On January 27, 2013, the Department of Energy (“DOE”) announced that Elliot Mainzer had been appointed Administrator for the Bonneville Power Administration (“BPA”) effective immediately. Mainzer was appointed Acting Administrator in July 2013 when his predecessor, William Drummond, was put on administrative leave amid allegations of certain prohibited personnel practices at BPA (see July 19, 2013 edition of the WER). Drummond had been appointed Administrator in January of 2013, following the retirement of Steve Wright, who had served as BPA’s Administrator for over a decade.
Mainzer has been with BPA for twelve years, serving in various management positions. Prior to working at BPA, Mainzer worked on the trading floor at Enron Corporation in Portland, OR. He has an undergraduate degree in Geography from the University of California Berkeley and master’s degrees in Business and Environmental Studies from Yale University.