The financially-troubled Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission announced Monday that Salam Nalia has been named interim chief executive officer.

Nalia, who came out of retirement to serve as deputy CEO earlier this year, replaces the former interim CEO, Brian Angus. Nalia had previously served as chief financial officer and CEO of Fresno Community Development Financial Institution, a subsidiary of Fresno EOC.

Angus, who was the commission’s CEO for 10 years until 2019, came out of retirement in January to head the struggling agency after the commission decided in December not to renew the contract of then-CEO Emilia Reyes.

Nalia will serve as interim CEO until the commission’s new CEO is on board. Last month commissioners interviewed four finalists after conducting a nationwide search.

“We are grateful to Brian Angus for his steady leadership during this critical period,” Oliver Baines, chair of the Fresno EOC Board of Commissioners said in a news release. “As we move forward, we are confident in Salam Nalia’s experience and vision to guide Fresno EOC in continuing our mission to empower individuals and families impacted by poverty in Fresno County.”

Forensic Audit Underway

Fresno EOC’s precarious financial footing came to light last fall when Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula, who appointed himself to replace his mother Amy on the commission, reported in an open letter that the agency was “hemorrhaging” money and had burned through its substantial reserves. He called for a forensic audit, and the commission agreed to audit the 2024 finances.

GV Wire reviewed Fresno EOC’s finance reports and found that starting in May 2022 the agency’s budget surplus turned into a deficit that grew larger in the following months.

The Fresno EOC is one of the nation’s largest nonprofit Community Action Agencies and was created more than 60 years ago during President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty.