California Attorney General Opinion 23-901

BACKGROUND

The Temecula-Elsinore-Anza-Murrieta Resource Conservation District (District) is a resource conservation district governed by Public Resources Code division 9, chapter 3 (sections 9151-9500). Within its boundaries, a resource conservation district may be given a wide range of responsibilities for preserving local natural resources including soil, water, forests, lands, and plant and wildlife populations, as well as protecting these resources from natural and man-made disasters.

The District is one of several resource conservation districts within Riverside County, and covers approximately 790 square miles surrounding the city of Temecula, including Lake Elsinore, Anza, and Murrieta. 3 The District is governed by a board of five directors, who are appointed to four-year terms by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors.

Public Resources Code section 9314 sets out requirements for appointing directors to a resource conservation district. As relevant here, section 9314 provides:

The board of supervisors shall appoint directors . . . from those candidates who have filed an application with the board of supervisors, as prescribed by the board of supervisors. If the…