Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) Chair and CEO Janno Lieber today welcomed six new members and three returning members to the MTA Board following the group’s confirmation by the New York State Senate.   

“I am excited to welcome this new group to the MTA Board at a time where the Authority is focused on using innovative strategies to bring riders back to mass transit and to secure new sources of revenue to address a looming multi-million dollar budget deficit,” Lieber said. “The six new and three returning members represent our diverse ridership, and I look forward to working with them to make using the MTA’s services more reliable, accessible and affordable for all customers.”    

The MTA is governed by a 21-member Board. Members are nominated by the Governor, with four recommended by New York City's mayor and one each by the county executives of Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Dutchess, Orange, Rockland, and Putnam counties (the members representing the latter four cast one collective vote). The Board also has six rotating non-voting seats held by representatives of organized labor and the Permanent Citizens Advisory Committee (PCAC), which serves as a voice for users of MTA transit and commuter facilities.  

Lisa Sorin   

Lisa Sorin was nominated to the MTA Board by Governor Hochul. Sorin currently serves as the first female President of the Bronx Chamber of Commerce. She is also the first woman to serve as board chairperson. Prior to her appointment to the Bronx Chamber, Sorin served as Executive Director of Westchester Square Business Improvement District for six years. As the BID Director, she was responsible for the economic and community development, program planning, fundraising and fiscal management of the district.   

Sorin also founded LAS Consulting Services, Inc., which provided marketing, public relations and event planning services for non-profits and corporate entities for over 15 years. She has passionately contributed to making a difference in the Bronx by investing in and promoting youth programming and education.    

Sorin holds a master's degree in Business Leadership and a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Concordia College. She has two daughters and lives in the Bronx.  

Midori Valdivia   

Midori Valdivia, a transportation, operations and urban planning professional, was recommended to the MTA Board by Mayor Eric Adams. She is the inaugural Chief Operating Officer for Coro New York Leadership Center, the city’s premier civic leadership training organization.  

Prior to Coro and developing her own consulting practice, Valdivia was the chief of staff to the Chair and CEO of the MTA. She led the efforts for the successful passage of congestion pricing legislation within the agency and oversaw elements of the launch of OMNY. Valdivia was also the deputy commissioner for finance and administration at the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission. She led the development of the largest wheelchair-accessible taxi fleet in the nation at the time.  

Valdivia immigrated to the United States from Japan and her family is from Peru. She is a graduate of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, where she received degrees in public administration and urban planning. She received her bachelor’s degree at Penn State University. She lives in Brooklyn with her partner and daughter.  

Frankie Miranda   

Frankie Miranda was recommended to the MTA Board by Mayor Eric Adams. He is the President and CEO of the Hispanic Federation, the nation’s premier Latinx non-profit membership organization.   

Miranda has served in various capacities at the federation since 2006, including assistant vice president of communications, vice president for external affairs, senior vice president and executive vice president. Earlier in his career, Miranda held several senior management positions in the communications industry, including director of communications for the local TV stations WXTV, Univision 41 and WFUT UniMas 68. He also served as the deputy press secretary for Spanish language media for Hillary Clinton’s U.S. Senate campaign in 2000 and Fernando Ferrer’s mayoral campaign in 2001.  

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Miranda created the largest Latinx COVID-19 relief fund in the country, providing millions of dollars to support the emergency operations and vaccination efforts of hundreds of organizations in 41 states, DC, and Puerto Rico. Miranda holds a B.A. in political science from the University of Puerto Rico and an M.A. in performance studies from New York University. He resides in Queens with his husband.  

Sherif Solimon   

Sherif Soliman was recommended to the MTA Board by Mayor Eric Adams. He currently serves as Director of the Mayor’s Office of Policy and Planning, where he oversees policy development in key areas of the mayor’s policy portfolio, including MTA-related issues.  

Prior to his current position, Soliman was commissioner of the New York City Department of Finance. While serving as commissioner, Soliman was nominated by former Mayor Bill de Blasio to serve as a member of the Traffic Mobility Review Board, the six-member board charged with recommending toll rates, exemptions and discounts for the first-in-the-nation congestion pricing program.  

Before his appointment as finance commissioner, Soliman served as chief of staff for the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Operations. He played a key leadership role in the city’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, overseeing the development and management of the Open Streets and Open Restaurant programs. Soliman previously served as senior advisor to the first deputy mayor, where he oversaw a portfolio including the MTA, tax policy, labor policy, and pension policy.   

In the first term of the de Blasio administration, Soliman served as Director of State Legislative Affairs, where he secured the enactment of many priorities, including the nation-leading universal pre-kindergarten program; the first expansion of the bus lane camera program and Vision Zero initiatives, such as speed cameras and lower speed limits.  

Soliman received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the State University of New York College at Oneonta. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and two children.  

Sammy Chu  

Sammy Chu was recommended to the MTA Board by Suffolk County Executive Steven Bellone. He is Chairman of the U.S. Green Building Council-Long Island Chapter and Chief Executive Officer for Edgewise Energy. Chu was the founding director of the Town of Babylon’s Long Island Green Homes Program, the first operationalized property assessed clean energy program in the country.  

