SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:
Richard Figueroa Jr., 60, of Sacramento, has been appointed acting director of the California Department of Health Care Services. He has served as deputy cabinet secretary in the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom since 2019. Figueroa was director of prevention for The California Endowment from 2010 to 2018. He served as deputy cabinet secretary and health care advisor in the Office of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger from 2006 to 2010, legislative director in the Office of California State Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi from 2003 to 2006 and deputy legislative secretary in the Office of Governor Gray Davis from 1999 to 2003. Figueroa was principal consultant at the California State Senate Insurance Committee from 1996 to 1999. He was deputy director of eligibility and enrollment at the California Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board from 1990 to 1996, senior consultant at the State Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee from 1986 to 1990 and a program analyst at the California Legislative Analyst’s Office from 1983 to 1986. Figueroa earned a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $215,124. Figueroa is a Democrat.
Arturo Delgado, 48, of Palm Desert, has been appointed assistant secretary for Salton Sea policy at the California Natural Resources Agency. Delgado has served as Salton Sea program manager at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife since 2018. He served in several positions for the U.S. Forest Service, including as district ranger at the San Bernardino National Forest from 2013 to 2018, acting deputy forest supervisor for Six Rivers National Forest in 2017, special assistant to the regional forester for the Pacific Southwest Region in 2015 and multiple positions at the Angeles National Forest from 2010 to 2013, including supervisory wildlife biologist and acting forest resource officer. Delgado held several positions at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife from 1997 to 2010, including senior environmental scientist, environmental scientist, principle investigator and fish and wildlife scientific assistant. Delgado earned a Master of Science degree in biological conservation from California State University, Sacramento. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $141,156. Delgado is a Democrat.
Gabriel Sandoval, 48, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the Fair Employment and Housing Council. Sandoval has been a partner at Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud and Romo since 2013. He served as senior advisor and director of policy at the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics from 2011 to 2013. Sandoval served as senior counsel in the Office of Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education from 2010 to 2011. He was deputy legal counsel in the Office of Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa from 2005 to 2010. Sandoval was directing deputy city attorney and special assistant city attorney in the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office from 2003 to 2005. He was special counsel to the secretary of legal affairs and special assistant of community and intergovernmental relations in the Office of Governor Gray Davis in 2003 and deputy political director for the Governor Gray Davis Committee in 2002. He was an associate at O’Melveny and Myers LLP from 2000 to 2002. Sandoval was California constituencies director for the Gore-Lieberman presidential campaign in 2000. He served as a law clerk for the Honorable Carlos R. Moreno at the U.S. District Court, Central District of California from 1998 to 1999. Sandoval was community affairs coordinator and special assistant to the president and general counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund from 1994 to 1995. He was a caseworker and community liaison in the Office of Congressman Xavier Becerra in 1994 and a policy assistant at the National Immigration Forum from 1993 to 1994. He earned a Juris Doctor degree from Columbia Law School. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Sandoval is a Democrat.
Benito Delgado-Olson, 35, of Oakland, has been reappointed to the Low-Income Oversight Board of the California Public Utilities Commission, where he has served since 2015. Delgado-Olson has been executive director at SupplyBank.org since 2009. He is vice chair of the Californians Dedicated to Education Foundation and a member of the University of California, Berkeley Cal Alumni Association. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $400 per diem. Delgado-Olson is a Democrat.
###