California lawmakers used an Aug. 4 oversight hearing to revisit the five-year record of Senate Bill 158 and, in the process, raise a conflict-of-interest concern about the state’s Board of Environmental Safety.
In the hearing, Chair Damon Connelly said he was evaluating whether the board has met SB 158’s goals for transparency, accountability and fiscal stability. He also publicly flagged concern about a board member who later became a lobbyist for DTSC-regulated clients, according to the hearing summary of the joint Assembly-Senate oversight hearing.
The board, created by SB 158 to help oversee the Department of Toxic Substances Control, was the focus of broader debate over whether it has enough power to influence budgets, permitting and public participation. Earthjustice attorney Angela Johnson-Mazaras argued DTSC remains too slow and said the board has been too passive, while Dawn Kepke of the California Council for Environmental and Economic Balance said the board has improved transparency and accountability and helped stabilize DTSC.
Miguel Alatorra Jr. of Unitos Network said the board has created a valuable public forum but still lacks the authority and budget role needed to turn community input into action. Board Chair Andrew Raickstra and DTSC Director Barbara Butler defended the reform effort, saying it has improved transparency, enforcement and fiscal stability, while acknowledging limits in the board’s authority and unresolved work on the hazardous waste management plan and SB 673 regulations.
The hearing summary does not identify the board member Connelly was referring to, and it does not spell out any ethics rule, disclosure requirement or recusal issue. But the fact that lawmakers raised the issue publicly suggests the board’s independence may become a follow-up subject as oversight of DTSC reform continues.
