OFFICERS & BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Sarah Downs Esq.
LAAPL PRESIDENT
Southern California Gas Company, Research Attorney, Environmental & Litigation
Sarah Downs, a native Angeleno, is an environmental research attorney at SoCalGas, the nation’s largest natural gas distribution utility. Sarah's career started in 2006 as a Landman supporting upstream oil & gas producers by providing title research, due diligence, land rights acquisition projects spanning Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and California. She attended Whittier Law School in 2016 while working full time. Upon graduation, Sarah transitioned from contract work to in-house with Southern California Edison as a Licensing Agent. She joined SoCal Gas in 2018 as a Land Advisor. In addition to her full time career Sarah has spent the last decade filling various board and committee positions in the Los Angeles Association of Land Professionals, Chapter 67 of the International Right of Way Association and the American Association of Professional Landmen. Sarah also currently serves as the LAAPL President, the Long Beach Heartwell Fastpitch Treasurer and a Patrick Henry Foundation committee member.
In her free time, Sarah enjoys, traveling, networking, and watching baseball (Go Dodgers!)
Rich Maldonado
Immediate past LAAPL PRESIDENT
Spectrum Land Services, Managing Partner
Rich began his career in the right-of-way industry with Southern California Edison in 1985 as a land surveyor and later co-founded Spectrum Land Services in 1999. Rich is currently the company’s Chief Executive Officer and is responsible for all aspects of Spectrum’s board of directors, business operations, staff management, and human resources. Over the past 15 years, Rich has been involved in oil/gas lease acquisitions and pipeline permitting.
Rich’s background includes: project quality control, utility-scale program management, right-of-way engineering and business administration. Rich has been a member of the LAAPL since 2010.
Jeff Farquhar
Vice President
The Termo Company, Senior Land Manager
Jeff has over 20 years’ experience in the oil and gas industry, including land management positions with Great Western Petroleum and Noble Energy. He received a BBA from the University of Oklahoma in 2001 and immediately began his career in the energy industry. Jeff is active in the Los Angeles and Denver Associations of Professional Landmen.
Jeff enjoys golfing, traveling the world and cheering on his Oklahoma Sooners.
Jason Downs, CPL
Treasurer / MiCKELSON GOLF CHAIR / aapl director
Chevron Pipeline & Power, Senior Land Representative
Mr. Downs grew up in Seattle, Washington and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in economics from San Diego State University. After graduating, he left California working numerous projects in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas as an independent landman before returning to California in 2009 and establishing a land service company, Downchez Energy in 2010. In 2013, Mr. Downs moved in-house with Breitburn Operating LP serving as the California and South Florida Landman along with assisting the SVP in special real estate projects until Breitburn’s bankruptcy exit and relocation in 2018. In 2018, Mr. Downs accepted a position with Chevron Pipeline & Power working various LA basin projects in support of the Los Angeles Pipeline & Power field team.
Marcia Carlisle
Secretary
The Termo Company, Senior Landman
Marcia's strong background in the Oil and Gas Industry includes working in various capacities with many majors, including Shell Oil company in her early career, Apache, ConocoPhillips, and California Resources. Marcia has assisted with the Business Development and Land Departments. She now has settled in Long Beach with The Termo Company and is enjoying living in Los Angeles near her three sons. Marcia is also an experienced Sales Executive with a demonstrated history of working in the marketing and advertising industry. Other aspects of her career include Digital Advertising Sales, Real Estate Sales, Client Development and Account Management. She is also an artist.
John R. “JR” Billeaud
EDUCATION CHAIR
California Natural Resources Group, LLC (CalNRG), Land Manager - Ventura, CA
John “JR” Billeaud is currently the Land Manager for CalNRG and has been working as a landman since 2010. Mr. Billeaud has worked several basins across the Lower 48, with extensive experience in California and additional experience attributed to Utah, Colorado, Louisiana, Texas and Illinois. Prior to joining CalNRG, Mr. Billeaud held positions at Freeport-McMoran Oil & Gas (formerly PXP), Sentinel Peak Resources, and Berry Corporation.
Mr. Billeaud was born and raised in Lafayette, LA and earned degrees in Finance and Professional Land & Resource Management from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He is an active member of the American Association of Professional Landmen, Los Angeles Association of Professional Landmen, Bakersfield Association of Professional Landmen, and Dallas Association of Professional Landmen. He enjoys spending his time with his family, playing golf, bird hunting and fishing.
Joe Munsey, RPL
PUBLISHING & NEWSLETTER CO-CHAIR
Southern California Gas Company, Senior Land Advisor - Anaheim, California
Responsible for managing land rights issues affecting our underground gas storage facilities: title research (surface/oil and gas), acquisition of storage rights, oil and gas leases, other oil/gas/surface related matters; supervisions of outside land consultants.
Prior to joining Southern California Gas Company, held various land management positions with land (oil/gas/geothermal and right of way) consulting firms, with over 30 years of experience in the energy industry.
Mike Flores
LEGISLATIVE CHAIR
Championship Strategies, Inc., President
Mike is President of Championship Strategies, Inc., a public affairs company with a focus on oil & gas and renewable energy. He specializes in legislative and regulatory issues in the energy sector along with community engagement, communication and education as it pertains to energy.
He is an immediate past member of the Board of Directors of the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL), Region VIII, and while on the board, he served as chair of both the Legislative & Regulatory Affairs and the Public Lands Committees. He currently sits on the AAPL Industry PR and the Public Lands Committees. Additionally he is a member of the Los Angeles Association of Professional Landmen (LAAPL), and the Bakersfield Association of Professional Landmen (BAPL), where he is the Legislative Affairs Chair for both organizations. Mike writes a quarterly article called the California Field Report, for an AAPL publication, and also writes the monthly oil & gas legislative update for the LAAPL and BAPL newsletters.
He has been a presenter on legislative & regulatory issues at the annual West Coast Landman Institute and for the LA Basin of the Society of Petroleum Engineers. Additionally, he has testified in front of the California State Assembly, and at DOGGR public hearings, supporting the oil & gas industry.
Mike is a graduate of UCLA (where he played football and was the starting QB), and is a past Vice President of the UCLA Alumni Association. He also is a past President/Board Chairman of the East Los Angeles Boys & Girls Club.
Randall Taylor, RPL
Director and PuBLISHING & NEWSLETTER CO-CHAIR
Taylor Land Service, Inc., President
Randall Taylor, RPL, President of Taylor Land Service, Inc. was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and grew up in Wichita, Kansas, where he started his Oil & Gas career in 1978 as an independent petroleum landman.
After several years working as an independent petroleum landman in California he formed Taylor Land Service, Inc. in 2007.
Mr. Taylor has been a member of the Los Angeles Association of Professional Landmen (LAAPL) since 2002, where he has also served as President for the 2020-2021 term and has been a Director for most of his membership, and Newsletter Co-Chair since 2006. He has also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL), Region VIII for two, two-year terms, and served for three years as a member of the Ethics Committee.
He has also been a member of the Bakersfield Association of Professional Landmen (BAPL) since 2012.