Governor Newsom Announces Appointments

Press Release

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:

Ida A. Clair, 58, of Elk Grove, has been reappointed State Architect at the Department of General Services, where she has served in that position since 2021. Clair held several positions at the Department of General Services from 2013 to 2021, including Acting State Architect, Principal Architect and Senior Architect. She was Project Manager at Cynthia Easton Architects from 1999 to 2013. Clair was Project Architect at Itaya-Espalin and Associates Inc. from 1990 to 1997. She is a member of the Association of Women in Water, Energy and Environment, the American Institute of Architects, the U.S. Green Building Council and the American Construction Inspectors Association. She is co-founder of the Certified Access Specialist Institute. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $196,072. Clair is a Democrat.

Rishi Parbhaat S. Khalsa, 34, of San Leandro, has been appointed Deputy Director for Communications at the Civil Rights Department. Khalsa has been a Press Secretary at the California Department of Justice since 2019. He was an Assistant Press Secretary in the Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. from 2018 to 2019 and served as an Executive Fellow there from 2017 to 2018. He was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Costa Rica from 2013 to 2015. Khalsa earned a Master of Development Practice degree from the University of California, Berkeley. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $125,004. Khalsa is a Democrat.

Karin Shine, 53, of Sacramento, has been appointed General Counsel and Deputy Director at the Employment Development Department. Shine has been Assistant Chief Counsel at the Employment Development Department since 2021. She held multiple positions at the California Department of Water Resources from 2005 to 2017, including Attorney IV, Attorney III and Attorney I. She was Staff Counsel I at the Department of Housing and Community Development from 2004 to 2005. Shine was Staff Counsel at the State Water Resources Control Board from 2001 to 2004. Shine earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Los Angeles. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $192,156. Shine is a Democrat.

Shaun Spillane, 40, of Gold River, has been appointed Chief Counsel at the Office of Inspector General. Spillane has been Attorney IV at the Office of Inspector General since 2013. He was Labor Relations Counsel II at the California Department of Human Resources from 2009 to 2013. He was a Graduate Student Assistant at the Office of Inspector General from 2008 to 2009. Spillane earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $182,556. Spillane is registered without party preference.

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