California governor appoints Department of Pesticide Regulation director

Julie Henderson, director of California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation

California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Julie Henderson as the director of California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR).

Henderson has been serving as DPR’s acting director since July 2021.

“My vision for my role at DPR is to accelerate the transition to safer, more sustainable pest management,” said Henderson. “While DPR’s work has long been focused on fostering reduced-risk pest management, accelerating the adoption of safer, more sustainable tools and practices across agricultural and urban settings is vital to advancing our mission to protect human health and the environment.”

Henderson served as the California Environmental Protection Agency’s (CalEPA) deputy secretary for public policy since November 2017. During her time at CalEPA, she worked closely with DPR on priority initiatives.

Previously, Henderson was also a senior advisor to Gov. Brown and special assistant attorney general at the Office of the Attorney General.

Henderson said her priorities over the next year include expanding DPR’s engagement with communities, the development of the statewide notification system and improving language access. She also wants to enhance the partnership with County Agricultural Commissioners to prioritize enforcement efforts and continuing to work with growers, the California Department of Food and Agriculture, the broader agricultural sector, university researchers and other partners including UC Cooperative Extension and CSU Agricultural Research Institute.

DPR registers all pesticides sold or used in California, conducting scientific evaluation of pesticide products to assess and mitigate potential harm to human health or the environment, monitoring for pesticides in the air, water and social, and enforcing pesticide regulations in coordination with 55 county agriculture commissioners and its 400 field inspectors.

DPR also conducts outreach to ensure pesticide workers, farmworkers and local communities have access to safety information, and invests in research to encourage the development and adoption of integrated pest management tools and practices.