California’s largest drinking water supplier named Shivaji Deshmukh as its new general manager Tuesday, seeking to move past turmoil at the top in time for major decisions on water supply and costs.
What happened: The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which imports and sells water to 19 million people in Los Angeles and the surroundings, announced Deshmukh, the current general manager of the Inland Empire Utilities Agency, as its replacement for retiring General Manager Deven Upadhyay.
The 38-member board had preliminarily selected Deshmukh last month, as POLITICO reported, but only formally appointed him Tuesday after negotiating his contract. All present board members voted to support the appointment and contract, including a salary of $495,040, in a meeting Tuesday.
Why this matters: The move comes after years of instability at the top of the state’s — and the country’s — largest supplier of drinking water. In January, the board voted to fire General Manager Adel Hagekhalil, following an investigation into claims of harassment. Hagekhalil was only narrowly voted in by the board in 2021.
