Simitian to chair Senate environmental committee Simitian to chair Senate environmental committee (November 16, 2005)

State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, will be following environmental legend, former state Sen. Byron Sher, as chair of the California Senate Environmental Quality Committee.

Sen. Sher chaired the committee from 1999 to 2004, when he was termed out.

The committee has jurisdiction over air and water quality, waste management, toxics, and hazardous waste.

Since elected to the Senate a year ago, Sen. Simitian has introduced a package of environmental bills addressing air pollution, coastal protection, energy, hazardous materials and solid waste. Last month, the governor signed his SB 771, a measure to protect California's coast and the ocean by prohibiting commercial shipping from dumping harmful substances into the state's water and air.

Sen. Simitian is a member of two other committees that address environmental policy: the Energy, Utilities, and Communications Committee; and the Transportation and Housing Committee. He will continue to chair the Senate's Select Committee on Coastal Protection and Watershed Conservation.

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