Aviation Director to Provide Travel Industry Insight and Perspective as Federal Reserve Branch Board Member

Rosemary A. Vassiliadis was appointed by the Board of Governors of the U.S. Federal Reserve System to serve on the Federal Reserve of San Francisco’s Los Angeles Branch Board of Directors. The Fed strongly recognizes the importance of the travel and tourism industries for their sizable effects on regional, national and international economies. Given this, Vassiliadis was selected to offer expert, industry-specific contributions toward the formulation of national monetary and credit policies by sharing grass roots information and trends on economic developments, and the effects of monetary policy on the region with which she is closely familiar.

Vassiliadis possesses unique insight on the importance of air travel. She has overseen the Clark County Department of Aviation since March 2013, and spent the prior 15 years as its deputy director. She will continue in her role as Director of Aviation in addition to assuming these new duties on behalf of the San Francisco Fed.

“I am honored to be chosen to serve on this board, and believe the understanding I have obtained over the course of my professional career in aviation will bring great value to the important economic considerations my branch board colleagues and I will be tasked to weigh,” Vassiliadis said. “Prior to the pandemic, Clark County’s airports generated nearly $35 billion in economic impact for our region each year, and as we recover I know we will exceed those numbers in the near future. I am pleased the Fed recognizes the importance of including a voice representing the interests of the travel and tourism sectors as this board makes critical decisions on how to grow and strengthen the U.S. economy.”

This yearlong Fed appointment began Jan. 1, and has already included meetings with bank leaders both this week and last. The Federal Reserve’s 12th District includes nine states plus American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. Its seven-member Los Angeles Branch Board of Directors meets multiple times per year and represents a geographically diverse area including members from Arizona, California and Nevada.

Clark County’s flagship airport, Harry Reid International (formerly McCarran International), routinely ranks among the Top 10 U.S. airports for passenger volume. LAS served more than 51.5 million passengers in 2019 prior to the pandemic-driven downturn in global travel. Vassiladis also oversees four smaller general aviation airports. Nearly half of Southern Nevada’s 40 million+ annual visitors arrive by way of aircraft.

Clark County is also in the early stages of development for a new commercial airport on land approximately 30 miles southwest of the Las Vegas metro area; if approved by federal regulators, the Southern Nevada Supplemental Airport would someday complement Harry Reid International in serving local aviation needs.

Prior to joining the Department of Aviation in 1997, Vassiliadis served as Clark County’s finance director, and previously worked as a manager for the city of Las Vegas in its finance department. She also serves on the Nevada Homeland Security Commission and as a Member of the U.S. Travel Association’s Board of Directors. Vassiliadis earned her degree in accountancy from Chicago’s DePaul University, for which she later served as an advisory board member of the International Aviation Law Institute, a leading source of research, analysis and study of international aviation law and policy.