Ryan Patton is an AVP–Analyst on the Project and Infrastructure Finance team. Ryan has deep experience covering the U.S. water sector and is currently the lead analyst for U.S. investor-owned water utilities. His portfolio also includes public power and municipal joint action agencies.

Ryan previously spent 11 years on Moody’s Local Government team covering municipal utilities, cities, counties, and school districts.

Prior to joining Moody’s, Ryan was an Associate Economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and spent several years in environmental consulting.

Ryan holds a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of Chicago and a BA in Political Science and Geology from Wheaton College in Illinois.

Peter Scherer is a Senior Director in the Public Finance Group at KBRA, where he focuses on states as well as airports and other transportation credits. Peter brings expertise in municipal credit risk and has worked in various roles in the industry for 10 years. Prior to joining KBRA, he held positions as an asset manager and a financial guarantor. 

Peter holds a B.S. in business administration from Boston University.

Randy Conner is the Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Water Management (DWM. No newcomer to the field, he is returning to the role after previously serving as the DWM Commissioner from 2017 to the end of 2020. 

Commissioner Conner brings more than two decades of experience in urban engineering and infrastructure to the department. He formerly served as the First Deputy Commissioner at both the Chicago Department of Transportation and the Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation.

At the Department of Water Management, Commissioner Conner oversees a system that delivers high-quality drinking water to more than 42% of Illinois residents daily. This system includes over 4,300 miles of water mains, 4,450 miles of sewer mains, two of the world’s largest water treatment facilities, and over 2,100 employees. He manages an annual operating budget of approximately $1.4 billion and a capital budget of approximately 750 million dollars annually.

When he previously held the position, Commissioner Conner created a Division of Performance Management to elevate professionalism in the department; established mandatory EEO training for all employees to improve the department’s culture; and oversaw the implementation of the ambitious 10-year “Building a New Chicago” capital plan which represented a $6 billion investment in water infrastructure to support the city’s future growth.

In 2024, Commissioner Conner will spearhead DWM efforts to deliver a robust capital improvement program to replace water mains, and sewer mains and renovate critical DWM facilities. He will ensure that the department will continue to increase the number of lead service line replacements throughout the City. This work is critically important as the nation looks to Chicago- the city with the most lead service lines at 406,000- for best practices on how to effectively address this legacy infrastructure issue.

He is a licensed minister and has logged thousands of service hours with many community and civic service organizations. A recipient of the Man of Honor Award from the Chicago Defender, he attended Purdue University, where he studied Engineering and Construction Principles, and is certified in Emergency Action Planning by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. A lifelong Chicago resident, he resides in the West Pullman neighborhood and is the father of one daughter. 

Lisa Eisenberg serves as the Chief of Public Finance in the Ohio Treasurer’s Office. In that capacity she oversees the investment of over $50 billion across the State Treasury and STAR Ohio, and management of Ohio’s $10 billion municipal debt portfolio. She leads the Investments and Debt Management  departments with the common goal of creating value for Ohio taxpayers. Mrs. Eisenberg is the Chair of the State Debt Management Network, Vice President of Ohio Women in Public Finance, and a member of  Ohio University’s Finance Advisory Council. Her contributions to the public finance industry have been recognized and rewarded on a national scale. She is a member of the Bond Buyer’s 2021 class of Rising Stars and 2025 Class of Trailblazing Women in Public Finance. Mrs. Eisenberg holds a BA in Actuarial Science from Ohio State University, an MBA from Ohio University, and is a Certified Treasury  Professional.

Mr. Spino has served as the Chief Financial Officer of the Authority since June 2023 and brings over 25 years of experience in numerous financial leadership roles.  In his current role, he provides leadership and strategic oversight to the following areas and departments: accounting and finance, procurement and business partnership programs, parking and ground transportation, and technology services.  Previously, he served as the Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Richmond Redevelopment & Housing Authority, in Richmond Virginia, where he oversaw the finance, human resources, procurement and information technology departments.  Mr. Spino also served as the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Tulsa Airports Improvement Trust, in Tulsa Oklahoma, where he oversaw the finance, engineering and planning, parking operations, asset management, and contracts departments.  Mr. Spino led multiple bond and bank financing efforts during his time with Tulsa Airports Improvement Trust.

Mr. Spino earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Finance from the University of Rhode Island and holds a Master of Business Administration from Norwich University, where he completed the program summa cum laude.  Mr. Spino was elected a member of Delta Mu Delta, an International Business Honors Society, while completing his master’s program.  Mr. Spino’s 25 years of experience in finance ranges from banking to real estate, working for such organizations as Franklin Street Properties Corp, Symes Associates Inc, AMB Property Corporation, JP Morgan Chase, and Boston Financial Data Services located in Massachusetts.

Jacob Blasdel is Executive Director of the Indiana Bond Bank, an instrumentality of the State of Indiana that provides cost-effective financing to local units of government. Under his leadership since 2023, the agency’s annual lending has grown from $170 million to $383 million. Earlier, as a financial analyst at the Indiana Finance Authority, he worked on the $675 million Ohio River Bridges East End Crossing, named The Bond Buyer’s 2013 national Deal of the Year. A former Clerk-Treasurer and Town Manager for the Town of Speedway, Indiana, he remains active in local government as Vice President of the Speedway Redevelopment Commission. He holds a BA in Economics from DePauw University and an MBA in Finance from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business, and is a Certified Treasury Professional.

Justin Marlowe is a Research Professor at the University of Chicago’s Harris School of Public Policy, where he also serves as Associate Director of the Center for Municipal Finance. He has published five books – including the forthcoming Public Debt Management: Strategy and Evidence (Cambridge University Press) – and dozens of articles on the municipal bond market, infrastructure finance, governmental accounting, and local fiscal policy. He regularly works as an expert witness in federal and state courts, and has served on technical advisory bodies for the California State Auditor, the Governmental Accounting Standards Board, and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency on Planning, among many others. He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and co-hosts (with Liz Farmer) the popular Harris School-sponsored podcast “The Public Money Pod.” He holds a Ph.D. in political science and public administration from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.