Sharon Neely

Deputy Executive Director 
Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG)

Sharon Neely has over 35 years of transportation experience in management positions. Ms. Neely has had a long involvement with public transportation, legislation, and funding issues in Southern California.

Ms. Neely is the Deputy Executive Director of Strategy, Policy, and Public Affairs for SCAG. She is responsible for policy support, legislation, public affairs, media and Board communication/agendas. The Southern California Association of Governments covers 190 cities, 6 counties and 19 million residents. Ms. Neely was instrumental in the passage of AB 1403 eliminating a $1 million cap on Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) allocation of TDA sales tax funds in place since 1979.

Ms. Neely also served as the Director of Transportation Policy for the ACE Construction Authority in Los Angeles County, California for eight years. She was responsible for local, state, federal and community relations for the $1.4 billion ACE Project and helped secure $1 billion for the freight infrastructure project.

Tim Lovain

Vice President and General Counsel 
Denny Miller Associates

Mr. Lovain is Vice President and General Counsel of Denny Miller Associates, a government relations consulting firm in Washington, DC. Before joining Denny Miller Associates in 1984, Mr. Lovain served as a legislative assistant to Senator Slade Gorton (R-WA), legislative director of New Directions, a citizens' lobby on international issues, and chief legislative assistant to Representative Helen S. Meyner (D-NJ). He also served as an active-duty Coast Guard officer for three years.

Mr. Lovain served on the Alexandria, VA City Council from 2006-2009 and represented Alexandria on the Transportation Planning Board of the National Capital Region.

Chuck Baker

Partner
Chambers, Conlon & Hartwell

President
National Railroad Construction & Maintenance Association

Chuck Baker is a Partner at the Washington, DC transportation government affairs firm Chambers, Conlon & Hartwell (CC&H), where he represents clients such as the National Railroad Construction & Maintenance Association (NRCMA) and the American Short Line & Regional Railroad Association (ASLRRA). Mr. Baker is a member of the Board of Directors of the Coalition for America’s Gateways & Trade Corridors (CAGTC).

For the NRCMA, Mr. Baker also serves as its President. In this capacity, he handles the association's core issues and programs, including its federal government affairs program in front of both Congress and the Administration. Prior to joining Chambers, Conlon & Hartwell, Mr. Baker worked with the Surface Transportation Policy Project in Washington, D.C. Mr. Baker has also worked in the office of Senator (then Congressman) Ben Cardin (MD) and for Deutsche Bank Securities as an investment banker specializing in Corporate Finance and Mergers & Acquisitions in San Francisco, CA.

Mr. Baker is a native of Baltimore, MD and a graduate of Rice University in Houston, TX.

Lauri Brady

Director, Site Operations
Prepass - ACS

Lauri J. Brady is the Director of Site Operations for PrePass, an intelligent transportation service of HELP, Inc. and provided by ACS Transportation Solutions. PrePass is an electronic screening system that allows qualified motor carriers to pre-clear state weigh stations and inspection facilities. Ms. Brady interfaces with federal, state, and local governments and the transportation industry to ensure optimal PrePass operations. Her duties entail new state sales, contract negotiations, maintaining state relationships, managing site performance, and providing any state or federal assistance needed. Ms. Brady has been with PrePass 10 years and works out of the CVO office in Phoenix, AZ.

Prior to her move to ACS, Ms. Brady managed the Motor Carrier Division for the State of Arizona. From 1985 to 1992, Ms. Brady served in the United States Air Force where she rose to the rank of Captain. She began her military career as an F-16 maintenance officer then became an instructor at the Air Force Officer Training School. Ms. Brady holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Kerry Cartwright

Director of Goods Movement
Port of Los Angeles

Kerry Cartwright is the Director of Goods Movement at the Port of Los Angeles. He was appointed the director of this newly created division at the Port in October 2007. Prior to joining the Port of LA, he was the Manager of Transportation Planning at the Port of Long Beach for over 10 years. His duties and responsibilities include: the planning and conceptual design of landside access improvements, regional transportation planning, funding, and transportation policy. He has over 24 years of experience in traffic engineering and transportation planning, and is a registered Traffic Engineer in the State of California and a registered Professional Engineer in Canada. He serves on numerous regional and statewide transportation agency technical and policy committees. He received the Southern California Association of Governments’ “Regional Champion Award” for 2009.

Mr. Cartwright is also involved in global logistics in the academic arena: he is an instructor for the Global Logistics Specialist® program at California State University, Long Beach. Kerry obtained a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering from the University of Alberta, Canada. He has also obtained Global Logistics Specialist® certification at California State University, Long Beach.

