(a) One member of the board shall be a professional geologist with background and experience in mining geology; one member shall be a mining engineer with background and experience in mining minerals in California; one member shall have background and experience in groundwater hydrology, water quality, and rock chemistry; one member shall be a representative of local government with background and experience in urban planning; one member shall have background and experience in the field of environmental protection or the study of ecosystems; one member shall be a professional geologist, registered geophysicist, registered civil engineer, or registered structural engineer with background and experience in seismology; one member shall be a landscape architect with background and experience in soil conservation or revegetation of disturbed soils; one member shall have background and experience in mineral resource conservation, development, and utilization; and one member shall not be required to have specialized experience.

(b) All members of the board shall represent the general public interest, but not more than one-third of the members at any one time may be currently employed by, or receive more than 25 percent of their annual income, not to exceed $25,000 a year per member, from an entity that owns or operates a mine in California. The representative of local government shall not be considered an employee of an entity that owns or operates a mine if the lead agency employing the representative owns or operates a mine. For purposes of this section, retirement or other benefits paid by a mining entity to an individual who is no longer employed by that entity are not considered to be compensation, if those benefits were earned prior to the date the individual terminated his or her employment with the entity.

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(c) If a member of the board determines that he or she has a conflict of interest on a particular matter before the board pursuant to subdivision (b) or Section 663, he or she shall provide the clerk of the board with a brief written explanation of the basis for the conflict of interest, which shall become a part of the public record of the board. The written explanation shall be delivered prior to the time the matter to which it pertains is voted on by the board. This disclosure requirement is in addition to any other conflict-of-interest disclosure requirement imposed by law.

(Amended by Stats. 2004, Ch. 865, Sec. 37. Effective January 1, 2005.)