Legislative Drive-In

State Senator Charles Perry is a life-long West Texan and a practicing CPA from Lubbock. He was elected to the Texas Senate in 2014 after serving two terms in the Texas House of Representatives. Since 2015 Senator Perry has been focused on developing undeveloped water supplies. Strategies include the most cost-effective energy to develop and move the water supply. Specifically, he is working with Abilene Christian University and other public universities to develop a small modular reactor. The project is set to yield a 100-megawatt reactor that can be massed produced. Senator Perry currently chairs the Senate Committee on Water, Agriculture & Rural Affairs and is Vice-Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee. He also sits on the Senate Committees for State Affairs, Finance, and Transportation and he co-chairs the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas (SWIFT) Advisory Committee and the Texas Infrastructure Resiliency Fund (TIRF). Governor Abbott appointed him to the Southwestern States Water Commission and the Western States Water Council.

James Barragán is a politics reporter for The Texas Tribune with a focus on accountability reporting. Prior to joining the Tribune, James worked as a statehouse reporter for The Dallas Morning News and had previous stints at the Austin American-Statesman and the Los Angeles Times. In 2021, he was a finalist for the Toner Prize for Excellence in Local Reporting for his coverage of Texas politics during the COVID-19 pandemic. James was selected as a Nieman Fellow at Harvard in 2023-24. A Southern California native, James received his bachelor’s degree in history from UCLA. He is based in Austin and is a native Spanish speaker.

Michael F. Bloom is the 2025 Texas Section Vice President Professional Elect and past chair of the section’s Government Affairs Committee. Michael provides sustainability and resilience consulting services with 5engineering, LLC. located in Houston, Texas. Michael plans and designs sustainable and resilient public infrastructure facilities, and assists communities deliver projects with enhanced economic, social, and environmental project outcomes – also called enhancing the “triple bottom line.

Adam Eaton PE, CFM, ENV SP serves as a Senior Project Manager and resiliency and sustainability subject matter expert for Ardurra, focused on climate-resilient solutions for water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure. His professional experience spans the breadth of water resources and includes planning and implementing flood mitigation and storm drainage improvement analyses, municipal and industrial water and wastewater treatment, and policy and planning for aquifer storage and recovery in Texas. He received a Master of Public Service and Administration from the Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University, a Master of Engineering in Civil Engineering from Texas A&M University, and a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from the Lee Honors College at Western Michigan University.

Kevin Longley is the Director of Media Relations and Public Affairs at the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), driving ASCE’s relationships with the media and generating public interest in the Society’s activities, including ASCE’s Infrastructure Report Card and the Bridging the Gap economic series. Kevin and the media relations team serve as a resource for ASCE members looking to engage with the media and work on public speaking tactics to better amplify their messages and advocate for civil engineering issues. Prior to ASCE, Kevin was a producer for Sirius XM Radio’s Fantasy Sports and NASCAR channels in Washington, D.C. He has also been a freelance reporter and assisted with show operations for Arizona PBS. Kevin holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and mass communication from Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism.

Rebecca Katzke serves as the National Water Market Manager for Kleinfelder, responsible for strategic and organic growth for public, private, and federal water market clients across the US. Her technical experience includes water resources and water infrastructure planning, design, modeling, and permitting for large-scale civil and environmental engineering projects throughout the US. Ms. Katzke is a Certified Floodplain Manager and professional engineer.

Sarah Rountree Schlessinger is the CEO of Texas Water Foundation, a statewide nonpartisan nonprofit that works in water policy, workforce and leadership initiatives, and a statewide water campaign called Texas Runs on Water. She previously worked in groundwater policy and regulation, and has experience with international nonprofits and disaster response. Sarah currently serves as an appointed member of the Water Conservation Advisory Council, and as a board member for Texas Water Trade and Open ET.

Whitney Whitmire, a founding Partner of Whitmire & Munoz LLC, leads a robust public affairs firm based in Houston. Having grown up in Texas politics, Whitney brings a unique perspective to her business alongside business partner and friend Lindsay Munoz. Whitney has represented clients across many industries at every level of government. Last year was exciting for her as she worked as a trusted supporter of her father’s successful mayoral campaign.