Janice Cheung-Powell
Appointed by Governor Newsom on March 25, 2026
Appointment Expiration: January 1, 2030
Commissioner Janice Cheung-Powell is currently serving as Fire Marshal for the Redwood City Fire Department. In this capacity, she directs fire prevention and community risk reduction services across Redwood City, San Carlos, and unincorporated areas of San Mateo County. Her responsibilities include overseeing fire and life safety inspections, construction and development review, code enforcement, fire investigations, wildfire preparedness, public education initiatives, and coordination with building, planning, and public safety partners.
Commissioner Cheung-Powell is a licensed Fire Protection Engineer in California, with over twenty years of experience in fire protection engineering, fire prevention, construction safety, code administration, and public-sector regulatory programs. From 2020 to 2024, she served as Designated Campus Fire Marshal at the University of California, San Francisco. Prior to that, she worked as a Fire Protection Engineer with the San Francisco Fire Department from 2015 to 2020, where she supported fire and life safety reviews for complex construction projects.
In addition, Commissioner Cheung-Powell has contributed her expertise as a member of the California Building Standards Commission Code Advisory Committee (CAC) on Accessibility (2018–2020) and Health Facilities (2021–2023). She was also appointed as Fire and Life Safety Representative on the California Hospital Building Safety Board with the California Department of Health Care Access and Information from 2023 to 2026.
Early in her career, Commissioner Cheung-Powell held positions in fire prevention, environmental health and safety, and risk engineering at First Solar, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, The Hartford, and FM Global. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Davis. Her credentials include International Code Council Certified Fire Marshal, Certified Safety Professional, OSHA Authorized Outreach Trainer, and California State Fire Training Instructor for fire prevention curriculum.