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Kristina Budak<\/p>\nTwo key leadership positions in Kern County and San Joaquin Valley water circles are in the process of changing.<\/p>\n
Kristina Budak, director of Bakersfield\u2019s Water Resources Department, recently announced plans to retire in May, a little less than three years after she took the helm.<\/p>\n
And longtime water attorney Joe Hughes has been named Chief Executive Officer of Homer LLC, the land and water division of Los Angeles-based Renewable Resources Group (RRG), a major private water player in the San Joaquin Valley.<\/p>\n
Kristina Budak<\/p>\n
Budak took the reins<\/a> of the Water Department in 2023, following epic floods that had city crews scrambling to keep bridges and weirs safe as a raging Kern River brought hundreds of tons of debris barreling through the city.<\/p>\n Things didn\u2019t slow down for Budak over the next two years, in which the city was ordered by a local court to alter its river operations to keep water flowing for fish, upending more than 100 years of agreements and decrees. Another court later overturned that order but the legal wrangling has continued.<\/p>\n During her tenure, Budak was also given fiscal oversight of the city\u2019s Wastewater Division, which had not raised sewer rates in years, leading to a pileup of deferred maintenance at undersized facilities. To fix all the issues, the department found it would need to raise rates by 300%, bumping the amount residents would see on their property tax bills from \u00a0$239 to $950 a year.<\/p>\n Public backlash<\/a> was immediate and intense, requiring Budak and city staff to rethink how to raise enough money for the necessary work.<\/p>\n Before taking on the Water Department, Budak had worked in the City\u2019s Public Works Department in multiple roles \u2013 including as an Engineer for the Thomas Roads Improvement Program (TRIP) and later TRIP Manager.<\/p>\n A city spokesperson said the city hasn\u2019t set a timeline to begin recruiting for Budak\u2019s replacement, which will be made by City Manager Christian Clegg.<\/p>\n Budak succeeded Art Chianello as Water Resources Manager. Chianello retired in September 2022 after 12 years leading the department and now serves as the Kern River Watermaster.<\/p>\n In the private sector, Hughes was hired for the top position at Homer, which has become a significant, behind-the-scenes water player throughout the San Joaquin Valley.<\/p>\n Hughes was admitted to the California State Bar in 1993 and has worked at the Bakersfield firm Klein, Denatale, Goldner since 2006, primarily in water and public agency law.<\/p>\n He has represented both water agencies and private entities looking to buy, manage and transfer water and water rights, according to the firm\u2019s bio on Hughes. His experience includes working with contractors on the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project and he has clients facing the complexities of complying with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act as well.<\/p>\n He said has also worked directly with Homer for more than a decade and is excited for this new challenge.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a great fit because I\u2019ve focused my career on helping to manage the Central Valley\u2019s water challenges and I will be continuing to do that,\u201d Hughes wrote in an email.<\/p>\n Hughes will succeed Eric Averett at Homer. Averett left Homer<\/a> last fall to take the General Manager position at the Kern County Water Agency after having served as a board member of that agency.<\/p>\n RRG, co-owned by Ari Swiller and Cole Frates, has a long history in California water under a variety of names including ReNu Resources, ReNuable, Alphabet Farms, and Imperial Farming, according to CorporationWiki.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/joe-hughes.jpg\")
Joe Hughes<\/p>\n