February 9, 2016

Mr. Steve Kinsey

Chair, California Coastal Commission
305 Civic Center Drive, Suite 329
San Rafael, CA 94903
Via email: StatusOfExecutiveDirector@coastal.ca.gov
Subject: Executive Director Job Performance
Dear Chairman Kinsey,
During the last few months I have watched and read with interest the on-going consideration of
the job performance of the Coastal Commission Executive Director Dr. Charles Lester. As the
LA Times put in a recent editorial, Dr. Lesters job is to protect, maintain, and where feasible,
enhance and restore the overall quality of the coastal zone environment and its natural and
artificial resources.
I write to you now so if you choose, you and your Commission may have the benefit of my own
interaction with Charles from my perspective of being an applicant to the commission, founding
CEO of Sun Microsystems and longtime venture capitalist who evaluates executive performance
on an almost daily basis.
As a Californian, I care deeply about our coast and the environmentand believe strongly that if it
were not for the foresight of an earlier generation in passing the Coastal Act, this most beautiful
expanse of the coast would look much different.
Though I have found the Commission staff to be sometimes overzealous and biased by various
interests (all of whom want to protect the coast, sometimes at the expense of, and contrary to,
private property rights that the Coastal Act tried very hard to balance when it was instituted), and
my interactions with Charles have been adversarial, I have found him to be very knowledgeable,
always well prepared, responsive and most important creative in finding resolutions to seemingly
intractable problems and issues. Though the disputes regarding my property continue and will
require the Courts to balance private property rights against the other goals of the Coastal Act, I
cannot fault Charles for trying to do his job.
Dismissing Charles Lester would be bad for California and inconsistent with the commission's
raison d'etre protecting the coast. I have not received a request from anyone to send this letter
or have I personally communicated on this topic directly with Charles or any of the
Commissioners in deciding to send this letter in support of Charles' job performance. I do want
to make my views clear from the vantage point of an applicant in an adversarial position and
trying to understand Charles's points of view and his duties and responsibilities. He is doing his
job and should not be penalized for it.
I urge you to retain Dr. Lester as his dismissal only sends the wrong message to Californians,
who like me love their coast. Maybe more can be accomplished by the commissioners being
clearer in their directive to Coastal Commission staff on the right balance among the various

laws in the State of California and the relationships between staff, applicants, and other private
and state entities without setting back the goals of the Coastal Act.
Sincerely,
Vinod Khosla