Members

Mark Johannessen, JD (Chairman) of West Sacramento, is an attorney-mediator in private practice and a Certified Family Law Specialist. He has also served as a Small Claims Judge pro Tempore and Family Law Settlement Judge for Sacramento County. Mr. Johannessen is an elected City Council member in West Sacramento and a Commissioner of the Port of West Sacramento. In addition, he is the founder and past-President of "Neighbors Fair"; served as President of the St. Francis Catholic School Advisory commission; and West Sacramento Historical Society. Mr. Johannessen is a Certified Public Accountant (retired), and has worked in tax law and accounting with Price Waterhouse (now PriceWaterhouseCoopers) in San Francisco, Newport Beach and Amsterdam, and in international business law in Tokyo with the Japanese law firm Nagashima & Ohno (now Nagashima, Ohno & Tsunematsu). Senate Rules Committee appointed Mr. Johannessen in 2003 and appointed him as Chairman to the Commission in 2010.


Stacy Aldinger, MPH, MBA of San Francisco, is and Engagement Manager in the Operations and Healthcare practices at McKinsey and Company. She specializes in developing operational programs to reduce the cost of health care while improving quality and health outcomes in organizations across the private, public, and social sectors. Previously, Stacy held positions in federal government and international organizations, including the Department of Defense, the US Asylum program, and the United Nations in Beijing. Stacy is a Fulbright Scholar and a Truman Scholar, and serves as chairman of the board of international development nonprofit The Children’s Initiative. Senate rules Committee appointed Ms. Aldinger in 2014.


Michael Bandler of Alamo, served as a Captain in the United States Army Reserve. He is a retired executive from the telecommunications industry where he spent most of career with the Bell System, retiring as VP of Engineering at Pacific Bell. Post-retirement he was the Executive VP of Marketing, Sales and Service for Raynet. Mr. Bandler previously held the position of Director of Service Management for AT&T and was the Chief Engineer of the New York Telephone Company. He is a Board Member of the Union for Reform Judaism and formerly served on the boards of the Contra Costa Jewish Day School; Sinai Memorial Chapel; Exchange Carrier Standards Organization and the UC Davis School of Engineering. He is a past-president of Temple Isaiah; the California Engineering Foundation; Bellcore’s Network and Research Councils; Cal Poly President’s Cabinet; and the Cornell University Society of Engineers. Senate Rules Committee appointed Mr. Bandler in 2011.


Judith D’Amico of Gold River, is the Vice President of Development with Project Lead The Way, Inc. PLTW is a 501c3 that provides Engineering and Biomedical Sciences curriculum for K-14, and teacher professional development in all 50 states in partnership with over 48 University Affiliates. Ms. D’Amico also serves on the National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity (NAPE) Foundation Board; the Board of Directors for Next-Ed, Capital Region; and the Board of Directors for the Discovery Museum/Powerhouse Science Center. Senate Rules Committee appointed Ms. D’Amico in 2001.


Anna Dapelo-Garcia, MPA/HAS of Mountain View, is an Administrative Director for Patient Access Services and Patient Financial Services at Stanford Hospital and Clinics, where she has worked since 1989. Dapelo-Garcia is responsible for a $2 billion revenue cycle operation including billing/collection activities. Previous roles at Stanford include the Director of Business Operations at the Cancer Center and Clinic Administration Business Operations. She is a Board Member for the Master of Public Administration program at the University of San Francisco and for the Northern California Healthcare Financial Management Association. Senate Rules Committee appointed Ms. Dapelo-Garcia in 2013.


Raphael L. Henderson of Pasadena, is a Senior Vice President with Wells Fargo Bank in Los Angeles. During his 20 year banking career, Mr. Henderson held numerous management positions in the small business and retail banking, within Wells Fargo, Citibank and Wachovia Bank. He is speaker and advisor on "building and sustaining mutually beneficial long-term partnerships" in both the public and private sectors. He is also, a board member for the African American Museum; Los Angeles Economic Development Council; Child Education Center; Challengers Boys & Girls Club; and Los Angeles County School to Career. In addition, he is an alumni ambassador and academic recruiter of minority students at the University of Southern California (USC). Senate Rules Committee appointed Mr. Henderson in 1999.


Donald Jackson, JD of Fresno, is an attorney and certified specialist in taxation. He served on the California Public Employment Relations Board, the California Bureau of Electronic and Appliance Repair, and the California Trade Delegation to China. Mr. Jackson currently serves on the Boards of the Maddy Institute, St. Agnes Medical Center Foundation and the Dominican Hospital Foundation. Senate Rules Committee appointed Mr. Jackson in 1994.


