H. David Nahai was appointed to the Board of Water and Power Commissioners by Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa and confirmed by the Los Angeles City Council on September 23, 2005. His term will end on June 30, 2007. Commissioner Nahai was elected Vice-President of the Board in September 2005 and President of the Board in September 2006.

H. David Nahai is the President of Nahai Law Corporation, a Century City law firm, specializing in real estate, corporate, environmental and commercial law. Nahai has practiced law in Los Angeles since 1979 and holds graduate and post-graduate degrees in law from the London School of Economics and the University of California (Berkeley) and was a Visiting Scholar at U.C. Berkeley.

Nahai serves as a member of the Regional Water Quality Control Board. He has served three terms on the board since his appointment in 1997. He was elected Chairman of the Commission in 1999, 2000 and 2001, serving an unprecedented three terms as Chairman. During Nahai’s tenure as Chairman, the Regional Board was awarded the Environmental Leadership Award by Keep California Beautiful, in recognition of the Regional Board’s work in the area of urban run-off pollution. More recently, the UCLA Institute of the Environment awarded the Regional Board an “A” grade for its efforts in this area.

Nahai also serves on the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission, and is currently its Vice-Chairman. He has served on the Environmental Task Force for Governor Schwarzenegger, and is a member of the Environmental Advisory Committee for Assemblymember Paul Koretz. Additionally, Nahai is a member of the Board of the California League of Conservation Voters and is the Chairman of its Development Committee, and a member of its Executive Committee.

Nahai has been the recipient of numerous awards and commendations. In 2003, he received the Environmental Champion Award from the Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters. He has been twice honored for community leadership. Nahai is Chairman of the Bnai Zion Foundation and sits on the Boards of numerous charities, including the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles, the Iranian American Jewish Federation, the Jewish Community Foundation, and the Magbit Foundation. He is also a member of the Major Donors Committee of the Jewish National Fund. Nahai is a Director of Security Pacific Bank and serves on its Executive Committee.

Show full bio

Hide full bio