Wilson Names 2 Longtime Aides to UC Board of Regents

In a move that could extend the impact of his administration, lame-duck Gov. Pete Wilson named two longtime aides to the University of California Board of Regents on Tuesday.

But a spokesman for state Senate leader John Burton (D-San Francisco) said it was highly unlikely that the Senate would confirm the two nominees, Joanne Kozberg and Russell Gould. “It seems inappropriate for the governor to be making last-second appointments that will still be in effect when we are two or three governors into the future,” Sandy Harrison said.

Wilson is scheduled to leave office in January. Kozberg and Gould were named to 12-year terms.

The Republican governor already has three other regent appointees pending before the Senate and has been told that they will not be confirmed, Senate aides said.

Wilson spokesman Sean Walsh said Harrison’s comments were “news to us.”

“If this is the case, Sen. Burton is leaving exceptionally well-qualified candidates in the lurch and not serving the University of California in the process,” Walsh said.

He described Gould and Kozberg as high-caliber nominees who are beyond partisan politics.

Gubernatorial appointees to the Board of Regents and other major posts can serve up to a year without Senate confirmation. If the Senate actually votes to reject them, the appointees must leave office within 60 days.

Kozberg, 53, has served as secretary of the State and Consumer Services Agency since 1993. She is planning to step down from that post Aug. 1. She oversees 12 state departments, including Consumer Affairs, General Services and Fair Employment and Housing.

From 1991 to 1993, she was executive director of the California Arts Council and was the council’s chairwoman from 1989 to 1991. From 1983 to 1990, she was a senior aide to Wilson when he was in the U.S. Senate.

Gould, 48, was director of Wilson’s Department of Finance from 1993 to 1996. In that post, he was the governor’s chief advisor on state budget matters.

From 1991 to 1993, he was the governor’s secretary of health and welfare, overseeing 13 state departments. He was assistant state treasurer from 1990 to 1991 and chief deputy in the department of finance from 1983 to 1990.

He is now a member of the management team of the J. Paul Getty Trust.