Board of Directors

Hilary Straus has worked for more than 25 years in local government administration and has served as General Manager for the Citrus Heights Water District since 2016. During his time in the public sector, Hilary has served as a City Administrator and City Manager in two cities in California. Hilary also has the unique experience of having worked with a team to transition the newly-incorporated/start-up City of Citrus Heights into a productive and cost effective municipal service provider.

At Citrus Heights Water, Hilary is working with a team of elected officials, a highly-educated and talented staff and customer volunteers to implement a strategy to replace aging water mains, to replace aging water meters and to build-out the District’s groundwater program.

Hilary began his career in public affairs 30 years ago as a college intern at the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation in Atlanta, and he interned while in college for two chambers of commerce in northern California. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of California, Davis and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from the University of Southern California (USC).

In addition to his Water District duties, Hilary serves on the Board of Directors for the Institute for Local Government (ILG), a non-profit that researches best practices in local government and provides support to cities, counties and special districts. Hilary just celebrated 20 years of marriage to his wife, Lisa, in April 2020, and is a proud papa to son Zachary.

Liz Habkirk serves as the Assistant City Manager for the City of Napa. In her role as Assistant City Manager, Liz has oversight over the Human Resources, Finance and IT, Fire Department and Community Relations division of the City Manager’s Office, as well as other administrative responsibilities including special project management.

Liz has previously served as the Deputy City Manager for Napa where she led a variety of major City initiatives including implementing process improvements, policy updates and ordinance amendments to improve services. She has also been deeply involved in labor management, including negotiating contracts with police management, fire and general employees and most recently, fire officers.

Prior to beginning with the City of Napa in January 2020, Liz was a member of the County of Napa team, where she served in a variety of roles, including Deputy Public Works Director, with oversight of the General Services Division. Her responsibilities included management of 70 staff working in diverse service areas including the Airport, Animal Shelter, Fleet, Property Management, Fairgrounds and Real Estate, and oversight of a combined budget of over $21 million.

Liz has extensive background in public service, including experience spanning across many areas of local government and a proven track record of helping to implement process and policy improvements, bring complex projects to successful completion, and lead staff to innovative solutions.

Liz holds a City and Regional Planning Bachelor’s degree from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and a Masters of Public Administration from the University of Kansas. She is a member of ICMA and Women Leading Government, and has previously served as a Board member for the Municipal Management Association of Northern California (MMANC). Liz is also active in her community participating on school Finance Committees and serving as a youth sports coach.

Dan Buckshi has been the City Manager of Walnut Creek since August 2017. In his role, he provides overall leadership to the organization, supports the City Council, and oversees the operations and budget of the City. Before joining Walnut Creek, Dan worked at the County of San Luis Obispo for 15 years, the last five as the Chief Administrative Officer. Prior to working in local government, Dan worked in the automotive and technology industries. Dan has an undergraduate degree in business management and a master’s degree in public policy. Dan also serves on the Board of the Contra Costa Economic Partnership and the East Bay Economic Development Alliance. Dan is a member of the International City/County Management Association and is a Credentialed Manager.

Brad Raulston is the Town Manager for Yountville. Yountville is located in the heart of the Napa Valley and is less than one square mile with a population of nearly 3,000. He was appointed Town Manager in June of 2023 and oversees all operations with a total budget of $26.5 million.

Prior to moving to Yountville, Brad worked for National City in San Diego County for 16 years, and as City Manager for the final 4 years. He previously worked in the private sector for several land use and development companies in the San Diego region.

Brad earned a degree in Economics and Political Science from UC Berkeley and holds a Masters of Public Administration from San Diego State University. Brad and his wife Eliza live in Yountville and he is the father of two sons, Cole and Max.

Dan Schwarz became City Manager of Larkspur in May 2010. Before joining Larkspur, Dan spent four years with the City of Rohnert Park in Sonoma County, first as Assistant City Manager and then as Interim City Manager. During his tenure with Rohnert Park, Dan led an organizational restructuring that reduced the city budget by 18%. He also oversaw the opening of the Rohnert Park City Hall and the Rohnert Park Civic Plaza. Earlier in his career, Dan spent eight years working for Local Agency Formation Commissions, first in Orange County and later in Napa County. He was involved in the incorporation of two cities, Rancho Santa Margarita and Aliso Viejo. Dan also has experience in education and housing administration. A fourth-generation San Franciscan, Dan has lived and worked throughout California. His travels around the state have included stops at UC Berkeley (B.A.) and UCLA (M.A.).

Brent Slama currently serves as the City Manager for the City of Soledad. His role also includes directing the Community and Economic Development Department, where he most recently worked for seven years as the City’s Community and Economic Development Director, primarily focusing on large-scale residential development. Brent has 14 years of management experience in the public sector including experience as both Interim City Manager and Community Development Director for the City of Greenfield. Prior to his public experience, Brent worked for a number of years in private real estate development.

Brent holds a Bachelors of Arts degree in History and a Master of Urban Planning degree from San Jose State University. He is a member of ICMA and the American Institute of Certified Planners. Brent has served on numerous community boards, and is actively involved in the local Little League.

Linda Smith, City Manager for the City of Dublin, has spent more than seventeen years working in local government. She joined the city of Dublin in 2009 as the assistant to the city manager and was promoted to the city’s economic development director and public information officer before becoming the assistant city manager in 2014. In her current role, Linda has direct responsibility for many of the city’s major operational areas, including public works, parks and recreation, community development, economic development, and communications. She had previously worked for the cities of Brentwood and Tracy in the role of economic development.

Prior to working in local government, Linda spent a decade working in the private sector as a communications and marketing executive for emerging technology companies in the Silicon Valley, as well as for companies such as Levi Strauss, Visa, Bank of America and the Clorox Company.

Linda is the 2014 recipient of the MMANC Wes McClure Outstanding Assistant Award and the 2017 recipient of the John H. Nail Award from the League of California Cities. Her involvement also extends into the Dublin community where she resides, as a member of Dublin Rotary and vice president of the Board for Dublin Partners in Education. She graduated from San Jose State University with a degree in public relations and a minor in political science.