Current Debate Speaker: Bill White

Bill White

• Chairman Lazard Houston

Bill White joined Lazard in 2012 as Chairman, Lazard Houston, and Senior Advisor with a focus on energy.

Prior to joining Lazard, Bill served as Mayor of Houston, 2004-2009, and was twice reelected with an average margin of 88%. As Mayor,Bill initiated the first major pension reform by any U.S. state or large city. His relief efforts following Hurricane Katrina earned national recognition. He served as Deputy Secretary of Energy of the United States, 1993-1995. As the Department’s chief operating officer, Bill successfully promoted the use of new technologies for oil and gas exploration, the development of alternative forms of energy and the diversification of the world’s oil supply.

Bill was CEO for seven years of WEDGE Group, one of Texas’ fastest growing energy-related businesses. Its subsidiaries engaged in a variety of oil and gas services and the manufacture of hydrogen plants and other downstream facilities.

He has served on the boards of numerous public companies, including BJ Services, Pioneer Drilling, CB&I, and USEC. He began his career as an attorney specializing in antitrust securities and energy-related matters and he helped manage one of the nation’s most successful law firms.Bill also served on the Board of the National Electric Reliability Council and on the boards of many non-profit organizations. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Bill’s involvement with energy policy began in 1975, when he helped draft portions of comprehensive legislation to deregulate oil prices.He also helped craft the bill that initiated deregulation of natural gas field pricing in 1978. He has given hundreds of speeches and written dozens of articles on energy policy during the last thirty-seven years.

Harvard University, B.A. magna cum laude; University of Texas, J.D. summa cum laude