(a) If a member of the Technical Advisory Panel, or a member of his or her immediate family, is employed by a grant applicant , the employer of a grant applicant, or a consultant or independent contractor employed by a grant applicant, the panel member shall make that disclosure to the other members of the panel and shall not participate in the review of the grant application of that applicant.

(b) The Technical Advisory Panel shall operate on principles of collaboration. Panelists shall be appointed who are committed to working together with other interests for the long-term benefit of California groundwater resources and the people who rely on those resources.

(c) Panelists shall be residents of the state and have an interest in the preservation, protection, and enhancement of the state’s groundwater resources.

(d) Panelists shall not be employees of any state or federal agency.

(Added by Stats. 2000, Ch. 708, Sec. 2. Effective January 1, 2001.)