Monterey County Supervisor Chris Lopez is appointed to the California Coastal Commission.

Updated: This story was updated at 3:45pm Friday, May 16 to incorporate comments from outgoing Coastal Commissioner Justin Cummings.

Monterey County Supervisor Chris Lopez, who lives in Greenfield and represents the Salinas Valley on the Board of Supervisors, will bring his inland and agricultural perspective to the California Coastal Commission. 

"I’m excited and can’t wait to start the work," Lopez says. "I am really honored by the opportunity to do this work on behalf of all Californians, but especially rural Californians. This coast is everybody’s, and it belongs to everybody."

California Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, D-Hollister, announced the appointment on Friday afternoon, May 16, as the term for the current coastal commissioner representing the region—a local elected official who lives in Monterey, Santa Cruz or San Mateo counties—comes to an end on Tuesday, May 20. 

“California’s coast is a national treasure, and we must protect this iconic landscape thoughtfully for the future,” Rivas said in a statement. “It belongs to all of us, and should be open to more of us as a place to live and work. Agricultural communities and farmworkers are the economy’s backbone all along our Central Coast, and their voices must be at the center of decisions about the coast’s stewardship."

It is the second time Lopez has put his name in the running for the appointment, both times emphasizing his desire to represent a constituency that might not live in coastal areas, but still benefits from the coast, whether through work or play.

Lopez says he hopes to advance issues of access, including streamlining approvals to create affordable housing in coastal areas. He adds that commutes for people who work on the coast and live inland add to greenhouse gas emissions, as well as impact access and quality of life. 

"I think there are opportunities to streamline certain types of projects, certainly low-income housing projects. I will be leaning into a focus on climate change—we know there are going to be impacts in Monterey County," Lopez says. "Those are the types of things i am excited to start working on day one."

Lopez was one of six local elected officials from the three-county region to put his name into contention for the role. Other Monterey County contenders included Monterey Mayor Tyller Williamson and King City Mayor Mike LeBarre. Other nominees were Half Moon Bay Vice Mayor Debbie Ruddock, Santa Cruz County Supervisor Manu Koenig and Santa Cruz County Supervisor—and current Coastal Commission chair—Justin Cummings. 

The only nominees who come from Rivas' Assembly District 29 are Lopez and LeBarre. Prior to the announcement, LeBarre shared that he hoped a Monterey County resident would be appointed to the seat. He also echoes Lopez's perspective on getting an inland commissioner: "I live here in the Valley, and we have all this agriculture. There are times I see people pulling over, just taking pictures of fields—you don't always realize how special it is to other people. The coast is the same way for me," he says.

Cummings received widespread support to be reappointed. That came from current and former elected officials in the region (including State Sen. John Laird, D-Santa Cruz, Assemblymembers Dawn Addis, D-Morro Bay, and Gail Pellerin, D-Santa Cruz, U.S. Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Carmel Valley, retired U.S. Rep. Sam Farr and retired State Senator Bill Monning) as well as from the environmental advocacy community.

All three nominating counties put forward Cummings' name, alongside their own local representatives. 

In the two years he served, Cummings says his proudest accomplishments include requiring low-income lodging options in approved projects, rather than accepting in-lieu fees. "I argued in-lieu fees end up going to some account somewhere. People say, 'we'll put them into campgrounds.' I was arguing, not all low-income people want to camp. They deserve to stay in hotels, the same way rich people get to stay in hotels."

He was also working with other organizations to develop a curriculum for newly elected local officials to learn how the Coastal Commission operates and what its role is. 

One other coastal commissioner, Ann Notthoff of Carmel Valley, comes from Monterey County. She is a public member appointed by the Senate Rules Committee. (That committee, the Speaker of the Assembly and the governor each appoint four commissioners reflecting a mix of public members and elected officials from various coastal regions.) 

She and Cummings joined the Coastal Commission at the same time, and Notthoff says she respects his leadership: "I learned a lot from Justin," she says. "He’s an exceptionally thoughtful, transformational leader. At this point in time, with the federal administration targeting California’s coast and ocean for more oil and gas drilling, we all need to work together to defend our coastal economies. Californians are counting on us.”

Like Cummings, Notthoff's current term ends on May 20, and she has applied to be reappointed and is awaiting a decision from the Senate Rules Committee. 

Lopez will begin serving as one of 12 voting members on the California Coastal Commission on Wednesday, May 21.