Energy Safety Agency Names State Insider as CIO

The Office of Energy Infrastructure Safety has a new chief information officer in Bhupinder Kaur, a technologist with a lengthy resume in several major state agencies.

Kaur officially started in the new role in early April, having come from the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), where she served as the bureau chief of the Solutions Development Bureau among other roles. She was with CDSS from 2014 to 2017 and from 2019 to 2024.

Energy Safety, as the young agency is known, was established in July 2021 to ensure the safety of the state’s energy infrastructure and reduce the risk of utility-related wildfires.

“I’d like to welcome Bhupinder Kaur to the Administrative Services Division’s Information Technology Section! Bhupinder started yesterday (4/8/2024) and is our new Chief Information Officer (IT Manager I) who will be leading our IT team,” Tyler Morris, chief of Administrative Services, said in a statement.

Kaur has held a number of roles within large state agencies, including the California Health and Human Services Agency’s Office of Innovation, the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development, the Department of Consumer Affairs, and the Department of Child Support Services.

Kaur has a bachelor's degree in computer science from California State University, Sacramento, is a certified scrum master, and is also ITIL certified.