Lan Liu, PhD, CFA of Folsom, is an Assistant Professor of Finance in the College of Business Administration at California State University, Sacramento. Dr. Liu teaches business finance, financial management and investment portfolio management. She previously worked as an investment analyst at Aberdeen Asset Management. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst® charter holder and currently serves as the Treasurer of the CFA Society Sacramento. She is also a member of the Academy of Economics and Finance. Dr. Liu has published several articles in finance and economics. Senate Rules Committee appointed Dr. Liu in 2013.


Linda Lopez, PhD of San Marino, is the Chief of Immigrant Services for the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office. Previously, Dr. Lopez served as the Associate Dean for Diversity and Strategic Initiatives in the Dornsife College at the University of Southern California. She is an expert on public policy as it relates to multicultural and diverse populations in America as well as STEM programs. She previously served as Program Director for Cross Directorate Activities in the Directorate for Social, Behavior and Economic Sciences at the National Science Foundation and Director of Education at the American Political Science Association. Dr. Lopez has published several articles on gender and leadership, public policy affecting racial and ethnic minorities, and higher education. Senate Rules Committee appointed Dr. Lopez in 2013.


Manfred Michlmayr, PhD of Orinda, is a retired Executive from Chevron Corporation, where he negotiated most major transactions for the company, mergers, acquisitions and sales, from 1985 through 2001. Dr. Michlmayr previously worked as a Research Chemist for Shell Development and later Chevron Research. He moved from chemistry into business and finance in 1980. After helping with the sale of refining and marketing assets throughout the country, he became Chevron's Mergers and Acquisitions specialist. He retired in 2001 after Chevron's acquisition of Texaco. He is a native of Austria. The Senate Rules Committee appointed Dr. Michlmayr in 2013.


Kuei Hsien (Jeff) Niu, PhD of Folsom, is an Assistant Professor in the College of Business Administration at California State University, Sacramento. He provides various consulting services to both governments and enterprises. Dr. Niu specializes in organizational knowledge management and the impact this can have on a firm’s adaptive attempts. He also, has examined organizational form, particularly current trends of organizations towards industrial agglomerations. Dr. Niu has also explored the societal impact of diverse approaches to business strategy, such as organizational trust. He has presented his work in a number of conferences and published articles in academic journals. Senate Rules Committee appointed Dr. Niu in 2013.


Denzil Verardo, PhD of Elk Grove, is a former Chief Deputy Director for Administration for the California Department of Parks and Recreation. He began his career as a Park Ranger in 1971, and served for 32 years prior to retiring from the department in 2003. Dr. Verardo directed the State Parks’ team piloting performance-based budgeting in California during the 1990’s. From 2004 -2005, he served on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s California Performance Review as the team leader for performance management implementation. He also served as the Chief Deputy Director for the Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs from 2006 -2007. He is currently a member of the Performance Management Council, an ad hoc group organized by the Little Hoover Commission. Senate Rules Committee appointed Dr. Verardo in 2009.


Christopher Weare, PhD of Sacramento, is a Research Associate Professor at the University of Southern California Price School of Public Policy. He is a resident faculty at the USC State Capital Center and has been teaching public policy, program evaluation, and performance management for nearly 20 years. He has previously worked in investment banking, the United States Congress as a Congressional Fellow, the California Public Utilities Commission, and the Public Policy Institute of California. Dr. Weare has published numerous articles on business regulation, citizen participation, and the uses of new technologies by government. Senate Rules Committee appointed Dr. Weare in 2013.


Melissa Kludjian (Executive Director) of Roseville, in her 20 years in the Senate, she has staffed over 100 bills as Capitol Director and Legislative Consultant for Senators Polanco, Perata, Speier, Oropeza and Alquist. She also staffed the Senate Select Committees on Government Cost Control; Public Health & the Environment; Crimes Against Children; Methamphetamine Abuse and; Joint Legislative Committee on Prisons. Ms. Kludjian served on Governor Schwarzenegger’s Gender Responsive Strategies Commission for CDCR; steering committee to the University of CA Group Home Study; sub-committee of the CA Children Justices Act Task Force; Department of Justice Criminal Background for Abused and Neglected Children Task Force; Foster Care Reform Act Task Force; Little Hoover Commission: Correctional Reforms to Lower Prison Costs and Reduce Crime Task Force; Three-Strikes Task Force and; Governor Wilson’s Crime Summit. Prior to her legislative career she worked for CDCR and served as VP of Sales for a contractor design firm.

The 2023-24 Regular Session Office membership has not been established by the Senate Rules Committee.