A five-member board of directors governs our district, with each director elected to represent one of five geographic areas. The directors serve overlapping four-year terms. The board establishes policy on the district’s mission, goals, and operations. It represents the general public in deciding issues related to water supply. The board also has the authority to adopt ordinances that have the force of law within the district.
The board reviews staff recommendations and decides which policies should be implemented in light of the district’s mission and goals. The board also monitors the implementation of its policies. The board appoints a general manager to supervise all district operations.
The board operates in compliance with California’s Brown Act. For additional information about the Brown Act, view this Brown Act Overview Presentation.
Marin Water’s board members are elected under the provisions of the Municipal Water District Law of 1911 (State Water Code Section 71000). Directors are elected to represent Marin Water’s five divisions, with elections held in the November general election in even-numbered years. For information on election procedures please visit the County of Marin Elections Department.
Board Members
Matthew Samson, Division I
Division I
The northernmost division in the Marin Water service area, Division I stretches into the Gallinas Valley and Sleepy Hollow, presses north to Marinwood and takes in portions of the coast from north of McNears Beach to north of John F. McInnis Park. It also takes in the Santa Margarita Valley, Las Gallinas and Santa Venetia.
Term
12/12/2022-12/2026
Committee Assignments
Watershed Committee Chair
About
Matt Samson currently serves as the Fire Chief for the South San Francisco Fire Department in San Mateo County. He has spent 25 years in emergency services, beginning in Santa Barbara and continuing as a firefighter with the Marinwood Fire Department and now South San Francisco.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California – Santa Barbara in geography and is a graduate of the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program where he earned the Manno Award for outstanding research on emerging fire services issues.
In addition to his fire chief role, Matt enjoys teaching fire-related courses and has been a fire science instructor with the City College of San Francisco for the past 14 years. Director Samson was raised in San Rafael and is a longtime resident of Division 1 where he lives with his family in Terra Linda.
Diana Maier, Division II
Division II
Includes all areas of incorporated San Rafael except Terra Linda and portions of San Rafael around Highway 101 in the Lincoln Avenue and Dominican areas, unincorporated areas of San Rafael contiguous with San Pedro Road, and the unincorporated area of the eastern most portion of North San Pedro Road.
Term
12/2024-12/2028
Committee Assignments
Finance & Administration Chair, Watershed Committee Vice Chair
About
Diana Maier grew up in Marin and has lived here most of her life. She currently resides in San Rafael with her husband, son, and daughter.
Diana attended Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and Stanford Law School. Out of college, Diana served as a foreign policy aide to Congressman Henry Waxman (D-CA), where her work included involvement with water issues in the Middle East.
After law school, Diana became a public defender for several years, where she deeply enjoyed working with her clients and spending every day in court. In 2003, she transitioned to working in plaintiffs’ employment law, and eventually founded The Maier Law Group, an all-women boutique employment law firm focused on preventative law, mediations and workplace investigations. In 2022 and each year since, Diana has been named as a Northern California “Super Lawyer,” for employment law and mediation, an honor reserved for only 5% of attorneys in Northern California who exhibit excellence in practice. Diana was also named Solo & Small Firm Attorney of the Month by the California Lawyers Association in September 2021.
Diana is a skilled mediator and a recognized expert in employment law, investigations (which she conducts in both Spanish and English), and executive coaching and training. Diana serves as an empaneled mediator for The Northern and Central District Courts of California, as well as many California courts.
Diana is involved in her community in many ways. She served for over 10 years on the Executive Board and Strategy Council for OneJustice, a California legal non-profit. She is currently an active member of Moms Demand Action, a gun violence prevention group. Most recently her family raised the money for, travelled to, and helped build the first-ever school in a very remote part of Nicaragua, the La Lana region.
Ranjiv Khush, Division III
Division III
Includes the San Geronimo Valley, Fairfax, a portion of San Anselmo not including north west area, Ross, Greenbrae, Kentfield, Kent Woodlands, and portion of Larkspur north of Corte Madera Creek and west of Highway 101, portion of Larkspur south of Corte Madera Creek and west of Bon Air Road and west of Skylark Road, watershed land lying north of Fairfax-Bolinas Road or contiguous with towns in Division III and up to Division IV boundary.
Term
12/12/2022-12/2026
Committee Assignments
Planning Committee Vice Chair
Other Roles
- Association of California Water Agencies Region 1 Vice Chair
About
Ranjiv Khush is a water scientist who has dedicated his career to bringing safe and clean drinking water to the developing world.
