California’s State Historical Resources Commission reviews nominations to historic registers, but its role in National Register listings is advisory: the State Historic Preservation Officer forwards recommended nominations to the National Park Service for a final decision. The public can comment on nominations in writing or at scheduled meetings, according to California State Parks and the agency’s pending-nominations information.
That is the panel Gov. Gavin Newsom has appointed his former spokesman Nate Ballard to join. The nine-member commission, appointed by the governor, includes five recognized professionals, according to California State Parks. Its 2022 annual report recorded approvals for 27 National Register nominations, one California Register nomination, two California Historical Landmark nominations and one California Point of Historical Interest nomination—a snapshot of its work, not a measure of this year’s activity.
Ballard’s appointment, with a term through June 2030, drew scrutiny because he pleaded no contest in 2021 to misdemeanor corporal injury against his spouse and child endangerment arising from a 2020 Napa incident. The appointment was reported by The San Francisco Standard; the Los Angeles Times reported the plea and sentence.
Reporting on the case said Ballard was accused of shoving his wife’s head into a glass door and holding a pillow over his four-year-old daughter. He received four years of probation. Ballard has said his no-contest plea was not an admission of guilt. The no-contact order’s duration is also not fully reconciled in the available account: the Los Angeles Times reported that an initial six-year order covering his ex-wife and two children was later reduced to two years, while a Napa County document tied to the plea agreement describes a six-year order intended to protect the children but does not establish that it was changed.
Two appointments, separate responsibilities
The day before Ballard’s appointment, Newsom named Michela Alioto-Pier to the California Citizens Compensation Commission, which sets salaries for elected officials. Her term runs through December 2028. The two panels have different functions: the historic-resources commission reviews preservation nominations, while the compensation commission addresses elected officials’ pay. CalHR records show the latter voted in June 2025 to raise those salaries by 1.5%, effective Dec. 1, 2025.
The timing brought renewed attention to Alioto-Pier’s connection to Ballard’s case: she wrote a letter supporting him after he was charged, according to the Standard and the Los Angeles Times. The San Francisco Women’s Political Committee criticized the sequence of appointments, saying it raised accountability concerns, the Standard reported.
A Newsom spokesperson said both appointees applied and that the governor considers qualifications, experience and suitability. The spokesperson also said abuse is unacceptable and should bring accountability, while people deserve second chances, according to the Standard. The reported timing and the separate panels’ mandates establish the context of the appointments; they do not, by themselves, show that the two selections were connected.
