Ernesto Ballesteros serves as the Cybersecurity State Coordinator (CSC) for the State of Texas at the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in Region 6. As the CSC for the State of Texas, he is the principal point of contact for non-Federal entities to engage with the Federal Government on cybersecurity matters. Previously, Ballesteros served as the Texas state cybersecurity coordinator and chair of the Texas Cybersecurity Council, at the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR). During his tenure he contributed to the development and implementation of statewide initiatives, such as the Texas Information Sharing and Analysis Organization (TxISAO), the Statewide Cybersecurity Awareness Training Program, and more.

Mr. Ballesteros holds BS MS in CISS from Our Lady of the Lake University; an NSA/DHS-designated Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education (CAE-CDE), and a JD specializing in cyber and privacy law. Lastly, Ballesteros is an (ISC)2 Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), ISACA Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), and CompTIA Security+ certified professional.

Jeff Marron is an IT specialist at NIST, where supports several NIST efforts, such as cybersecurity for the Internet of Things (IoT), cybersecurity for health care, and outreach to small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) regarding cybersecurity. He previously supported the NIST Cybersecurity Framework project. Prior to joining NIST, Jeff spent over 10 years working in IT security within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).  Among other things, his work included security engineering and integration work at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In the more distant past, Jeff was an elementary school teacher of English as a second language in Maryland schools.

Matt Tompkins is the federal senior intelligence coordinator at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). In that role, he leads a team that engages with the intelligence community and other information partners to ensure that Commission rule-makings and energy sector engagements are informed by current and comprehensive threat intelligence. He has previously served in positions in the State Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and U.S. Army.

Chad V. Seely is senior vice president, general counsel, and corporate secretary for ERCOT, where he oversees state and federal policy and manages the overall litigation strategy. In addition, Mr. Seely is responsible for the leadership of the compliance, cyber security, physical security, facilities, and information governance departments. Prior to joining ERCOT, Mr. Seely was an attorney at the Texas Department of Insurance, working on enforcement matters against insurance agents and companies before the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) and the Commissioner of Insurance. He received B.A. in political science and French from Texas Tech University in 1999, and graduated from South Texas College of Law in 2002 and earned awards in South Texas’ esteemed advocacy program.

Brady Phelps serves as the entity monitoring physical security lead at WECC. In this role, he combines technical expertise with a collaborative approach to lead audits, deliver educational outreach, and provide actionable guidance to enhance security across WECC’s entities. Brady also intakes regional and national risk intelligence to strategically shape the physical security monitoring activities at WECC, ensuring that security measures align with evolving threats and vulnerabilities. Prior to WECC, Brady was instrumental in elevating security standards as the security supervisor at Grant County Public Utility District #2 in Washington State.

Brady holds a bachelor’s degree in security management from American Military University and is internationally recognized in security management and investigations with credential such as the ASIS Certified Protection Professional (CPP), Professional Certified Investigator (PCI), and Physical Security Professional (PSP) certifications.

Mark Henry is the chief engineer and director of reliability outreach at Texas RE. He has experience in the electric power industry including generation, transmission, and control center assignments as an electrical engineer and engineering supervisor from the Lower Colorado River Authority where he worked for nearly 15 years. He has worked with the bulk power system compliance program since joining the ERCOT ISO in December 1999. Mark is a licensed professional engineer in Texas and holds a BSEE from the University of Texas at Austin.

Shirley Mathew is a senior reliability engineer in Texas RE's Reliability Services department. Prior to joining Texas RE, Shirley had over 30 years of experience in various areas of the energy industry, with a background in transmission planning, regulatory compliance, power production, market systems, system protection and substation design with Austin Energy, Texas RE, Lone Star Transmission and LCRA. Shirley holds a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from the University of Toronto and is a registered Professional Engineer in the state of Texas.

AJ Smullen is the enforcement manager at Texas RE. Before joining Texas RE, AJ worked for five years as a staff attorney in the legal division of the Public Utility Commission of Texas, where he represented the staff of the Commission in rulemaking and litigation proceedings involving the electric, telephone, and water utility industries. AJ holds a bachelor of arts degree in history and philosophy and a juris doctor degree from The University of Texas at Austin.

Alex Petak is an enforcement attorney at Texas RE.  Before joining Texas RE, Alex worked as a staff attorney in the legal division of the Public Utility Commission of Texas, where he represented the staff of the Commission in administrative and litigation proceedings involving the electric, telephone, and water utility industries. Alex holds a B.A. in psychology and a juris doctor degree from the University of Texas at Austin.

William Sanders is the cybersecurity principal at Texas RE, acting as a CIP subject matter expert, providing support for the enforcement, registration, and standards groups. William has continuously been involved in NERC CIP since 2015, initially as a Telecom Administrator responsible for maintaining CIP v3 compliance for the Lower Colorado River Authority’s (LCRA) substation assets. He holds a master’s degree in network & communications management with a specialization in information security and a master of business administration in management information systems.  William also maintains multiple industry certifications and is recognized as a Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA), a Cisco Certified Network Professional Enterprise (CCNP Enterprise), and a Cisco Certified Network Professional Security (CCNP Security).