ACT Expo 2017

Kathryn Garcia
Commissioner
New York City Department of Sanitation


Kathryn Garcia was appointed commissioner of the New York City Department of Sanitation in March 2014 by Mayor Bill de Blasio. She leads the world’s largest municipal sanitation department and its 9,700 uniformed and civilian employees. Under her direction, the department keeps New York City healthy, safe, and clean by collecting, recycling and disposing waste, cleaning streets and vacant lots, and clearing snow and ice. After her appointment as the Department’s 43rd commissioner, Commissioner Garcia set an ambitious long-term goal for New York City: contribute zero waste to landfills. To achieve this goal, the New York Department of Sanitation has developed the nation’s largest curbside organic waste collection program, collected and properly recycled more than 10 million pounds of electronic waste, and launched DonateNYC to help New York City residents and businesses give goods, find goods, and do good. A lifelong New Yorker, the commissioner launched her career as an intern at the Department of Sanitation. Before returning to the Department as commissioner, she served as chief operating officer at the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, where she was responsible for the operation of the City’s water supply, water and sewer system, and wastewater treatment plants. Commissioner Garcia earned her Bachelor of Arts in Economics and History at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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