Governor Newsom Announces Appointments 6.11.21

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SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:

Thomas R. Gibson, 53, of West Sacramento, has been appointed Chief Counsel at the California Department of Water Resources. Gibson has been Assistant Chief Counsel at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife since 2020. He held multiple positions at the California Natural Resources Agency from 2014 to 2020, including Deputy Secretary and Special Counsel for Water, Undersecretary and Deputy Secretary and General Counsel. Gibson held multiple positions at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife from 2007 to 2014, including General Counsel and Assistant Chief Counsel. He was a Partner at Best, Best & Krieger LLP from 2005 to 2008, where he was an Associate from 2002 to 2005. Gibson was an Associate at Hyman, Phelps & McNamara PC from 1999 to 2002 and at Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard PC from 1997 to 1999. He earned a Juris Doctor degree from Northwestern School of Law of Lewis & Clark College. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $189,996. Gibson is registered without party preference.

Christine C. Inouye, 55, of Sacramento, has been appointed Chief Engineer of Strategic Delivery at the High-Speed Rail Authority, where she has served as Director of Engineering since 2019. She served in several roles at the California State Transportation Agency from 2017 to 2019, including as Undersecretary and Deputy Secretary for Project Management and Implementation. She was Capital Contracts Procurement Manager at the High-Speed Rail Authority from 2016 to 2017. Inouye held several positions at the California Department of Transportation from 1989 to 2016, including Supervising Transportation Engineer, Project Manager and Supervising Transportation Engineer, Design Coordinator and High-Speed Rail Coordinator, and Management Liaison to Chief Engineer. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $194,412. Inouye is registered without party preference.

Brian T. Sutliff, 57, of Woodland, has been appointed Director of Engineering at the High-Speed Rail Authority. Sutliff has been Deputy Director of Engineering and Assistant Vice President at WSP USA since 2017. He was Engineering Manager at the California High-Speed Rail Authority from 2016 to 2017. Sutliff was Engineering Branch Chief and Senior Transportation Engineer at the California Department of Transportation from 1990 to 2001. He is a member of the Structural Engineers Association of Central California. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $185,148. Sutliff is a Democrat.

Julie Coker, 54, of San Diego, has been appointed to the California Travel and Tourism Commission. Coker has been President and Chief Executive Officer at the San Diego Tourism Authority since 2020. She was President and Chief Executive Officer for the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau from 2016 to 2020, where she was Executive Vice President from 2014 to 2020 and Senior Vice President of the Convention Division from 2010 to 2014. She was General Manager of Hyatt Hotels from 1989 to 2010. Coker serves on the board of the U.S. Travel Association (Vice Chair), Meeting Planning International Association and Destinations Intl (Executive Committee). She is also a member of the San Diego Links Inc. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Coker is a Democrat.

Jacob R. Stevens, 35, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the New Motor Vehicle Board. Stevens has been Vice President at FARING since 2017. He was Director of Government Relations at the Afriat Consulting Group from 2014 to 2017. Stevens was Scheduler to the President at the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and was a National Region Surrogate Director for Obama for America in 2012 and the Presidential Inaugural Committee in 2013. Stevens is President of the Los Angeles City East Area Planning Commission and a member of the Occidental College Board of Governors. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Stevens is a Democrat.

Michelle Gastelum, 51, Pasadena, has been appointed to the CalSavers Retirement Savings Board. Gastelum has been President and Owner at Summit Consulting & Engineering Inc. since 2001 and Managing Partner for 1009-1013 N. Marguerita Ave LLC and 1133 Campbell St. LLC since 2006. She was an Assistant Project Manager at LAUSD’s 9.6 Billion Dollar Construction Bond Program from 2000 to 2001. She was Senior Financial Analyst at Summit Financial Advisors Group from 1997 to 2000. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Gastelum is a Democrat.

Marc W. Los Huertos, 58, of Claremont, has been appointed to the State Mining and Geology Board. Los Huertos has been Associate Professor at Pomona College since 2014. He was Associate Professor from 2011 to 2014 and Assistant Professor from 2006 to 2011 at California State University, Monterey Bay. Los Huertos was Assistant Research Faculty at the University of California, Santa Cruz from 2001 to 2004. He is a member of the Ecology Society of America and served on the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection from 2015 to 2021. Los Huertos earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in environmental studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz and a Master of Arts degree in plant systematics and ecology from San Francisco State University. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Los Huertos is a Democrat.

Tommy Randle, 78, of San Dimas, has been appointed to the Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Commission. Randle has been Chief Executive Officer at California Leading Edge Inc. since 1994. He was a Partnership Coordinator at the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Census Bureau from 2009 to 2011, Government Partnership Specialist at the U.S. Department of Commerce and the U.S. Census Bureau from 1998 to 2005 and Territory Marketing Representative, Industry Marketing Representative and Regional Product Marking Representative at IBM from 1971 to 1996. Randle was an E-5 Rank in the U.S. Army from 1964 to 1968. He is a member of Omega Psi Phi National Fraternity and was a member of the State Park and Recreation Commission from 2011 to 2021. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Randle is a Democrat.

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