Ranjiv Khush is a Project Director with The Aquaya Institute, an international research and consulting organization. Currently, Ranjiv manages Aquaya’s Rural Evidence and Learning for Water (REAL-Water) Program, which is building the evidence base for policies and interventions that will improve rural water services across the developing world. REAL-Water is supported by a five-year, $19 million grant to Aquaya from the U.S. Agency for International Development. REAL-Water includes partners in Africa, India and Europe, and it conducts field research in Ghana, India, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
Ranjiv co-founded Aquaya in 2005 following science policy work in the Office of the Science and Technology Advisor to the U.S. Secretary of State. He served as Aquaya’s executive director from 2009-21. Previously, he was a research scientist at Stanford University and the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique in Paris. Ranjiv holds a PhD from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and Master of Science and Bachelor of Science degrees from the University of California, Davis. Ranjiv and his family have lived in San Anselmo since 2008.
Jed Smith, President, Division IV
Division IV
Includes incorporated Mill Valley and all surrounding unincorporated neighborhoods west of Highway 101, the area east of Highway 101 and north of Tiburon Boulevard and west of Tiburon and south of Corte Madera, Sausalito, Marin City, Muir Woods, north and south slopes of Mt. Tamalpais, watershed land south of Fairfax-Bolinas Road and up to Division III boundary, and Fort Baker, Barry, and Cronkhite and portions of Golden Gate National Recreation Area lands within the district’s service area.
Term
12/12/22-12/2026
Committee Assignments
Finance & Administration Committee Vice Chair
About
“The decisions we make today should result in a sustainable world seven generations into the future.”
– Philosophy attributed to ancient Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) peoples and their Great Law.
Jed Smith is a progressive, pioneering investor in companies focused on societal good – addressing climate change, environmental needs, healthy living, and education initiatives. An avid outdoor enthusiast and community leader, Jed is committed to creating a healthy future for the coming generations. Jed lives with his family in Mill Valley where their three children attend/attended public schools K-12th grade.
For more than three decades, Jed has been an entrepreneur, executive, CEO, director, board chair and investor. In these roles, he successfully helped pave the way for groundbreaking initiatives by shifting industry standards. From his vast business and nonprofit experience, he knows how to distill complex issues and diverse perspectives to bring people together toward shared goals and productive solutions. As a leader of significant organizations and environmental initiatives, Jed understands and is dedicated to being a powerful steward of the District’s unique land and water needs.
Jed has a B.A. from Middlebury College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. His work experience, summarized below, prioritizes a healthy planet and expanding opportunities for underserved communities:
CEO, President, Lead Investor, or Chair of the Board:
- Brookline Booksmith
- Seventh Generation
- Banyan Water
- Numi Tea
- Revolution Foods
- Amour Vert
- Linden Lab/Second Life
Founder or Co-founder:
- Herring Pond Watershed Association
- Plum Organics
- drugstore.com
- Catamount Ventures
- Owl Ventures
Director or Trustee
- Middlebury College
- Monterey Institute of International Studies
- Cambridge Center for Adult Education
Larry Russell, Vice President, Division V
Division V
Includes Corte Madera, portions of Larkspur south of Corte Madera Creek and east of Highway 101, San Quentin, Strawberry, Tiburon and surrounding unincorporated areas, and Belvedere.
Term
12/2024-12/2028
Committee Assignments
Planning Committee Chair
Compensation
Marin Water provides annual reports on the compensation of its five board members. Review the FY 2025 Annual Compensation Report.
Marin Water also provides compensation information to the California State Controller’s Office.
Policies
The board establishes policy on the district’s mission, goals, and operations. It represents the general public in deciding issues related to water supply. The board reviews staff recommendations and decides which policies should be implemented in light of the district’s mission and goals. The board also monitors the implementation of its policies. View Marin Water Board Policies.
Ethics and Fiscal & Financial Training
California law requires certain local officials, including board members, to complete the ethics and fiscal and financial trainings listed below.
- Ethics training records (AB 1234)
- Fiscal and financial training records (SB 827)
How to request training records: To request training records, please submit a request to Marin Water using our Public Records Request portal. Please allow up to 10 calendar days from submission of your request to receive an initial response.
Find Your Board Representative
This map shows the outlines of the geographic regions within the district’s service area that each board member represents. Click on the map to type in your address and locate your representative.
