Submitted by Heather Gass

 

California Air Resources Board “Public Consultation on Cap & Trade Auction Proceeds”

This is the ending that Queen Mary Nichols gives to this Public” Forum. The meeting started at 1:30 with 10 members on the dais, and 2 panels of about 10 people total. Public input was allowed from 4:10 to 5:00 p.m. When public comments started all members of the panels left, and one by one most members of the dais (2 were legislators) left until there were 2 people left.

What does Mary Nichols do when she doesn’t like hearing what the public has to say about the CARB AB32 plan? She abruptly ends the public consultation hearing!!!  It is amazing that after driving 1 ½ hours to get to this meeting. Then we sat sat through 3 ½ hours of public officials and stakeholders testimony only to have most of the 11 officials ignore the public comments or leave during that period is shameful. The meeting started at 1:30pm in SAC.

The public comment period did not begin until after 5pm. By 4:40 only 3 CARB officials were left! We were told the meeting would go late and that EVERYONE would have an opportunity to speak. The speaker cards were shuffled so that most of the public would not speak until the end. Then abruptly at 5pm Ms. Nichols shut down the meeting because she did not like the direction the public comments were taking. Many in the audience were appalled at this blatant disregard. Watch the short video clip to see her shutting down the hearing and the public outrage that followed!

Short video clip of Nichols cutting off the CARB meeting yesterday because she didn’t like the negative direction it was taking