Sylvia Panetta is the Chair of the Board of Directors and Director of the Panetta Institute for Public Policy at California State University Monterey Bay. She and her husband, Leon Panetta, United States Secretary of Defense, began the Institute in 1998, with a mission to encourage young people to pursue lives of public service and to bring discussion of important issues to the community. As Director, Mrs. Panetta oversees the day-to-day operations of the Institute’s programs and projects. She has also served as an advisor to the Chancellor of California State University since 1997. She has a distinguished record of service and awards for efforts on behalf of community non-profit organizations, public education and her commitment to youth. Her education in humanities and nursing was received from Dominican College, St. Joseph’s College, Monterey Peninsula College and Sonoma State University.

Jon Biggs is the Community Development Director for the City of Pismo Beach, a classic beach community located on California’s Central Coast. Prior to Pismo Beach, Mr. Biggs worked for City of Alameda as its Planning Services Manager and the City of Pacific Grove as its Community Development Director. He has extensive experience guiding projects and regulatory documents through the review and approval process that is unique to California’s Coastal Communities and is in the process of updating the Land Use Element of the Pismo Beach General Plan. He is becoming well versed in the Sphere of Influence Update, Municipal Services Review, and Annexation processes as he works on projects that would change the City limits of Pismo Beach.

Chuck Stevenson, AICP, is the Division Manager for Long Range Planning for the County of San Luis Obispo Department of Planning and Building. He oversees activities of 17 staff that carry out community land use and transportation planning activities including general plan updates, special studies, administer housing and economic development grants and programs, energy efficiency programs, grant writing and general plan implementation programs for ten unincorporated towns and all rural areas of San Luis Obispo County. Mr. Stevenson is a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners and is adjunct faculty in the City and Regional Planning Department at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. He also serves on the City of San Luis Obispo’s Planning Commission and on the Board of Directors for Habitat for Humanity, San Luis Obispo County.

David Church currently serves as the Executive Officer for the San Luis Obispo LAFCO. Mr. Church has 24 years of experience in the planning and administrative fields. He has worked for SLO LAFCO for the last 11 years and previously working 13 years with the County San Luis Obispo’s Planning Department and County Administrative Office. Mr. Church is also a member of the American Planning Association’s Institute for Certified Planners (AICP). He has written and processed many Municipal Service Reviews and Sphere of Influence Updates and drafted the Memorandum of Agreements between the City’s and County. Mr. Church continues to be optimistic that improved cooperation between the City, County and Special Districts will lead to orderly, logical growth and the more efficient delivery of services.

Mr. Colantuono is a shareholder in Colantuono & Levin, a municipal law firm with offices in Los Angeles and Nevada County. He was the recipient of the 2010 Public Lawyer award from the California State Bar Association and named one of California’s Top 25 Municipal Lawyers in December 2011 by the Los Angeles Daily Journal. Mr. Colantuono is an expert on municipal revenues and argued three recent public finance cases in the California Supreme Court. He is City attorney for the cities of Auburn, Calabasas and Grass Valley, and general counsel of Calaveras and Yuba County LAFCOs and of a number of special districts. Mr. Colantuono graduated from Harvard College with a degree in Government and received his law degree from the Boalt Hall School of Law of the University of California at Berkeley.

San Jose Councilmember Pete Constant has served on Santa Clara LAFCo since 2007 and is serving as the current chairperson. Mr. Constant is a council member for the City of San Jose where he has focused on public safety, economic development, open government, and regional planning. Prior to serving as a San José Councilmember, Constant served for 14 years as a San José Police Officer. Constant is an adjunct professor of Leadership at St. Mary’s College, his Alma Mater, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Management and his Master of Arts Degree in Leadership. He has also completed Leadership programs through the League of California Cities, San José State University, Santa Clara University, and San José Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce. He is currently participating in the American Leadership Forum program of Silicon Valley. Constant has earned certifications on Pension, Benefits, Hedge Funds, Investments, and Management programs from University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business and Stanford Law School.