Prior to his current positions, Chu served as Director of Operations for Bellone and as Commissioner of the Suffolk County Department of Labor, Licensing & Consumer Affairs. He was the lead county official in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, tasked with coordinating response and recovery.    

Chu is a former board member of the National Home Performance Council, a recently appointed board member of the Health and Welfare Council of Long Island, and currently serves as a Suffolk County Planning Commissioner. He holds various volunteer leadership positions, including Chairman of the Long Island chapter of the US Green Building Council, Vice Chairman of the Suffolk County Planning Commission, Chair of the LGBT Network. He lives in Lindenhurst.  

Blanca López  

Blanca López was recommended to the MTA Board by George Latimer. 

López was named a Fellow of the New York Immigration and Social Justice Institute’s Immigrant Advocacy Fellowship Program and was honored by The Business Council of Westchester as one of Forty under Forty Rising Stars in 2011. She was the first Latina elected to office in the Villages of Port Chester and Rye Brook, serving as Trustee for the Port Chester-Rye Union Free Board of Education from 2009 through 2012.  

In 2016, López was recognized by then New York State Senator George Latimer for her noteworthy achievements as part of the Women of Distinction event Honoring Women in New York. López holds a bachelor's degree in Latin American and Latino Studies from Fordham University and a master's degree in Urban & Public Policy and Management from the New School.  

David Mack   

David S. Mack was recommended to the MTA Board in 2019 by former Nassau County Executive Laura Curran. He is a senior partner of The Mack Company and a member of the Board of Directors of the Mack-Cali Realty Corp, a publicly traded Real Estate Investment Trust.  

Mack serves as a member of the Board of Overseers of Northwell Health and is a former trustee of the North Shore Hospital, the Long Island Jewish Hospital System, and Pratt Institute. He also serves on the Boards of Trustees of Hofstra University and the Morse Health System, acting as Vice Chairman of both boards. Additionally, Mack is a member of the Board of Governors of the Palm Beach Country Club, where he is Vice Chairman of the admissions committee. His other board memberships include the Board of Directors of the Kravis Center; the Board of Trustees of the Town of Palm Beach United Way; membership in the Palm Healthcare Foundation; and the Board of the United Nation's Commission of New York State.   

Mack is also the 1st Assistant Commissioner of the Nassau County Police Department, 1st Vice President of the Palm Beach Police Foundation, and Undersheriff Executive Assistant for Governmental Affairs for Palm Beach County, Florida. Additionally, he served for 14 years, at the rank of Colonel, as Deputy Superintendent of the New York State Police.  

Previously, Mack served on the MTA Board from December 1993 through September 2009, acting as Vice Chairman from 2001 to 2009. In addition, he was a member of the Board of Directors and Commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Mack received his B.A. in business administration from Hofstra University.  

 Harold Porr III   

Harold Porr III is the Deputy County Executive of Orange County. He was recommended to the MTA Board in June 2021 by Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus. Prior to his appointment to Deputy County Executive, Porr served in several government leadership positions in New York state, including City Manager of Newburgh, City Administrator of Poughkeepsie, City Manager of Long Beach, and Village Administrator of Bronxville.  

Over the course of a 40-year career in local government administration, Porr has served as President of the New York State City/County Management Association, President of the Municipal Administrators Association of Metropolitan New York, Board Member of the New York State Association of Mayors and Municipal Officials, member of the Stewart Airport Commission, Secretary/Treasurer of the City of Poughkeepsie Industrial Development Agency, member of the South Shore Estuary Reserve Council, and member of the Westchester County Bronx River Advisory Board.  

Porr holds a master's degree from SUNY New Paltz, a bachelor's degree from SUNY Potsdam, and an associate's degree from SUNY Orange. He and his wife of more than 50-years have three children and six grandchildren. He is a Manhattan native and has lived in the Hudson Valley for many decades and makes his home in the city of Newburgh.  

Frank Borelli Jr.  

Frank Borelli Jr. was recommended to the MTA Board in June 2020 by Rockland County Executive Ed Day. He currently serves as a town councilman in Clarkstown, New York, an elected role he has occupied since 2007. He also serves as deputy supervisor. He has more than 30 years of experience in the insurance and risk management industry.  

Borelli started his career at Marsh & McLennan (Marsh Inc.) and is currently with CLG/Acrisure, one of the top 10 insurance brokerages in the world. At Acrisure, he helps clients manage and overcome complex risk challenges.  

Borelli has sat or currently sits on the Boards of Directors of the following organizations and has also served as president or chairman of many of these groups: Leadership Rockland, New City Rotary, JCC of Rockland, Catholic School Region of Rockland, Manhattan Society of National Multiple Sclerosis Society, St. Thomas Aquinas Presidents Council, Nyack Hospital Foundation, Rockland Community Foundation, University of Delaware Parents & Family Leadership Council, Quinnipiac University Parents Council, March of Dimes of Rockland, Police Chiefs Foundation of Rockland, United Way of Rockland, Industrial Development Agency, and Independent Insurance Agents of Rockland.  

Borelli is a graduate of Gettysburg College. He lives in New City with his wife.