Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:
Heather Geldart, of Lincoln, has been appointed Chief Deputy Director of the Office of Oil Spill Prevention and Response at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Geldart has been Deputy Director of Disaster Debris Removal Operations at the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery since 2023. She was Integrated Program Manager at Arlington County Public Safety Communications and Emergency Management from 2020 to 2023. Geldart was Senior Managing Associate at Hagerty Consulting from 2019 to 2020. She was Founder and President at 1240 Performance LLC from 2013 to 2019. Geldart was an Associate at Booz Allen Hamilton from 2005 to 2013. She earned a Master of Arts degree in Homeland Security from the Naval Postgraduate School Center for Homeland Defense and Security and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Virginia. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $186,696. Geldart is a Republican.
Kaitlin "Katie" Talbot, of Sacramento, has been appointed Deputy Director of Public Affairs at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Talbot has been Director of Communications for State Assembly Speaker Emeritus Anthony Rendon since 2023. She held multiple roles in the Office of State Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon from 2019 to 2023, including Deputy Director of Communications, Press Secretary and Communications Specialist. Talbot was Special Projects Producer for KTXL FOX40 from 2014 to 2019. She was a Reporter and Producer for Capitol Television News Service from 2014 to 2015. Talbot earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in American Studies and History from the University of California, Santa Cruz. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $143,232. Talbot is a Democrat.
Brandon Williams, of Carmichael, has been appointed General Counsel at the California Department of Housing and Community Development. Williams has been Assistant Chief Counsel at the California Department of Housing and Community Development since 2021. He was an Attorney III at the California Department of Housing and Community Development from 2019 to 2021. Williams was a Sole Practitioner from 2018 to 2019. He was a Founding Partner and General Counsel at King, Williams & Gleason LLP from 2014 to 2017. Williams was a Partner and Chair of the Real Estate and Business Law Group at Cota Cole LLP from 2012 to 2014. He was an Associate at Downey Brand LLP from 2006 to 2012. Williams was In-House Counsel at KMS Development LLC from 2004 to 2006. He held multiple positions at Holland & Hart LLP from 2002 to 2004, including Summer Associate and Associate. Williams was a Summer Associate at Stoel Rives LLP in 2001. He earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Virginia School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and Philosophy from the University of Notre Dame. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $203,640. Williams is a Democrat.
David Shabazian, of Sacramento, has been appointed to the State Board of Food and Agriculture. Shabazian has been Director of the California Department of Conservation since 2019. He was Rural-Urban Connections Strategy Program Manager at the Sacramento Area Council of Governments from 2000 to 2019. Shabazian was a Graduate Researcher at the University of California, Davis from 1996 to 2000. He was a Planner I at the City of Davis Planning Department from 1994 to 1996. Shabazian is a member of the Dean's Advisory Council for the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at University of California, Davis. He earned a Master of Science degree in Transportation Technology and Policy from the University of California, Davis and a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural and Managerial Economics at the University of California, Davis. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Shabazian is registered without party preference.
Katherine "Kelly" Williams Dodd, of Napa, has been reappointed to the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, where she has served since 2018. Dodd served as a Deputy Secretary of Legal Affairs in the Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. from 2017 to 2018. She was an Assistant General Manager and Corporate Secretary at Frog's Leap Winery from 2016 to 2017. Dodd held multiple positions at the American Civil Liberties Union, California Legislative Office from 2010 to 2016, including Legislative Advocate from 2013 to 2016 and Legislative Aide from 2010 to 2013. She earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Arts from the Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts at The New School. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $180,845. Dodd is a Democrat.
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