Sacramento, California - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the appointment of Thomas Gibson as undersecretary of the California Natural Resources Agency, replacing Janelle Beland, who has served in that role since 2011.

“Tom has done a tremendous job as general counsel at the Natural Resources Agency and will continue his important work in this new role,” said Governor Brown. “Janelle has taken on some of the most complex and contentious issues at Resources, and thanks to her insight and tenacity, we’ve accomplished a great deal.”

Gibson, 49, of Sacramento, has served as deputy secretary and general counsel at the California Natural Resources Agency since 2014. He served as general counsel at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife from 2010 to 2014, where he was assistant chief counsel from 2008 to 2010. Gibson was a partner at Best, Best and Krieger from 2005 to 2008, where he was an associate from 2002 to 2005. He was an associate at Hyman, Phelps and McNamara from 1999 to 2002 and at Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann and Girard from 1997 to 1999. Gibson earned a Juris Doctor degree from the Northwestern School of Law at Lewis and Clark College. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $168,360 Gibson is registered without party preference.

Beland will continue to serve the administration in an advisory role.