The California Air Resources Board has named Steven Cliff, administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, as CARB’s new executive officer.

Cliff will replace Richard Corey, who retired at the end of June after serving in that role since 2013. (See CARB Top Exec Corey to Retire.) Cliff will start work at CARB on Sept. 12.

CARB’s board made the appointment, which Chair Liane Randolph announced on Friday.

“He is the right choice to implement the board’s vision during this crucial decade as we move ahead with the ambitious policies and programs to tackle the state’s climate emergency and continue to prioritize equity both within CARB’s workforce and in the communities we serve,” Randolph said in a statement.

Cliff is a familiar face at the California agency. He has held a variety of positions at CARB, starting as an air pollution specialist in 2008. While serving as CARB’s deputy executive officer from 2017 to 2021, Cliff’s work included overseeing regulations for all vehicles in the state, including passenger cars and medium- and heavy-duty vehicles.

In October 2021, President Biden nominated Cliff to serve as head of the NHTSA. He was confirmed by the Senate on May 26. Before his nomination, Cliff worked at NHTSA as a senior adviser and deputy administrator, according to his LinkedIn profile.

His transportation experience also includes a stint as assistant director for sustainability at the California Department of Transportation from 2014 to 2016.

Cliff returns to CARB at a critical time. The agency this year is finalizing its climate change scoping plan, a roadmap to bring California to carbon neutrality by 2045. After CARB released a draft version of the plan in May, Gov. Gavin Newsom called on the agency to take “even bolder action” to address climate change. (See Newsom Calls for ‘Bolder’ Climate Action in Calif.)

In addition to his professional credentials, Cliff has experienced the impacts of climate change firsthand. The Napa Valley native has been spending time rebuilding his family’s property after it was ravaged by the Atlas Fire — one in a group of October 2017 wildfires that became known as the Northern California firestorm.

Cliff received a bachelor’s degree and doctorate in chemistry from the University of California, San Diego. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship in atmospheric sciences at the University of California, Davis, where he has also worked as a research professor. Cliff lives in Sacramento.