SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:
Sasha (Wisotsky) Kergan, 43, of Sacramento has been appointed Deputy Secretary of Housing and Consumer Relations at the Business Consumer Services and Housing Agency. Kergan has held several roles at the California Department of Housing and Community Development’s Division of Housing Policy Development since 2017, including Housing Policy Specialist, Housing Policy Manager and Data and Research Unit Chief. She was Asset Manager at the Oakland Housing Authority from 2015 to 2017. Kergan was Asset Manager at Resources for Community Development from 2012 to 2015. She was Managing Director and Business Development Consultant at Quadel Consulting Corporation from 2010 to 2011. Kergan earned a Masters of Urban Planning with an emphasis on real estate development, finance and sustainability from the University of California, Los Angeles. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $172,200. Kergan is a Democrat.
Madelynn McClain, 46, of Sacramento, has been appointed Deputy Director of Fiscal Services at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Division of Administrative Services, where she has been Associate Director since 2020. She held several positions at the California Department of Finance between 2003 and 2017 including, Principal Program Budget Analyst and Finance Budget Analyst. McClain was Fiscal Supervisor at the Judicial Council of California’s Judicial Branch from 2015 to 2017. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $170,400. McClain is a Democrat.
Michael R. Liang, 68, of Sacramento, has been reappointed Assistant Deputy Director of Public Affairs at the Department of General Services, where he has served in that position since 2011. Liang was the principal at Take 1 Media and worked as a Freelance Producer for NBC and ABC news from 2005 to 2011. From 1992 to 2005, he was a Production Manager for KCRA-TV in Sacramento and from 1992 to 1997, he was a Coordinating Producer at Kelly News and Entertainment. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $111,288. Liang is a Democrat.
Mark Monroe, 53, of Rancho Cordova, has been appointed Deputy Director, Broadband Middle-Mile Initiative at the California Department of Technology. Monroe has been an Assistant Program Budget Manager at the California Department of Finance since 2011, where he held several positions from 2000 to 2011, including Principal Program Budget Analyst III, Principal Program Budget Analyst II and Finance Budget Analyst. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $171,852. Monroe is registered without party preference.
Bianca Sievers, 31, of Sacramento, has been appointed Deputy Director for Special Initiatives at the Department of Water Resources. Sievers has been Policy Advisor to the Director of the Department of Water Resources since 2018. She held multiple positions at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development from 2014 to 2018, including Senior Business Development Specialist and California Competes Tax Credit Specialist. Sievers was Legislative Assistant for the Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown from 2012 to 2014. She earned her Master of Business Administration from the University of California, Davis, Graduate School of Management. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $129,600. Sievers is registered without party preference.
E. Joaquin Esquivel, 39, of Sacramento, has been appointed to the Western States Water Council. Esquivel has been a member of the State Water Resources Control Board since 2017 and Chair since 2019. He was Assistant Secretary for Federal Water Policy at the California Natural Resources Agency from 2015 to 2017, Research Assistant, Legislative Aide, and Legislative Assistant for Native American, Water and Agriculture Issues and Director of Information and Technology in the Office of United States Senator Barbara Boxer from 2007 to 2015. This position requires Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Esquivel is a Democrat.
Karla Nemeth, 51, of Sacramento, has been appointed to the Western States Water Council. Nemeth has been director at the Department of Water Resources since 2018. She was deputy secretary for water policy at the California Natural Resources Agency from 2014 to 2018, Bay Delta Conservation Plan program manager at the Natural Resources Agency from 2009 to 2014, and Environmental and Public Affairs Director for Alameda County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, Zone 7 from 2005 to 2009. Nemeth was the Community Affairs Manager at Jones & Stokes from 2003 to 2005. Legislative Assistant at AESOP Enterprise from 2001 to 2003 and Legislative Assistant and Program Manager at Kings County from 1998 to 2000. Nemeth earned a Master of Public Administration from the University of Washington. This position requires Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Nemeth is a Democrat.
Benito Delgado-Olson, 37, of Oakland, has been reappointed to the Low-Income Oversight Board of the California Public Utilities Commission, where he has served since 2015 and Chair since 2019. Delgado-Olson has been Executive Director at SupplyBank.org since 2009 and the Chief Executive Officer of SBO Development Company LLC since 2020. He is the immediate past 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.
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