Dana Appling was appointed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger as Director of the Division of Ratepayer Advocates on August 30, 2004. Her appointment was confirmed unanimously by the Senate; she serves at the pleasure of the Governor.
Before coming to DRA, Ms. Appling was chief counsel for WebGen Systems, Inc., an enterprise energy conservation and demand-side management start-up company headquartered in Cambridge, MA.
From January 1989 to January 2002 she served as an attorney for the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), the last eight years of which she was General Counsel and Secretary to the Board of Directors.
Prior to working at SMUD, Ms Appling spent four years as a Deputy in the State of California Office of the Legislative Counsel, attorneys for the California Legislature. After graduating from the University of San Diego Law School in 1982 she served for two years as a staff attorney for the Legal Aid Society of San Diego. She did her undergraduate work at Pomona College , Claremont University Center, receiving a B.A. degree in Government.