Governor Newsom Announces Appointments 1.30.23
John Eisenhut, 77, of Colfax, was reappointed to the California Air Resources Board, where he has served since 2013. Eisenhut has been Manager of Grower Relations for Hilltop Ranch Inc. since 1994 and has owned Eisenhut Farms, almond orchards in Turlock since 1975. From 1989 to 1994 he was a field representative for Dole Dried Fruit & Nut Co. in Fresno and from 1975 to 1976 he was a technical representative Employed by Tecolote Research Inc. and from 1972 to 1974 by General Research Corporation from 1967 to 1969 an Infantry Platoon Sergeant in the 1st Division of the US Army. He is a member of the Stanislaus County Farm Bureau. Eisenhut earned a Master of Arts in economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara. This position requires Senate confirmation and compensation is $54,114. Eisenhut is a democrat.
Eric Guerra, 44, of Sacramento, has been appointed to the California Air Resources Board. Guerra has served as the vice mayor of the City of Sacramento since 2023 and a member of the Sacramento City Council since 2015. From 2016 to 2022 he was an advisor to the California State Senate. Guerra earned a Masters of Public Policy from California State University, Sacramento. This position is subject to confirmation by the Senate and there is no compensation. Guerra is a Democrat.
V. Manuel Perez, 50, of Coachella, has been appointed to the California Air Resources Board. Perez has served as the supervisor for Riverside County’s 4th Circuit since 2017. He was chief government and public affairs officer at the Borrego Community Health Foundation from 2014 to 2017, a member of the Coachella City Council from 2014 to 2017, and an assembly member in the California State Assembly from 2008 to 2013, where he served as majority leader from 2012 to 2013. Perez served on the Coachella Valley Unified School District Board of Trustees from 2004-2008. Perez earned a Masters of Education from Harvard Graduate School of Education. This position is subject to confirmation by the Senate and there is no compensation. Perez is a Democrat.
Bill Quirk, 77, of Union City, was appointed to the California Air Resources Board. Quirk served as a member of the 20th District of the California State Assembly from 2012 to 2022. He was a member of the Hayward City Council from 2004 to 2012 and a physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory from 1979 to 2005. Quirk was a business planner for Amdahl Corporation in 1978, a management consultant for McKinsey & Company from 1977-1978, a climate modeler for NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies from 1972-1977, and a postdoctoral fellow at the California Institute of Technology from 1970-1972. Quirk earned a Doctorate of Philosophy in Astrophysics from Columbia University. This position requires Senate confirmation and compensation is $54,114. Quirk is a Democrat.
Susan A. Shaheen, 56, of Orinda, has been appointed to the California Air Resources Board. Shaheen has been Professor In-Residence in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley since 2019 and has been Co-Director of the Transportation Sustainability Research Center at the Institute of Transportation Studies University of California, Berkeley since 2000-2007, including Adjunct Professor , Program Leader, Research Director, Assistant and Associate Research Engineer, and Post-Doctoral Scholar. From 1993 to 1999 she was a graduate student researcher at the University of California, Davis. Shaheen was an Associate for Energetics from 1991-1993 and for ICF International from 1990-1991. She is a member of the Executive Committee of the Transportation Research Board and the Transportation Seminar for Women. Shaheen earned a Master of Science in Public Policy Analysis from the University of Rochester and a Doctor of Philosophy in Ecology from the University of California, Davis. This position requires Senate confirmation and compensation is $54,114. Shaheen is a Democrat.
Diane Takvorian, 71, of San Diego, was reappointed to the California Air Resources Board, where she has served since 2016. Takvorian has been Executive Director of the Environmental Health Coalition since 1982. She was associate director at the San Diego Community Congress from 1978 to 1981. Takvorian was an associate professor at San Diego State University School of Social Work from 1984 to 2001. Takvorian was appointed to the Joint Public Advisory Committee, Commission on Environmental Cooperation by President Obama and served from 2010 to 2014. Takvorian served from 2002 to 2007 as co-chair of the Environmental Justice Advisory Committee of the California Environmental Protection Agency. She earned a Masters of Social Work from San Diego State University. This position requires Senate confirmation and compensation is $54,114. Takvorian is a Democrat.
Gideon Kracov, 51, of Los Angeles, was reappointed to the South Coast Air Quality Management District Board, where he has served since 2020. Kracov has owned the law firm of Gideon Kracov since 2004. He was a member of the State Mining and Geology Board in the Department on Conservation from 2014 to 2018. Kracov was Deputy City Attorney in the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office from 2002 to 2004 and was an associate at Rose, Klein & Marias LLP and at Weston Benshoof from 1997 to 2002 LLP from 1995 to 1997. He earned a doctorate in law from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law. This position requires Senate endorsement and compensation is $100 per day. Kracov is a Democrat.
