Los Angeles City Council Confirms David H. Wright as General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles City Council today confirmed by a unanimous vote (13-0), the appointment of David H. Wright as General Manager of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the largest municipally-owned water and electric utility in the nation. Wright had been nominated by Mayor Eric Garcetti and approved by the Board of Water and Power Commissioners in August, pending City Council confirmation.
“I am honored and excited to accept this position and will be fully dedicated to meeting LADWP’s goals to accelerate replacement of infrastructure, bring more sustainable sources of water and power to LA, and improving how we serve our customers,” Wright said shortly after being confirmed by the City Council.
Wright had recently served as Interim General Manager since August 16, 2016. Prior to that, he had served as Chief Operating Officer and has been with LADWP since February 2015. As LADWP’s Chief Operating Officer, Wright was responsible for Water and Power Systems, Customer Service and Information Technology Services, Supply Chain Services, Human Resources, Fleet Services, Equal Employment Opportunity Services and Communications, Marketing and Community Affairs.
Wright is recognized as an established utility industry executive with broad-based knowledge of both water and electric utility operations, having served as General Manager of Riverside Public Utilities for nearly ten years and as the Chief Financial Officer for the Las Vegas Valley Water District, the Southern Nevada Water Authority, and the Silver State Energy Association, overseeing a nearly $1 billion budget for the three water and electric organizations. He previously spent 15 years with the City of Riverside where he served as Deputy General Manager and as Riverside’s City Controller. His extensive experience in utility management, finance and customer service provides a solid foundation to lead LADWP. Wright was instrumental in helping correct some of the issues created during the implementation of the new Customer Information System.
Wright holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and an MBA from California State University Fullerton. He succeeds outgoing LADWP General Manager Marcie Edwards who served as LADWP chief since March 2014. Edwards who is staying through the end of the year in an advisory role, recruited Wright to join LADWP’s ranks based on his qualifications and quickly increased his responsibilities after seeing him in action.
LADWP has provided water and electric service to residents and businesses in Los Angeles for more than 100 years. The utility has a workforce of over 9,000 employees, and is in the midst of an historic transition to integrate 50 percent renewable energy by the year 2030 and to create a more drought-resistant water infrastructure by developing more sustainable, in-basin water resources less dependent on imported, more expensive water.
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Media Contact: LADWP Communications (213) 367-1361
