JURISDICTION: Bills relating to environmental quality, air quality, water quality, climate change,

2023 Bill Hearings The Committee meets 1st, 3rd, and 5th Wednesdays at 9 a.m. in O Street room 1200.  Always check the Senate Daily File for any changes.

   Advocacy Quick Reference Guide

For information on how to submit a position letter please see the Position Letters tab above for instructions as well as committee requirements.

You are strongly advised to submit your position letter(s) ASAP via the Advocacy Portal, do not wait for bills to be noticed in the Daily File. 

It is the responsibility of an organization/individual to submit an updated position letter to the Committee if the organization's/individual's position on a bill changes.

The Capitol and O Street building is open for in-person attendance of committee hearings.  Please utilize the teleconference service if you are experiencing any symptoms of COVID-19 or test positive.

The Senate strongly recommends that all members of the public wear a mask in all shared spaces in the Capitol and the 1021 O Street building. Masks are available at all security entrances.

We encourage the public to submit written testimony before the hearing through the position letter portal. Please note that any written testimony submitted to the committee is considered public comment and may be read into the record or reprinted.

Teleconference Instructions:

Information regarding a call-in option for testimony will be made available and updated the night prior to the hearing date.

Senate Committee on Environmental Quality call-in information for hearing on Wednesday, August 23, 2023 

Participant number:  877 226-8163   Access Code:  7362832

Please note: In order for your testimony to be heard clearly, you must mute any devices you are using to live stream the committee hearing prior to calling into the teleconference service. Please do not testify using speakerphone or bluetooth, this can cause acoustic feedback and make it very difficult to hear your testimony. 

• Upon calling in, you will be placed in a “waiting room” where you will be muted but you can listen to the committee hearing as you wait.
• When a committee moves to public comment, a moderator will ask for anyone who is wishing to testify in “Support” or “Opposition” of the bill to please press 1-0.   You should press 1-0 when you are prompted by the moderator. When you press 1-0 on your phone, you will wait and an operator will assign you a line number, at that time you will be placed in the queue for identification.  Remember your line number, the moderator will call out that number to identify YOU when it is your turn to testify.  OF IMPORTANT NOTE: If you press 1-0 a second time, you will remove yourself from the queue and you will not be identified to testify. Every time you press 1-0 you either put yourself “In queue” or take yourself “out of queue” so listen carefully, and press 1-0 only once when you are prompted by the moderator.
• When you are successfully in the queue, with your assigned line number, the moderator will call out your line number, open your line, and at that time you may address the committee. You must have your own phone unmuted before you begin testimony.

A more detailed explanation of the teleconference instructions can be found by clicking the “Teleconference Instructions”

DURING THESE UNPRECEDENTED TIMES, WE ARE AVAILABLE TO ASSIST YOU

• A Committee staff member is in the office during the business hours of 9:00 am ~ 5:00 pm ~ Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.
• We are receiving office phone calls and responding to all email communication during the business hours of 9:00 am ~ 5:00 pm ~ Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. 
• We will continue to receive position letters on all legislation via the advocacy portal and by mail to 1021 O Street, Suite 3230, Sacramento, CA 95814. Please see the "Position Letters" tab above for more specific information.

Please note the various ways we are available to assist you:

Committee Phone:  (916) 651-4108

Committee Staff:

• Gabrielle Meindl gabrielle.meindl@sen.ca.gov

• Eric Walters eric.walters@sen.ca.gov

• Brynn Cook brynn.cook@sen.ca.gov

• Theresa Keates theresa.keates@sen.ca.gov

Senate Environmental Quality Committee Members:

Senator Benjamin Allen (Chair)
Senator Brian Dahle (Vice Chair)
Senator Lena A. Gonzalez
Senator Melissa Hurtado
Senator Caroline Menjivar
Senator Janet Nguyen
Senator Nancy Skinner