Kahn, Soares & Conway hired Abby Taylor-Silva as managing director of regulatory affairs. Based in Sacramento and Salinas, she will regularly visit Hanford and sites throughout the state. She previously served as the executive vice president of the California Agricultural Leadership Foundation, which supports leadership development for members of the agricultural industry. She is an alumnus of the foundation’s 45th class and will step into her new position April 1.
The California Foundation for Commerce and Education hired Luis Quiñonez as president of the CalChamber-affiliated non-profit research organization. He was most recently chief of staff to California State Sen. Anna Caballero and will assume the new position Feb. 18. Quiñonez succeeds Loren Kaye, who served as CFCE president since 2006.
Ali Azadfar joined UC ANR as the UC Cooperative Extension woody biomass and forest products adviser for Siskiyou, Shasta and Trinity counties. Azadfar will focus on promoting sustainable forest products and woody biomass use to enhance forest resilience and support local communities.
The Westlands Water District announced promotions. Russ Freeman has been promoted to the role of deputy general counsel after serving as the deputy general manager of resources for more than seven years. Freeman joined Westlands in 1997 and has been instrumental in developing some of the district’s key program
Russ Freeman, Westlands Water Districts, including supplemental water, land acquisition, power and solar development. Kiti Buelna Campbell was promoted to deputy general manager of resources. She has been with the district since 2010, most recently as supervisor of resources since 2018, where she managed the implementation and regulatory compliance for the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act for the Westside Subbasin.
Billy Ng was named vice president of industry and government affairs for the California Walnut Board and Commission. In the newly created role, Ng will lead activities related to issues management, research and regulatory issues to ensure the industry’s ability to compete globally in the marketing of walnuts. Previously, Ng worked at Blue Diamond Growers in Sacramento for 16 years, most recently as senior manager of global regulatory affairs.
Dylan Beal joined UC ANR on Sept. 3 as the UC Integrated Pest Management entomology adviser for Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties. Based in the Monterey County UC Cooperative Extension office in Salinas, he will focus on developing sustainable IPM programs.
Richard Fordyce, a Missouri farmer who ran USDA’s Farm Service Agency in the first Trump administration, has been nominated to be USDA undersecretary for farm production and conservation. If confirmed, Fordyce would oversee FSA, the Risk Management Agency and Natural Resources Conservation Service. Robert Bonnie held the post during the Biden administration.
Luke Lindberg was tapped as undersecretary of agriculture for trade and foreign agricultural affairs. He was previously an Export-Import Bank chief of staff and most recently worked at America First Policy Institute, the conservative think tank led by Agriculture secretary nominee Brooke Rollins.
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Dudley Hoskins was nominated to be USDA undersecretary for regulatory and marketing programs to oversee the Agricultural Marketing Service and Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. He is a USDA alumnus from the first Trump administration and has been on the Senate Agriculture Committee staff since the previous administration change in 2021.
President Donald Trump nominated businessman Michael Boren to be undersecretary of agriculture for natural resources and environment, overseeing the Forest Service. He founded six companies and is a board member of the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation.
Kailee Tkacz Buller, president and CEO of the National Oilseed Processors Association, has been named chief of staff for agriculture secretary nominee Brooke Rollins. Buller is an alumnus of the first Trump Administration, where she held several positions in USDA, including chief of staff to then-Deputy Secretary Stephen Censky, senior adviser on biofuels, and adviser in the Office of Congressional Relations during the 2018 farm bill process. She has also worked in various legislative and regulatory roles at the Edible Oil Producers Association, Corn Refiners Association, SNAC International and the National Grocers Association.
Devin Mogler, senior vice president for investor relations at Green Plains Inc., was named Tuesday to replace Tkacz Buller at NOPA. Mogler has been with Green Plains for seven years and previously oversaw the agriculture, trade and renewable energy portfolio for Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa.
Former Sen. Debbie Stabenow; Liberty Partners GroupFormer Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow is joining Liberty Partners Group as a senior policy adviser. According to a news release, she will “provide strategic guidance on a broad range of issues, including healthcare, agriculture, and economic policy, helping clients address critical challenges and achieve their goals.” Stabenow’s public service career spans 50 years, including representing Michigan in the U.S. Senate for 24 years.
Anne Simmons is retiring as staff director for House Ag Committee Democrats. She has worked on Capitol Hill since 1987, when she was hired as a staff assistant. During her decades of service, Simmons has been staff director under Reps. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., and David Scott, D-Ga.
Food safety expert Angie Siemens joined OFW Law as a senior regulatory and technical adviser. She will support clients by providing food safety compliance support, recall planning and management, as well as assistance in responding to regulatory enforcement. Siemens previously worked in prominent positions at Cargill, Smithfield Foods and Kraft Foods.
Alexis Taylor will join the International Fresh Produce Association as chief global policy officer after she completed two years as undersecretary of agriculture for trade and foreign agricultural affairs. In the newly created role, Taylor will lead IFPA’s government relations team and focus on driving the association's global public policy agenda.
Rural broadband proponent Brendan Carr was named chair of the Federal Communications Commission. He has been a fierce defender of Starlink, a satellite internet subsidiary of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, and decried a previous FCC decision to revoke broadband funding for the company over concern about its ability to meet service requirements.
The Animal Agriculture Alliance promoted Emily Ellis to director, communications and content. Since joining the staff in 2020, she has led its College Aggies Online scholarship program. Abby Kornegay has been promoted to director of issues and engagement. She has been with the group since 2022 and has focused on restaurant, retail and foodservice. Grace Simpson was promoted to manager of membership and communications. She joined the alliance full time in 2022 and helped manage membership recruitment and retention and overseeing social media.
Jenny Lester MoffittJenny Lester Moffitt, who served as undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs at USDA during the Biden administration, is moving to American Farmland Trust as senior fellow. She was at AFT from 2002 to 2005. She was deputy secretary for policy and then undersecretary at the California Department of Food and Agriculture from 2015 to 2021.
Andrew Ferguson is now the chair of the Federal Trade Commission. Last week Ferguson criticized a decision made by the committee majority to authorize a lawsuit accusing equipment manufacturing giant John Deere of violating antitrust laws with its repair practices. He said he supports the idea of right-to-repair legislation but expressed concern about the lawsuit’s timing, which he said gives it a “stench of partisan motivation.”
Patrick Fuchs, a former Senate Transportation Committee staff member, is the new chair of the Surface Transportation Board, which is tasked with overseeing railroad competition issues.
Jeffery Hall will continue to chair the Farm Credit Administration. He is an Obama appointee and despite his term expiring in 2018, continues to serve in the absence of a replacement.
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