Husein Cumber

Executive Vice President, Corporate Development
Florida East Coast Railway, LLC

Mr. Cumber is Executive Vice President, Corporate Development for Florida East Coast Railway, LLC (FEC) where he has responsibility for guiding major capital projects from initial concept through development. These projects include reconnecting the FEC Railway to the Port of Miami, the construction of new intermodal container transfer facilities, and working with public agencies to introduce passenger rail services in the FEC corridor. Previously, Mr. Cumber was President of H.A. Cumber & Company, a transportation consulting firm that specialized in rail, transit and highway issues. The firm provided business development and government relations support throughout the country.

Mr. Cumber served as the Deputy Chief of Staff at the U.S. Department of Transportation and prior to that was the Assistant to the Secretary for Policy. Mr. Cumber was nominated by President George W. Bush on May 20, 2008 to be a Member of the Surface Transportation Board. His nomination was terminated after the November 2008 election. Prior to his appointment at U.S. DOT, Mr. Cumber led the public affairs efforts for Florida East Coast Industries, Inc. (FECI).

Mr. Cumber is a graduate of Duke University and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in U.S. National Security. He and his wife, LeAnna, currently reside in Jacksonville, Florida.

John Greuling

President & CEO
Will County Center for Economic Development

John E, Greuling is the President and CEO of the Will County Center for Economic Development (CED) and Will County Chamber of Commerce—a position he has held for ten years. Among his priorities are business recruitment and retention/expansion, managing the development of the largest Inland Port in North America and the development of the Illiana Expressway and the South Suburban Airport. Greuling, a native of Oak Park, Illinois has been an economic development practitioner for 35 years. Prior to joining the CED he was Chief Operating Officer and Vice President for Business & Economic Development for InterMountain/RKH, a corporate affairs firm based in Denver specializing in government relations, strategic communications and business and economic development. Prior to that, he served as Vice President of Economic Development for the Greensboro Area Chamber of Commerce in Greensboro, North Carolina; Executive Director for the Southeast Denver/Douglas County Economic  Development Council from; Director of the Colorado Office of Business Development; and Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development of the Bloomington-Normal Area.

A graduate of Illinois State University, where he received a Bachelor's Degree in Philosophy in 1974, he received his Master of Science in City and Regional Planning from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville in 1976. Greuling is married (Michelle) and lives in New Lenox, Illinois. Interests include music, running, travel and Labrador Retrievers.

Paul Hubler

Director of Community and Government Relations 
Alameda Corridor-East Construction Authority (ACE)

Paul Hubler is Director of Community and Government Relations at the Alameda Corridor-East Construction Authority (ACE), a public construction authority responsible for building grade separations and safety improvements along freight rail mainlines in eastern Los Angeles County. Mr. Hubler is involved in regional and national policy challenges, issues and collaborative solutions arising from the movement of goods through the nation’s leading trade gateway in Southern California.

Mr. Hubler has worked in Sacramento, Calif. and Washington, D.C. as Deputy Chief of Staff for Congressman and former State Senator Adam Schiff (D-Pasadena), handling transportation, environmental and other issues.

Don Shanis

Deputy Executive Director
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission

Dr. Donald S. Shanis has helped shaped the transportation and regional planning process for the Greater Philadelphia-Camden-Trenton region for over three decades. A testament to his credentials and accomplishments was his promotion in 2006 to Deputy Executive Director for the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC), one of the nation’s largest and most respected Metropolitan Planning Organizations.

Dr. Shanis’ broad professional responsibilities at DVRPC entail policy development, strategic planning, and management functions. Dr. Shanis is integrally involved with DVRPC’s core requirements of establishing a long-range plan for a diverse and complex region of over 5 million residents, adopting a fiscally constrained Transportation Improvement Program of over $1 billion per year, and laying out and successfully executing an annual work program of $25 million involving more than 100 staff members.

Dr. Shanis received his planning and engineering education from Cornell University and the University of Pennsylvania where he has been an instructor for transportation planning courses. He has presented technical papers to the Transportation Research Board and testified before the United States Congress, and he is a frequent speaker and panel member on planning topics.

Dr. Shanis is a lifelong resident of the Delaware Valley and lives in Upper Dublin Township, Pennsylvania with his wife Bonnie Shanis, MD. He is an avid sportsman, itinerant traveler, and has two daughters, Jenna and Dana.