Current Developments in Grid Reliability

David Ortiz is the Acting Director of the Office of Electric Reliability. Prior to joining the Commission, David was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Infrastructure Modeling and Analysis at the U.S. Department of Energy, where he directed a wide range of research and development on electricity transmission systems and energy system risk. Key research areas included: transmission system models, advanced control systems, computation, mathematics and algorithms, synchrophasors, and geomagnetic disturbances, among others. He represented the Department as the Federal nonvoting member of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s Member Representatives Committee and led interagency outreach efforts. From 1998 through 2013, David worked at the RAND Corporation, where he built a program of energy policy research and analysis.

David earned his doctorate in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan. He graduated from Princeton University.

Latif joined Spiegel & McDiarmid LLP after graduating in 2011 from Columbia Law School. Since then, Latif has assisted state agencies, municipal utilities and joint action agencies on a variety of regulatory and policy issues related to electric reliability, market design and transmission rates. With an undergraduate degree in electrical engineering, Latif brings a strong technical perspective to legal and policy issues affecting the electricity industry.

Latif also has several years of experience working in energy markets. Prior to law school, he worked at a large natural gas and electricity marketer, where he led a team of energy analysts. As a law student, he interned at Ontario’s independent electricity system operator (IESO).

Sonia is the Deputy General Counse, Vice President, and Director of Enforcement at the North American Electric Reliability Corporation or NERC.