Executive Director
California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission
Treasurer Fiona Ma appointed Robert Berry to the position of Executive Director of the California Debt and Investment Advisory Commission (CDIAC) in January 2020. Prior to his appointment and since joining CDIAC in late 2010, he served as Deputy Executive Director. Before joining CDIAC, Robert was a manager in the Capital Markets Group of Panattoni Development Company, one of the largest private merchant development companies in the country at the time. As a registered representative and manager of the company’s private equity placement program, he was charged with placing investments of high net-worth individuals in the company’s development projects across 29 US, Canadian, and Eastern European markets. Preceding his years in real estate finance, Robert worked over fourteen years in economic development as a business attraction and retention specialist with the State of California.
Robert earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of California, Davis.
The cost of victim compensation for past crimes against children resulting from AB 218 is sobering. Estimates of the direct liability of K-14 schools are more than $3 billion. Counties, cities, districts and non-profit service providers are faced with exposure that is expected to exceed the K-14 liability many times over. How will agencies already challenged with structural imbalances pay for the deluge of judgements and settlements? This program will bring into focus the magnitude of the financial storm facing agencies across California, and it will also examine the condition of the insurance safety net that is recognized as the first line of fiscal defense. Lastly, experienced issuers and market professionals will explore the public finance strategies that agencies may use to overcome a fiscal challenge that may appear insurmountable.