State Senate confirms State Water Board appointees

SACRAMENTO – The California State Senate today voted unanimously to confirm new terms for current State Water Resources Control Board Chair E. Joaquin Esquivel and Board Member Nichole Morgan. Gov. Gavin Newsom on Jan. 6, 2025, re-appointed Esquivel and Morgan to serve on the State Water Board for another four years.

The five-member board is responsible for protecting all water quality and water supplies in California, including drinking water. The board is also responsible for allocating surface water supplies for agricultural, public trust and urban purposes, and providing financial assistance for emergency response and water and wastewater infrastructure projects.

Esquivel, who was appointed to the board’s public seat by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2017, has served as chair since February 2019 and was reappointed by Newsom in 2021.

"I am humbled and honored by the trust vested in me to serve alongside my fellow board members and to lead at this critical time in California water. From climate extremes to aging infrastructure, legacy and emerging contaminants, declining ecosystems, affordability challenges and generational inequities, our state's water systems and resources are being challenged,” Esquivel said. “To rise to that challenge, I have worked to improve the trust, equity and transparency of our decision making during my time on the board. I look forward to continuing these efforts as we move forward on major priorities, including the adoption and implementation of updates to the Bay-Delta Plan and the acceleration of safe drinking water and sanitation access to all Californians.”

During Esquivel’s time as chair, the board has taken several consequential actions to protect and enhance the state’s water supplies and quality, including adopting the nation’s most advanced standards for direct potable water reuse and the first budget-based conservation regulations. The board also distributed over $11 billion in financial assistance to water systems and communities for drinking water and water quality projects around the state since 2019, and the number of Californians without access to safe drinking water fell by nearly half.

Prior to the board, Esquivel served as assistant secretary for federal water policy at the California Natural Resources Agency. Esquivel represented the interests of the agency and its departments, and facilitated communication, outreach, coordination and the development of policy priorities between the agency, the Governor's Office, the California Congressional delegation and federal partner agencies in Washington D.C. Prior to that, Esquivel worked for former U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer as a legislative assistant, covering the agriculture, Native American, water, oceans and nutrition portfolios, in addition to being the information technology director.

The proud son of educators and grandson of farmworkers, Esquivel was born and raised in the Coachella Valley and graduated from University of California, Santa Barbara with a Bachelor of Arts in English. Esquivel lives in Sacramento.

Morgan, who was first appointed to the board by Gov. Newsom in 2021, is a professional civil engineer and fills the board’s civil engineering seat.

Prior to her appointment, she was an assistant deputy director with the board’s Division of Financial Assistance, where her primary responsibilities involved funding projects for drinking water, wastewater, stormwater and groundwater infrastructure improvements.

“It is an honor and privilege to serve California. I am grateful for the opportunity to continue working with communities throughout the state to further our mission to preserve, enhance and restore the quality of California’s water resources and drinking water, for the benefit of present and future generations,” Morgan said. “In my second term, I look forward to continuing to help the board enlarge the scope and impact of our financial assistance, strengthen racial equity and public participation, and advance Californians’ human right to water and sanitation.”

Morgan has worked in several capacities since joining the board in 2009. She helped lead several programs, including the Small Community Drinking Water and Wastewater grant program in the Office of Sustainable Water Solutions, the Lead in Child Care Centers, Fish Advisories and Drinking Water and Wastewater Operator Certification programs. While under Morgan’s leadership, the Operator Certification programs transitioned to computer-based testing, which allowed drinking water and wastewater treatment operators to take essential tests during the COVID-19 emergency, protecting public health and the environment.

The first Black woman to serve on the five-member board, Morgan is a San Francisco Bay Area native and graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a Bachelor of Science in civil engineering. Morgan, a proud daughter, mom and aunt, lives in Sacramento.

For more information on board members visit the Board Members | California State Water Resources Control Boardpage.

The State Water Board’s mission is to preserve, enhance and restore the quality of California’s water resources and drinking water for the protection of the environment, public health and all beneficial uses, and to ensure proper resource allocation and efficient use for present and future generations.