies.
Dr. Michael Evan Webber
Dr. Michael Webber earned his Ph.D. in mechanical engineering with a minor in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 2001. He joined the faculty of The University of Texas at Austin in 2006. He is the associate director of the Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy, which seeks to inform the energy and environmental policy-making process with scientific and engineering expertise.Click to read moreClick to hide
Dr. Webber has led research projects for policy issues relevant to energy, innovation and national security. He has commercial experience at a start-up where he invented cutting-edge laser-based gas-sensing instrumentation for homeland security, industrial and environmental monitoring applications. While at Stanford, he developed diode laser-based gas sensors for applications such as monitoring environmental emissions, analyzing space station bioreactors and optimizing combustion. Webber has given more than 100 speeches and presentations to a range of technical and general audiences, as well as executive briefings to senior decision makers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the U.S. Department of Defense and Hondas American research and development center.
John D. White
John D. White is a Partner with Murphree Venture Partners, LP, in Houston, Texas. In addition, he is Managing director of The Wind Alliance, a public, private, University consortium formed to advance the renewable wind energy industry in the United States. Click to read moreClick to hide
Mr. White is a co-founder and currently serves as the Chairman of the Board and CEO of Standard Renewable Energy Group, LLC (SREG). SREG is a private equity firm, based in Houston, Texas, engaged in the clean technology and renewable energy industries.
Mr. White has over 30 years of legal experience in a variety of industry sectors, with a focus on the energy sector. Mr. White’s legal career includes service as an Air Force Judge Advocate, an in-house position with Texaco, Inc.and over 25 years in private practice, in Houston.
In 2003 Mr. White was appointed by Governor Perry and served on the Board of Regents of the Texas A&M University System from 2003-2009. He was elected Chairman from 2005-2007 and served as the Vice Chairman from 2007-2009.
Mr. White is a Board member of the Houston Technology Center, The Greater Houston Partnership, the Association for Community Broadcasting and Chairman of the Board of the Ed Rachal Foundation. Mr. White received a degree in Political Science from Texas A&M University and his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law.
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