County Supervisor John Gioia Appointed to State Air Resources Board

John Gioia, 55, of Richmond — a Contra Costa County supervisor who represents El Cerrito on the Board of Supervisors and who has an office in El Cerrito — has been appointed to the California Air Quality Board, Gov. Jerry Brown's office announced Tuesday.

Gioia has been a county supervisor since 1999 and served as chair in 2002, 2006 and 2010.

He was principal at the Law Offices of John Gioia from 1986 to 1998 and a legal researcher at John Nimmons and Associates, Energy Law Consultants, from 1984 to 1986. 

Gioia is first vice president of the California State Association of Counties and chair of the Bay Area Joint Policy Committee. He is a member of the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District board of directors, where he was chair in 2012.

Gioia served as an elected member of the East Bay Municipal Utility District board of directors from 1989 to 1998.

He earned a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law. He is a Democrat.

This position requires Senate confirmation and there is no compensation.

"The Air Resources Board is part of the California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal EPA)," Gioia said in a statement after his apppointment was announced.

"Among its many important roles is providing leadership in addressing climate change, including implementing and enforcing air pollution control rules. The Board has established California as a national air quality leader by setting the most stringent vehicle emission standards in the United States.

"Mary Nichols, the current chair of the Air Resources Board, is an amazing lifelong environmentalist who was just named one of Time Magazine's 100 most influential people in the world for her leadership in boosting the fuel economy of American cars, and cutting acid rain and greenhouse gases.

"I look forward to working with her, and all the other board members, in tackling critical upcoming issues, including investing the state's cap-and-trade revenues, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, advancing clean energy, and improving community health. I view all of these as key to improving the quality of life in local communities, including Contra Costa, the state, and the nation."