Governor Appoints Dan Richard Again

Dan Richard, 60, was an adviser to Gov. Jerry Brown more than 30 years ago. Brown announced Friday that he had called upon Richard again to serve on the board of the California High Speed Rail Authority.

Richard, a Piedmont resident, worked deputy assistant for science and technology for the governor from 1978 to 1979 and then as deputy legal affairs secretary from 1982 to 1983, according to the governor's announcement.

In the Sacramento Bee's Capital Alert blog, David Siders pointed out that Richard's appointment follows Brown's statement earlier this week that he's working with the rail authority to, "get their act together."

Richard has led major transit projects before. He was an elected member of the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District board from 1992 to 2004 and twice served as president. He spearheaded the efforts to secure $4 billion for BART rehabilitation projects, the expansion to San Francisco Airport, and seismic retrofits.