SPP said Aug. 27 that Vice Chair Ray Hepper has been serving as the Board of Directors’ chair since Aug. 12. 

Hepper replaced John Cupparo, who is stepping away from the position’s time commitments because of personal reasons, SPP said. 

Cupparo was not present for the board’s August meeting, but did call in. He was elected to the board in 2022 and became chair in 2024. He plans to continue participating in the Strategic Planning and Corporate Governance committees and Interim Markets+ Independent Panel. 

The RTO said it will announce a new vice chair before October. 

Hepper has more than 30 years of experience in the electric utility industry. He served as ISO-NE’s general counsel until retiring in 2018. He also represented California in restructuring the billions of dollars’ worth of power contracts entered into during the 2000 energy crisis. 

Hepper briefly served on ERCOT’s board in 2021. However, state law following that year’s Winter Storm Uri required that the ISO’s independent directors all reside in Texas.