Casual Conversations

Senate Housing Committee Chair, Senator Scott Weiner shares his thoughts on policies that will ignite the construction of affordable housing in CA.

Senator Scott Wiener represents San Francisco and northern San Mateo County in the California State Senate. Elected in 2016, Senator Wiener focuses extensively on housing and transportation issues. Before being elected to the Senate, Senator Wiener served as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors and chaired the San Francisco County Transportation Authority. Before being elected to office, Senator Wiener practiced law for 15 years, including nearly a decade as a Deputy City Attorney in the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office.

During a Casual Conversation, Mia Marvelli, Executive Director of the California Building Standards Commission, shares with SRBX members recent enhancements with building standards in CA.

Mia Marvelli was appointed the California Building Standards Commission (CBSC) Executive Director in February 2016. Marvelli joined CBSC in 2012 with 20 years of prior state service including the Department of Water Resources and the Department of General Services, Real Estate Services Division.

Prior to being named executive director, Marvelli served CBSC as an associate architect administering the processes related to the adoption, approval, publication, and implementation of California's building codes. In addition, she developed building standards and green building standards regulations on behalf of CBSC.

Michael Jamnetski, Chief of Legislation, Contractors State Licensing Board discusses with SRBX Government Affairs Committee members and SRBX Legal Committee members to discuss crafting new policies for the construction industry.

Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak discusses workforce development and how his administration will work with CA to make sure that areas devastated by the recent fires have sufficient construction workers to rebuild local communities.

In 2008, after 10 years as a University Regent, Steve was elected to the Clark County Commission, where he served as chairman until being sworn in as governor of Nevada. On the commission, Steve was known as a coalition builder and problem solver. Steve successfully managed the state’s largest county budget and led the county through the Great Recession.

Casual Conversation with state Senator Richard Pan, 6th District, State Architect Chester Widom, members of the State Allocation Board and CA Education Department to discuss building educational facilities in California.

Dr. Richard Pan is a pediatrician, former UC Davis educator, and State Senator proudly representing Sacramento, West Sacramento, Elk Grove and unincorporated areas of Sacramento County.

Chester A. Widom FAIA was the founding partner of WWCOT, a 185 person architectural, interior design, planning and forensics firm with four offices in California and an office in Shanghai, China.

Sacramento City Council Member Jeff Harris discusses with SRBX members issues impacting the construction industry in the region.

Jeff Harris was elected in November 2014 to represent the 3rd City Council District in the City of Sacramento. The third district encompasses the East Sacramento, River Park, Sacramento State, the Downtown Railyards, the River District, South Natomas, Gardenland and Northgate neighborhoods.

Elk Grove City Council Member, Darrin Suen, meets with SRBX members during a Casual Conversation to discuss regional projects in the area.

His professional background as a civil engineering manager specializing in transportation and water resources, and land use planning experience have proven useful previously on the FLACPAC and currently on the Council. Darren is a Principal Engineer and Policy Advisor for the California Central Valley Flood Protection Board.

Darren is a registered civil engineer with a master’s in business administration and a certified project management professional (PMP) with the Project Management Institute (PMI). He is a graduate of Sacramento's City Management Academy and a Great Valley Center I.D.E.A.L. Fellow.

SRBX lobbying team advocating for increased state resources for CTE grant programs with Lt Governor Eleni Kounalakis.

Ambassador Eleni Kounalakis is the first woman elected Lt. Governor of California. From 2010 to 2013, Kounalakis served as President Barack Obama’s Ambassador to the Republic of Hungary. Kounalakis was the first Greek-American woman – and at age 43 one of America’s youngest – to serve as U.S. Ambassador.

Prior to her public service, Kounalakis was president of one of California’s most respected housing development firms, AKT Development, where she worked for 18 years. She built master-planned communities and delivered quality housing to the Sacramento region’s working families – recognizing her as one of the capital region’s most prominent businesswomen.

Casual Conversation with US Congressman Ami Berra to discuss infrastructural spending and Opportunity Zones in CA.

After graduating from medical school in 1991, he did his residency in internal medicine at California Pacific Medical Center, eventually becoming chief resident. He went on to practice medicine in the Sacramento area, serving in various leadership roles for MedClinic Medical Group.

Congressman Bera is currently a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where he serves as Chair of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee. He is also Vice Chair of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.

Casual Conversation with Sacramento District Attorney, Anne Marie Schubert who discussed her 28 years of law enforcement experience.

Schubert was first elected Sacramento County District Attorney in 2014 with more than two decades of law enforcement experience. As a county prosecutor, she formed Cold Case Prosecution and become a nationally recognized expert on forensic DNA. Schubert also founded the Community and Government Relations Division, which combines community relations and legislative advocacy solutions to enhance public safety

Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones joins SRBX members during a Casual Conversation about how Sacramento is facing historic challenges and how his department is meeting those challenges.

