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Lisa F. Garcia
Commissioner

Lisa F. Garcia was appointed Commissioner of the New York City Department of Environmental Protection in February 2026. In this position, Commissioner Garcia will help protect the city’s infrastructure and environment; ensure the delivery of high-quality services such as drinking water and sewage treatment; and make sure that New York City is a global leader in the fight against the climate crisis.

Prior to DEP, Garcia served as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Regional Administrator for Region 2, overseeing the Biden Administration’s environmental agenda in New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and eight Indian Nations. She ran the Climate Solutions Lab at Grist Magazine, where she worked to elevate climate justice leaders, and served as Vice President for Litigation at EarthJustice and as an Associate Administrator at the EPA. Along with experience at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the New York State Attorney General’s Environmental Protection Bureau, Commissioner Garcia previously served as an Associate Professor at Rutgers Law School and as Adjunct Faculty at Columbia University and New York University School of Law. She received her B.A. from Stony Brook University and her J.D. from Brooklyn Law School.