NYISO on Tuesday announced that veteran energy regulator Sally Talberg had joined its Board of Directors as its ninth member.

Talberg has 25 years of experience in energy and environmental regulation and has served in multiple top-level capacities.

She was appointed by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R) to the Public Service Commission in 2013, serving as its chair from 2016 to 2020. During that time, she was a member of both the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners and the U.S. Department of Energy’s State Energy Advisory Board. In 2016, Talberg served as president of the Organization of MISO States.

Sally Talberg | Michigan Public Service Commission

Talberg left the Michigan PSC near the end of 2020 to join ERCOT’s Board of Directors, first as an independent director for the first month of 2021 and then as its chair beginning in February — just before Winter Storm Uri hit and nearly caused the collapse of the Texas Interconnection. She, along with three other independent directors of the board, resigned later that month after fierce criticism from state residents about ERCOT’s out-of-state leadership in the aftermath of the storm. (See ERCOT Chair, 4 Directors to Resign.)

Talberg did, however, begin her career in Texas, after graduating from Michigan State University. She worked at the Lower Colorado River Authority while pursuing her master’s in public affairs from the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. She went on to work at the Texas Public Utility Commission as an electric policy analyst.

“As a former state commissioner and former adviser to commissioners at the Texas and Michigan commissions, she has a unique appreciation for the importance of market design, infrastructure planning, pragmatic regulation and stakeholder engagement,” NYISO said.

Currently, she runs her own consultancy, Talberg Policy Solutions, and serves as a senior policy fellow at Public Sector Consultants.

The NYISO board consists of 10 members; Talberg’s appointment leaves just one vacancy.

“It is a privilege to welcome Sally to the NYISO’s Board of Directors. Her extensive experience will be invaluable as the board guides the NYISO during this historic period of industry change,” Chair Daniel Hill said in a statement. “We look forward to Sally’s contributions as we work to meet the state’s climate mandates, ensure grid reliability and competitive wholesale markets during the grid in transition.”