SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:
Marvin Kropke, 71, of Brea, has been appointed to the Occupational Safety and Health Appeals Board. Kropke has been a member of the State Compensation Insurance Fund Board of Directors since 2013. He served as business manager and financial secretary of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 11 from 1997 to 2018. He is a disabled veteran from combat in the Vietnam War serving in the 4th Infantry Division and is a life member of the Military Order of the Purple Heart and Disabled American Veterans organizations. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $138,874. Kropke is a Democrat.
Ralph Lightstone, 71, of Sacramento, has been appointed to the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board. Lightstone has been a member of the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board since 2019. He was senior advisor on policy and legislation at the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency from 2016 to 2018, where he was director of legislation from 2010 to 2016. He was special counsel to the Attorney General and a deputy attorney general at the California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General from 2002 to 2010. Lightstone earned a Juris Doctor degree from the Loyola University of School of Law. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $159,068. Lightstone is a Democrat.
Branden Lopez, 37, of Irvine, has been appointed to the California Fraud Assessment Commission. Branden has been executive director of the Center for Contract Compliance since 2017, where he has held several positions since 2005, including senior labor investigator and labor investigator. Lopez was a foreman for Nuevo Engineering from 2002 to 2005. He earned a Juris Doctor degree from the Western State University College of Law. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Lopez is a Democrat.
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