Providence-Will the establishment of a judicial nomination committee ensure that more qualified members are appointed to the state's coastal resource management committee? 

The long-standing criticism of the powerful institution that oversees development along the 400-mile coastline of Rhode Island is that although its professionals are respected and knowledgeable, a 10-member committee appointed by the governor votes on all final decisions to the same standard. 

Despite the complex nature of their work, from offshore wind farms that cost hundreds of millions of dollars to fiercely competitive proposals to build oyster farms in environmentally sensitive salt ponds, they do not need any expertise in coastal issues. Recent appointments include a dental hygienist and the head of a series of physical therapy offices.  

Concerns about committee membership are just one reason the House of Representatives established a special committee last summer to consider reorganizing the CRMC. 

The move was also criticized for the proposed expansion of the Block Island Wharf, the Jamestown Shipyard project and the Rhode Island Bay offshore wind farm. Some people also questioned the latest appointment of the board of directors. After its then chairman resigned in July last year, the committee is currently understaffed.  

At a recent meeting, the Jamestown Democratic Rep. Deborah Ruggiero, who served as the chairman of the committee, proposed the possibility of limiting the three-year term of a member to three years, so no one can serve on the committee for more than nine years. year. She also talked about creating a special agency to screen applicants for coastal committees.  

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"They will review and actually recommend qualified board members," she said, before proposing a term limit. "Will this structure and board bring the board into the next 5 or 10 years? Is this good for Rhode Island?" 

Grover Fugate, the long-term director of CRMC who retired last year, believes in this idea.  

"A lot of the criticism you hear about parliament from the public and others is that it is a purely political institution, and the appearance of members of parliament often surprises many people. They just appear in parliament and no one knows where they come from. ,"He said. "I think setting up a body similar to the Judicial Nominating Committee provides a more open and transparent selection process. People can question their qualifications. And I think you will improve the quality of board members." 

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Fugate, who has been in charge of the agency for 34 years, appeared before the committee at the committee meeting on Thursday. He talked about becoming its first director at a time of crisis in early 1986, when the agency faced a backlog of 3,000 license applications.  

He said that since then, Rhode Island's coastal plan has developed into one of the best coastal plans in the United States, and its coastal erosion and offshore energy development plans have won praise. 

He suggested keeping the current voting committee structure, but when answering a question criticizing the recent decision, he admitted that there was a problem.

Richard Hittinger, a committee member representing recreational fishermen, said: “When you have an obvious political committee to make the final decision on very scientific and engineering issues, there seems to be a problem with the structure.” “You use it. Worked for many years...but it seems that a lot of skills are needed to make this work work." 

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Fugate smiled and called the comment "loaded." He also pointed out that the board must explain its thinking if it deviates from the staff's suggestion. 

"Over the years, we have had many different parliaments, some of which have become more serious than others," he said.