As a deputy, he worked in corrections, patrol, and Legal Affairs. He was assigned as the Department’s legal adviser for over seven years. He promoted through the ranks to Sergeant, Lieutenant and finally Captain.

Sheriff Jones has earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from CSU Sacramento, and a Juris Doctor (Law) degree from Lincoln Law School. He is also a graduate of the West Point
Leadership Program.

Casual Conversation with Lt. Governor and candidate for CA governor, Gavin Newsom, to share with SRBX members his policy priorities for the construction industry and further grow our state's economy.

He served as the 49th lieutenant governor of California from 2011 to 2019 and as the 42nd mayor of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011.

Newsom is widely recognized for his bold willingness to lead – repeatedly developing, advocating, and implementing innovative and groundbreaking solutions to some of our most challenging issues.

Casual Conversation with former LA Mayor and Assembly Speaker, Antonia Villaraigosa, discusses his campaign for governor to SRBX members.

Before becoming mayor, he was a member of the California State Assembly (1994–2000), where he served as the Democratic leader of the Assembly (1996–98), and the Speaker of the California State Assembly (1998–2000). As Speaker, Villaraigosa was an advocate for working families and helped to write legislation protecting the environment, expanding healthcare access, and increasing funding for public schools.

Casual Conversation with Republican candidate for Governor, John Cox, to discuss his vision for California.

In 1980, Cox graduated from ITT/Chicago Kent College of Law and began working as an accountant. One year later, Cox founded a law firm and an accounting firm, followed by forays into investment advice, real estate, and venture capital. In 1991, Cox established a local branch of Rebuilding Together, a housing repair nonprofit.

In 2017, John Cox filed the Neighborhood Legislative Districts and Working Groups Initiative. The initiative was designed to restructure the California State Legislature, dividing legislative districts into smaller neighborhood districts.

Former U.S. Ambassador and Candidate for Lieutenant Governor, Eleni Kounalakis, discusses her version for California future with SRBX members.

From 2010 to 2013, Kounalakis served as President Barack Obama’s Ambassador to the Republic of Hungary. Kounalakis was the first Greek-American woman – and at age 43 one of America’s youngest – to serve as U.S. Ambassador.

Prior to her public service, Kounalakis was president of one of California’s most respected housing development firms, AKT Development, where she worked for 18 years. She built master-planned communities and delivered quality housing to the Sacramento region’s working families – recognizing her as one of the capital region’s most prominent businesswomen.

Casual Conversation with state Treasurer John Chiang and candidate for Governor who will share with our members about his vision for California and how it relates to the construction industry

He served as the 33rd California State Treasurer from 2014 to 2019. He previously served as California State Controller from 2007 to 2015 and on the California Board of Equalization from 1997 to 2007.

BOE Member Fiona Ma, candidate for CA State Treasurer during a SRBX Casual Conversation to discuss her campaign and policy priorities.

Fiona Ma was a member of the State Assembly from 2006-2012, serving as Speaker pro Tempore from 2010 to 2012. She was an elected member of the California Board of Equalization from 2015 until January 2019 and worked to protect the rights of taxpayers while ensuring California collected its fair share of tax revenues.

From 1989-93 she worked for Ernst & Young, before starting her own accounting practice in San Francisco. Fiona Ma is a licensed CPA in California since 1992 and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from the Rochester Institute of Technology (NY), a Master’s Degree in Taxation from Golden Gate University (SF), and an MBA from Pepperdine University.

SRBX's Casual Conversation with state Senator Ed Hernandez, candidate for Lt. Governor who will share with our members about his vision for California.

In 2010, Hernández ran a successful campaign for the California State Senate, to represent the 22nd Senate district. He was reelected to the Senate in 2014. Prior to his election to the State Senate in 2010, he served in the California State Assembly, representing the 57th Assembly district from 2006 until 2010.

Former Senator and BOE Member, District 1, George Runner joins SRBX in a Casual Conversation about CA tax policies and business climate.

From 2004 to 2010, he was a California State Senator representing the 17th Senate District, and was the Republican Caucus Chair (the Senate's second-highest Republican leadership post) from 2004 to 2009. From 1996 to 2002, he was a California State Assemblyman representing the 36th Assembly District, which at the time consisted of portions of Los Angeles County.

In 2002, Runner authored California's AMBER Alert system, which has successfully utilized the Emergency Alert System to involve the general public in the search for abducted children and has aided in numerous successful parent-child reunions.

Casual Conversations​

Casual Conversations