SACRAMENTO – Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the following appointments.
James Sullivan, 45, of Mesquite, has been appointed skilled nursing facility administrator at the Veterans Home of California, Barstow. Sullivan has been administrator at Highland Manor Rehabilitation and Nursing Center since 2008. He held several positions at Trinity Mission Wide Horizons Residential Care Facility from 1994 to 2005, including program director, qualified mental retardation professional and therapeutic recreation technician. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $106,716. Sullivan is registered without party preference.
Benita Baines, 44, of Oakland, has been appointed deputy director of regional office operations at the California State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Baines has been workforce development and CalWORKs program coordinator at Laney College for the Peralta Community College District since 2003. She was a community and resident initiatives coordinator II at Mercy Housing California from 2000 to 2003 and was CalWORKs project specialist at the Merced County Office of Education from 1998 to 2000. Baines was the upward bound program coordinator at Modesto Junior College from 1996 to 1998 and the equal opportunity program residential coordinator at California State University, Stanislaus from 1993 to 1996. She is a member of the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges, National Council on Black American Affairs, Faculty Association of California Community Colleges, California Community Colleges CalWORKs Association, American Society for Public Administration, Habitat for Humanity Bay Area and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $88,872. Baines is a Democrat.
Bob Giovati, 57, of Citrus Heights, has been appointed deputy director of policy and planning at the California State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Giovati has been a consultant to the California State Senate Select Committee on Autism and Related Disorders since 2012. He was chief of staff in the Office of California State Assemblymember Brian Jones from 2010 to 2012 and in the Office of California State Senator Dennis Hollingsworth from 2005 to 2010. Giovati was vice president of legislative affairs at Automotive Aftermarket Services from 2003 to 2004, where he was a senior vice president from 1996 to 2000. He was senior broker relations manager at the Pacific Business Group on Health from 2001 to 2002 and was member services director at the California Automotive Wholesalers’ Association from 1989 to 1996. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $103,008. Giovati is registered without party preference.
Nelly Nieblas, 35, of Washington, D.C., has been appointed legislation and public information manager at the California State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Nieblas has been director of public policy and external affairs at Public Allies since 2010. She was a social services research analyst at the Los Angeles County Department of Public Social Services from 2008 to 2010 and was an assistant legislative deputy at the Office of Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina from 2007 to 2008. Nieblas was a United Nations observer for the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2006, a program analyst at Mexico’s Office of the Secretary of Education and Health in 2006 and a program assistant for Public Allies from 2004 to 2005. Nieblas is a member of the Women’s Campaign School at Yale University. She earned a Master of Public Administration degree from the Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $80,844. Nieblas is a Democrat.
Anastacia L. Snyder, 48, of Chico, has been appointed to the California Domestic Violence Advisory Council. Snyder has been executive director of Catalyst Domestic Violence Services since 2001, where she was a program director from 1998 to 2001 and a community educator from 1996 to 1998. She was a conference coordinator at the Family Resource Team of Butte and Glenn Counties in 1996 and an office manager at Dennis R. Hoptowit, Attorney at Law from 1991 to 1996. Snyder was a teaching associate at the California State University, Chico English Department from 1992 to 1993, where she was a writing tutor from 1992 to 1993. She is a member of the Rotary Club of Chico, the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence, where she was chair from 2008 to 2010, the Butte County Children’s Services Coordinating Council and the League of Women Voters of Butte County. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Snyder is a Democrat.
Robert Lehner, 59, of Elk Grove, has been appointed to the California Domestic Violence Advisory Council. Lehner has served as chief of police for the City of Elk Grove since 2008. He served as chief of police for the City of Eugene, Oregon from 2004 to 2008 and was assistant chief of police at the Tucson, Arizona Police Department from 1998 to 2003, where he served in several positions from 1983 to 2003, including police captain, police lieutenant and police sergeant. He is a member of the California Police Chiefs Association Board of Directors, Sacramento County Criminal Justice Cabinet, Central Sierra Chiefs, Sacramento County Police Chiefs and Sheriff Group, Federal Bureau of Investigation National Academy Associates, Police Executive Research Forum and the International Association of Chiefs of Police. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Lehner is a Democrat.
Michael Savoy, 63, of Encino, has been appointed to the California Board of Accountancy, where he has served since 2010. Savoy has been managing director of Gumbiner Savett Inc. since 1994. He was a partner at Savoy and Colin from 1981 to 1994. Savoy is a member of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, California Society of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Savoy is a Republican.
David Noren, 49, of Sebastopol, has been appointed to the North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, where he has served since 2008. Noren has been manager of environmental engineering at EBA Engineering since 1996. He was a project manager at Environet Consulting from 1995 to 1996 and an environmental specialist at BCW Environmental in 1995. Noren was a leadman at Stero Dishwasher Manufacturing Company from 1989 to 1995 and an agricultural management consultant for Shasta Crop and Soil from 1979 to 1986. He earned a Master of Science degree in environmental management from the University of San Francisco. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Noren is registered without party preference.
Kimberly Cox, 54, of Helendale, has been reappointed to the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board, where she has served since 2013. Cox has been general manager at the Helendale Community Services District since 2007. She was senior management analyst for the City of Victorville Public Works Department from 2003 to 2007 and a water resources specialist for the City of Hesperia Water Department from 1999 to 2003. Cox was a customer service representative at Roadway Express from 1991 to 1999. She earned a Master of Public Administration degree in water resources management from California State University, San Bernardino. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Cox is a Republican.
Amy Horne, 61, of Truckee, has been appointed to the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board, where she has served since 2003. Horne was a science writer at the University of California, Davis from 2007 to 2009, research director at the Sierra Business Council from 1998 to 2005 and a forest researcher at the U.S. Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station from 1993 to 1997. Horne earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in forestry and a Master of Forest Science degree from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and a Master of Public Administration degree in natural resource policy and management from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Horne is a Democrat.
Denise Kadara, 61, of Allensworth, has been appointed to the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board. Kadara served in several positions for the City of San Mateo from 1997 to 2004, including senior management analyst and economic development specialist. She was a senior planner for the City of Hesperia from 1990 to 1994 and served in several positions for the City of Fontana from 1986 to 1990, including senior planner and administrative analyst. Kadara was a project coordinator for the City of Norwalk from 1984 to 1986 and served in several positions for the City of West Covina from 1978 to 1984, including aide and planning intern. She is a member of the Tulare Lake Basin Disadvantaged Community Water Study advisory committee. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Kadara is a Democrat.
Robert Schneider, 66, of Davis, has been reappointed to the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, where he has served since 2011. Schneider was senior policy director at Tuleyome from 2002 to 2013 and a partner at Verve Enterprises from 1995 to 2010 and at Bob Schneider Contractor, Ridge Builders Group, West Davis Associates from 1977 to 2010. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Schneider is a Democrat.