Ms. Selenski is Principal Analyst with Harvey Rose Associates, LLC. She has substantial experience analyzing public sector management issues related to program performance, budgets, finance and policy. Ms. Selenski's previous experience includes non-profit work related to civic engagement and corporate and government accountability, a fellowship in the California State Assembly, and service as a board member for multiple non-profit organizations. She also gained experience in public finance as a municipal bond rating analyst at a leading credit rating agency. Ms. Selenski earned her undergraduate degree from The University of Chicago and a Masters in Public Policy from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

Ms. Martin has several years of experience analyzing and auditing local government finances and operations. Some of the highlights of her work include a comprehensive audit of the San Francisco General Hospital, annual analyses of proposed budget for the San Francisco Department of Public Health, and analysis of county costs of services to validate property tax transfer amount for the new City of Rancho Cordova. Ms. Martin has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Economics from UC Santa Barbara and a Masters degree in Public Policy from UC Berkeley.

Richard L. Berkson is a Principal and founding partner of Economic and Planning Systems (EPS). EPS provides services related to special district formation and consolidation, municipal service reviews, annexation studies, and intergovernmental agreements. Mr. Berkson has collaborated with numerous LAFCOs over the course of his professional career, worked on dozens of governance studies, and has participated in CALAFCO presentations on the incorporation process. He has primary responsibility for many of EPS’s local government fiscal analyses. Mr. Berkson earned a Masters of Public Policy from the Goldman School at UC Berkeley.

Ms. Nancy Miller is the President and principal shareholder of Miller & Owen, a Sacramento law firm that provides legal services across California. Ms. Miller is named as a “preeminent lawyer,” the highest ranking by Martindale-Hubble, and the firm has received an AV rating, the highest rating a law firm can receive from this nationally recognized legal reference publication, signifying preeminent levels of legal ability and the highest ethical standards. Further, since 2004, Nancy Miller has consistently been rated as a “Super Lawyer” in her field by her peers through the independent research of Law & Politics Magazine. Ms. Miller has over 30 years of experience in providing legal services to numerous public agency and private clients, including cities, counties, local agency formation commissions, special districts and joint power authorities. Ms. Miller’s practice specializes in all aspects of public agency law, including land use, environmental, transportation, LAFCo, and special district law as well as contracting and public agency administration. Ms. Miller provides a full range of litigation services in both trial and appellate courts including the California Supreme Court. Ms. Miller graduated from Stanford University in 1974 and received her Juris Doctor from UC Hastings College of Law in 1978. Ms. Miller currently serves as the President of California Commission on Autism Foundation and also sits on the Boards for the California Musical Theatre and Sacramento Children’s Choir, among other Boards. Ms. Miller served an Adjunct Professor of Local Government Law at the University of Pacific, Mc George School of Law from 2000 to 2010.

David Church currently serves as the Executive Officer for the San Luis Obispo LAFCO. Mr. Church has 24 years of experience in the planning and administrative fields. He has worked for SLO LAFCO for the last 11 years and previously working 13 years with the County San Luis Obispo’s Planning Department and County Administrative Office. Mr. Church is also a member of the American Planning Association’s Institute for Certified Planners (AICP). He has written and processed many Municipal Service Reviews and Sphere of Influence Updates and drafted the Memorandum of Agreements between the City’s and County. Mr. Church continues to be optimistic that improved cooperation between the City, County and Special Districts will lead to orderly, logical growth and the more efficient delivery of services.

P. Scott Browne is an attorney based in Grass Valley, California. He specializes in municipal law, with an emphasis on LAFCos, as well as business and real estate law matters. He is a graduate of Yale University, with a bachelor’s degree in economics He was admitted to the California State Bar in 1976 and has been practicing law ever since; first as Deputy County Counsel for the County of Nevada, then as a senior partner in a law firm, and now as a sole practitioner with associated attorneys Andrew Harris and Marsha Burch. A large portion of his practice involves the representation of numerous small government agencies; he is currently general counsel for Butte, Colusa, Lake, Nevada and Solano LAFCos, and alternate counsel to Yuba and Yolo LAFCo. He has also been a City Attorney for the City of Colfax, and represented several other small government agencies. He is currently Special Counsel for Consolidated Irrigation District in Fresno County. He also represents several clients with respect to large real estate transactions. Scott is a present and past member of the board of directors of many non-profit organizations, including numerous community service organizations and liberal arts organizations.

Mr. Chiat is the Executive Director of the California Association of Local Agency Formation Commissions. He was appointed in September, 2004. He also serves as Dean and founder of the California State Association of Counties Institute for Excellence in County Government. Previously Bill served as Chief Executive Officer of Napa County, Director of Organizational Effectiveness for Santa Barbara County, and assistant city manager in Oxnard. Bill also served as Planning and Development Director for the Ventura Regional Sanitation District. At the state level, Bill served under Arizona Governor Fife Symington as the Executive Director of the Governor’s Office for Excellence in Government. Among his accomplishments are the agreements for incorporating the City of Goleta and the landmark housing allocation sharing agreements in Napa County. Bill has a bachelor of science from the University of Minnesota and a masters of science from the University of Michigan. He is a graduate of the Senior Executives in State and Local Government program from the Kennedy School at Harvard University.

