We are disappointed that Tamika Butler has had to resign as a CTC commissioner only a few months after her appointment last fall. We commend Toole Design Group, where Tamika works as California Planning Director and Director of Equity and Inclusion, for adhering to the strictest possible interpretation of standards of conflict of interest. However, we are dismayed that the CTC’s conflict of interest standards as currently written would prevent anyone currently working in the transportation sector from serving in the role. Most CTC commissioners lack experience in transportation planning and funding, as well as their impacts in particular on the lives of marginalized communities. To facilitate alignment of transportation policy and funding with environmental justice, California should be facilitating, not preventing, the participation of experts like Tamika Butler in bodies and agencies like the CTC. We call on Governor Newsom to clarify how procedures will be adapted to address this challenge.
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