Cory Binns, of San Diego, has been appointed Chief Deputy Director at the California Department of Transportation. Binns has been a Retired Annuitant Director of Construction and Engineering at the San Diego Association of Governments since 2025. He was a Pre-Construction Manager of Alternative Delivery at Flatiron Construction from 2023 to 2024. Binns served in a variety of roles at the California Department of Transportation from 1999 to 2023, including Deputy Director of Maintenance and Operations, District 11 Director, and Corridor Manager. He was the Construction Quality Control Manager at West Coast General Corporation from 1997 to 1998. Binns was a Project Engineer at Pountney and Associates from 1995 to 1997. He was an Assistant Engineer at Riverside County Flood Control from 1991 to 1994. Binns served in the Navy Reserve Civil Engineer Corps from 1998 to 2006. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Irvine. This position does not require Senate confirmation, and the compensation is $234,000. Binns is registered without party preference.
Sara Nelson, of Roseville, has been appointed Deputy Secretary of Administrative Services at the California Health and Human Services Agency. Nelson has been Chief of the Strategic Planning and Workforce Development Division at the Department of Health Care Services since 2022, where she was Assistant Chief from 2021 to 2022. She was an Administration Manager at the Health and Human Services Agency from 2019 to 2021. Nelson was a Training Coordinator in the Training and Development Unit at California Department of Tax and Fee Administration from 2017 to 2019. She was a Training Coordinator and Instructor in the Organizational Development Section at California Highway Patrol from 2012 to 2016. Nelson earned a Master of Science degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Cincinnati and a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Franklin University. This position does not require Senate confirmation, and the compensation is $157,716. Nelson is registered without party preference.
Asha Jennings, of Carmichael, has been appointed Chief Counsel at the Department of Health Care Access and Information. Jennings has been Acting Chief Counsel at the California Department of Health Care Access and Information since 2025, where she was Assistant Chief Counsel from 2023 to 2025. She was an Attorney at the California Department of Managed Health Care from 2012 to 2023. Jennings was an Associate at Murphy Austin Adams Schoenfeld LLP from 2009 to 2012. She was an Outreach Coordinator at the M.I.N.D. Institute at University of California Davis from 2004 to 2005. Jennings was Marketing Communications Manager at MedImmune Vaccines/Aviron from 2000 to 2002. She was a Program Specialist for Advocacy and Government Relations at the American Diabetes Association from 1998 to 2000. Jennings earned a Juris Doctor degree from University of California, Davis and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Politics from Willamette University. This position does not require Senate confirmation, and the compensation is $207,660. Jennings is a Democrat…