Mr. Kelly is principle of Brian Kelly & Associates, advising companies on strategic planning; vision implementation; finance, marketing and human resource opportunities. He helps businesses and their leadership in strategic thinking and the creation of organizational value through revenue generation. Includes functioning in the role of a part-time Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Kelly is the Public Member on the Napa LAFCo and currently serves as Chair of the Commission. Previously Mr. Kelly was President and CEO of Charter Oak Bank in Napa, President and CEO of Napa National Bank, and Vice President of Bank of America. He holds an MBA from UC-Berkeley and a Bachelor of Science in Management from CSU-Hayward.

Charley Wilson has served on the Santa Margarita Water District Board of Directors since his 2000. After serving ten years as the alternate representative to the Orange LAFCO, Mr. Wilson became a full voting commissioner in 2011, and he currently serves as Chairman. Mr. Wilson is employed by Southern California Edison as a manager of public affairs, where he leads the coordination of local government education programming to meet the needs of cities, counties and special districts.

Assembly Member Dickinson is a member of the California State Assembly, serving the 9th District since 2010. Prior to that he was a member of the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors from 1994 to 2010 and served as a Commissioner on the Sacramento LAFCo. Assemblyman Dickinson is Chair of the Assembly Committee on Accountability and Administrative Review, and also serves on the Assembly’s Judiciary Committee, Natural Resources Committee, and the Budget Subcommittee #4 on State Administration. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of California Berkeley and earned a law degree from the University of California at Los Angeles.

Mr. Gladbach is Chairman of the Local Agency Formation Commission for Los Angeles County, where he serves as a special district representative. He represents Division 2 on the Castaic Lake Water Agency. Mr. Gladbach is also the Chair of the Board of CALAFCO. He retired from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power after 35 years having various assignments regarding design, construction, research, governmental relations and environmental and safety compliance. He is active in the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) and its Joint Powers Insurance Authority, serving as President of the JPIA’s Board of Directors. He is also a member of the Board of Directors of the National Water Resources Association. He received his M.S. and B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of Missouri-Columbia and he is a registered Civil Engineer in California and a Fellow and Life Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Ms. Wilson is the public member of Santa Clara LAFCO, where she has served since 1995. She also served as Chair of CALAFCO in 2011 after 8 years on the Board of Directors. Ms. Wilson is an attorney with a civil litigation practice in Morgan Hill, and is a member and Past President of the Board of Trustees for Santa Clara County Bar Association. She has also served on the boards of the Learning and Loving Educational Center, the Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce, the Morgan Hill Downtown Revitalization Program, the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley, and the American Association of University Women.

Mr. Novak has served as the Executive Officer of Los Angeles LAFCo since January of 2011. Prior to Joining LAFCO, Paul was the Planning Deputy to Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich from 2003 to 2010. He formerly owned a land-use planning firm from 1993 to 2003. Mr. Novak has a B.A. in political science from Claremont McKenna College and a Master of Real Estate Development from the University of Southern California. He is also an Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Southern California and a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP).

Mr. Henriquez has served as the Executive Officer for the El Dorado LAFCO since November 2005. His career spans both the private and public sectors, and he is an alumnus from the prestigious Jesse Marvin Unruh California State Assembly Fellowship Program. Mr. Henriquez is on the Board of Directors for CASA El Dorado (Court Appointed Special Advocates) and the Alumni Advisory Board for the Cal Poly Political Science Department. He volunteers as a facilitator for the Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project’s Sacramento Institute. Mr. Henriquez earned a B.A. in Political Science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo and a Master’s in Public Policy and Administration from Sacramento State University.

Christine Crawford recently joined Yolo LAFCo as the Executive Officer in December 2011. Christine has over 20 years of experience in land use planning, working both in the public and private sector. She was with PMC consultants for over 15 years, the last 6 years as associate principal of the company. Her consulting positions included most notably serving as the Planning Director for the City of Elk Grove for 8 years, and also working in the cities of Folsom, Milpitas, Tracy and San Rafael, the counties of Calaveras, Nevada and Monterey and school districts in Los Altos and Novato – all in various capacities. Previous to her consulting work, she was employed as an Associate Planner with Calaveras County.

