(a) Using existing resources or when funds become available, the Secretary for Environmental Protection shall designate a brownfields ombudsperson whose responsibilities shall include, but are not limited to, all of the following:
(1) Assisting in the coordination of the brownfields activities of each office, board, and department within the California Environmental Protection Agency.
(2) Advocating and expanding the relationship between the California Environmental Protection Agency and local, state, and federal governmental entities’ efforts pertaining to brownfields.
(3) Serving as the California Environmental Protection Agency’s representative on committees, working groups, and other organizations pertaining to brownfields.
(4) Providing assistance in investigating complaints from the public, and helping to resolve and coordinate the resolution of those complaints relating to the brownfields activities of each office, board, and department within the California Environmental Protection Agency.
(5) Facilitating and advocating that the issue of environmental justice for communities most impacted, including low-income and racial minority populations, is considered in brownfields activities of each office, board, and department within the California Environmental Protection Agency.
(b) The brownfield ombudsperson is not authorized to make or reverse a decision of an office, board, or department within the California Environmental Protection Agency.
(Amended by Stats. 2012, Ch. 39, Sec. 76. (SB 1018) Effective June 27, 2012.)