California Waste Management Panel Possibly Gone After December
As part of the California budget deal, state leaders agreed to eliminate in January the Integrated Waste Management Board, the oft-maligned panel with ex-legislator appointees who earn $132,178 per year.
The board's primary objective is to reduce landfill waste and increase recycling in California, and proponents have said that the panel has made California a leader in those areas. But the board's many critics note that board members do not have to work full time to earn that six-figure salary.
As Peter Hecht noted in February, waste board members last year held 12 meetings and attended 45 committee hearings and conferences, though they say they spend a lot of time meeting with industry and environmental advocates and researching facilities.
The board includes three Democratic legislators who were termed out last year, former Senators Carole Migden and Sheila Kuehl, as well as former Assemblyman John Laird.
Based on what legislative aides said Monday, the board's functions will continue to exist in a new department yet to be named. The working title is the "California Department of Resource Recovery." Basically, the board's staff will continue operating but without the political appointees that have drawn public criticism.
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