Golden State Today

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced several appointments to key positions within various state agencies.

Yuting “Yvonne” Chi, of Oakland, has been appointed Deputy Secretary of Environmental Justice and Equity at the California Environmental Protection Agency. Chi has served as a Deputy Attorney General in the Bureau of Environmental Justice at the California Department of Justice since 2019. Previously, she was an attorney at Earthjustice from 2016 to 2019 and served as a law clerk for Justice Daniel E. Winfree at the Alaska Supreme Court from 2015 to 2016. Chi holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Evolutionary Biology and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles, as well as a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law. This position does not require Senate confirmation and carries a compensation of $175,104. Chi is a Democrat.

Nicole “Sabine” Talaugon, of Sacramento, has been appointed Deputy Secretary of Intergovernmental Relations at the California Environmental Protection Agency. Talaugon has been Lead Program Officer at the First Nations Development Institute since 2024 and previously held roles there from 2023 to 2024. She also served in various capacities at California State Parks from 2020 to 2023, including Tribal Affairs Program Manager and Tribal Affairs Program Analyst. Talaugon earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Policy and Master of Public Policy degree from Mills College at Northeastern University. This position does not require Senate confirmation and offers compensation of $175,104. Talaugon is a Democrat.

Robin Christensen, also based in Sacramento, has been appointed Deputy Director of the Safer Products and Workplaces Program at the California Department of Toxic Substance Control. Christensen has been Chief of the Substance and Addiction Prevention Branch at the California Department of Public Health since 2020. Her previous roles include Chief of the Biomonitoring Investigations and Outreach Unit at the same department from 2017 to 2020 and Project Coordinator at Sequoia Foundation from 2009 to 2010. Christensen holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from Michigan State University and a Master’s degree in Public Health from Harvard University. This position does not require Senate confirmation with compensation set at $180,004. Christensen is a Democrat.

Rajesh Veera, hailing from Pleasanton, has been named Principal Analytics Engineer at the Office of Data and Innovation. Veera owns AnalyticsFactoryLLC since 2023 and was previously Senior Data Engineer at Nervo Corp from 2020 to 2024 among other roles including Data Engineer at Shutterfly (2015-2019) and Data Analyst Consultant at Wells Fargo (2014-2015). He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Information Technology from DVR College of Engineering and Technology along with a Master’s degree in Computer Science from Northwestern Polytechnic University. This role does not require Senate confirmation with compensation amounting to $156,000.

Jana Sanford-Miller, residing in Elk Grove, has been appointed Communications and External Affairs Director at the Board of State and Community Corrections. Sanford-Miller has held several positions within state agencies including Acting Deputy Director for Research (since 2023) within CDCR where she was previously Chief Risk Officer (2019-2023) among other roles dating back to her time as Senior Communications Advisor (2009-2014). She earned both her Master’s degree in Interdisciplinary Studies: Communication Education along with her Bachelor's degree in Organizational Communications from CSU Stanislaus. This appointment does not need Senate confirmation with compensation set for $145,224.

Christina Corpus will join the Board after serving San Mateo County as Sheriff since last year following her tenure as Millbrae Police Chief (2022-23). Her career began within SMCSO holding numerous posts between Correctional Officer through Headquarters Patrol Captain over two decades post working Child Support Officer II under District Attorney's office before shifting towards academia achieving degrees MSc Law Enforcement & Public Safety Leadership USD followed BSc Criminal Justice & Law Enforcement Administration Union Institute/University respectively making this post requiring senate approval but unpaid whilst identifying herself politically aligned Democrats.

David “Dave” Sorem will be partaking Underground Facilities Safe Excavation Board following his presidency Mike Bubalo Construction since turn millennium prior heading projects Steve Bablo Construction early nineties preceding design division lead LA County Flood Control spanning decade plus active American Society Civil Engineers obtaining BS Civil Engineering North Dakota State marking another non-confirmed unpaid post representing Republican party recent appointees aforementioned across diverse sectors shaping Californian administrative landscape moving forward under current governance framework outlined herein official release SACRAMENTO date specified context broader implications thereof future discourse evolving accordingly relevant stakeholders involved directly indirectly alike.