EX PARTE COMMUNICATION PROHIBITION NOW IN EFFECT

 

Delta Stewardship Council Executive Officer Jessica Pearson issued the following announcement on July 17, 2018:

 

"The Delta Stewardship Council (Council) is aware that the Department of Water Resources (DWR) has identified the WaterFix project as a covered action, and posted a draft certification of consistency with the Delta Plan on its WaterFix website [2].

"As a result, the Council has ended early consultation efforts with DWR (see Water Code section 85225.5). Out of an abundance of caution, the Council (including its staff and consultants) is now placing itself under ex parte communication restrictions in anticipation of its quasi-judicial role with respect to the WaterFix project (see Government Code section 11430.10). This means that Councilmembers, Council staff and consultants cannot and will not communicate about or discuss the WaterFix project with any person outside of the Council.  The one exception is a communication concerning the administrative or procedural status of the WaterFix project. Those inquiries shall not be regarded as ex parte communications, and may be directed to this email address: waterfixcert@deltacouncil.ca.gov [3].

"If you have any questions about the covered action process, please visit the Council's Covered Actions website [4]. If you would like to receive listserv notices about the WaterFix certification of consistency if/when DWR files it with the Council, you may subscribe to that listserv here [5](scroll to "Get Updates" and click "Subscribe"). The Council’s covered action appeals procedures may be found here [6]."

Kind regards,
Jessica Pearson, Executive Officer