Carol started began her professional career as a probation officer in Yolo County after graduating from California State University, Sacramento with a major in Criminal Justice. She worked in probation administration and then as a Law and Justice Analyst in the County Administrator’s Office in Yolo County. In 1987, Carol was hired as the first Assistant City Manager for the newly incorporated City of West Sacramento. She remains in that capacity. Throughout her tenure, Carol has been in involved in several shared service arrangements from JPAs to cooperative agreements. She currently serves on the Board of Directors for a communications and risk management JPA. She is also working with Yolo LAFCO on their Shared Services Program.

Supervisor Don Saylor is currently a member of the Yolo County Board of Supervisors and the LAFCo Commission. His public service career spans 35 years and includes administrative, planning and analytical positions in local government and both the legislative and executive branches of California state government. Mr. Saylor has previously served two terms on the Davis City Council and two terms on the Davis Joint Unified School District board. While on the school board, he also served as the 8th Assembly District Government Relations Chair for the California School Boards Association. He is a member of numerous philanthropic organizations. At this point in his career, Don Saylor’s highest goal and passion is shared services and how we can do more together than as individual agencies.

Joe joined OC LAFCO in 2008 as a student intern and moved up to a consultant in 2009. Joe officially became a full-time employee as a Policy Analyst in 2010. As a Policy Analyst, he manages a variety of projects including annexations and fiscal studies. In the past two years, Joe has been highly active in the development and campaign of OC LAFCO’s Shared Services Program.

Dana Smith brings an unusual wealth of knowledge and a depth of management experience to the CALAFCO panel. Her 30-year career in local government has taken her to a number of cities and agencies throughout California. Ms. Smith retired as the Assistant City Manager of the City of Newport Beach in 2012. She previously served as the assistant city manager for the City of Napa, where she was responsible for the City’s development services. Prior to Napa, she was assistant city manager and community development director for the City of Chula Vista. Before joining Chula Vista, Dana was the executive officer for the Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission 10 years where she oversaw the formation of three cities and the consolidation of over 20 special districts. Dana Smith is currently consulting for CEO2, Creating Extraordinary Organizations. CEO2 works with private companies and public organizations to improve performance, business practices, and ultimately the return on investment.

Ms. Michel is the Chief Consultant to the Assembly Local Government Committee. Among the Committee's responsibilities is maintenance of the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government Reorganization Act of 2000. Ms. Michel is editor of the annual guide to the Act.

Mr. Chiat is the Executive Director of the California Association of Local Agency Formation Commissions. He was appointed in September, 2004. He is Chair of the CALAFCO Legislative Committee and represents CALAFCO in the Legislature. Mr. Chiat also serves as Dean and Manager of the California State Association of Counties Institute for Excellence in County Government. Previously Bill served as Chief Executive Officer of Napa County, Director of Organizational Effectiveness for Santa Barbara County, and assistant city manager in Oxnard. Bill also served as Planning and Development Director for the Ventura Regional Sanitation District. At the state level, Bill served under Arizona Governor Fife Symington as the Executive Director of the Governor’s Office for Excellence in Government. Among his accomplishments are the agreements for incorporating the City of Goleta and the landmark housing allocation sharing agreements in Napa County. Bill has a bachelor of science from the University of Minnesota and a masters of science from the University of Michigan. He is a graduate of the Senior Executives in State and Local Government program from the Kennedy School at Harvard University.

Karen Ross is Secretary of Food and Agriculture for the State of California. She was appointed Secretary in January 2011 by Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr. Secretary Ross has deep leadership experience in agricultural issues at national and international levels, and here in California. Prior to joining the State government, she was Chief of Staff for U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Before her time at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Secretary Ross served more than 13 years in leadership posts with the California Association of Winegrape Growers, the Winegrape Growers of America, and the California Wine Grape Growers Foundation, and created the nationally-recognized Sustainable Winegrowing Program that assists growers in maintaining the viability of agricultural lands. From 2001 to 2009, Secretary Ross served on the California State Board of Food and Agriculture, and chaired a committee that initiated an agricultural vision progress. From 1989 to 1996, she was Vice President of Government Affairs for the Agricultural Council of California, representing farmer-owned cooperatives. Secretary Ross was raised on a farm in Nebraska, and is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Throughout her distinguished career, Secretary Ross has received awards and honors for her service on boards and committees in California agriculture, the wine industry and with academic institutions.