Senate Rules Committee Confirms Penner as Chair

SACRAMENTO – The Senate Rules Committee has confirmed Gov. Jerry Brown’s appointment of Linda Penner as Chair of the Board of State and Community Corrections. The decision May 14 makes Penner the first appointed fulltime chair of the Board. As Chair, Penner is Gov. Brown’s liaison to the counties on issues related to Realignment and other duties of the agency that oversees local jail facilities and administers criminal justice grants. Penner is a 35-year veteran of the Fresno County Probation Department and the former President of the Chief Probation Officers of California. She oversaw juvenile Realignment in Fresno County, where she began as an advocate for sexual assault victims. She has been acting as Board Chair since September 2013.