Political veteran Cynthia McClainhill announced Tuesday she is stepping down as chair of the Los Angeles Water and Power Commission following ethics-related complaints and growing tensions over the utility's leadership.

McLain-Hill made the announcement at Tuesday's board meeting, saying it has been a “distinguished honor, privilege and pleasure” to serve the nation and that he is stepping down from the board.

Friday's Times reported that criticism of McClain-Hill and then-DWP board chair Mel Levine was raised in 2019 during a private phone call with two cybersecurity executives who asked the company for a new contract. It was reported that the event was held to explain the power company's plans to connect the power companies.

The city's ethics law prohibits commissioners from reviewing contracts with vendors in private. Both Levine and McClain-Hill said the decision was the right one.

McLain Hill, who previously served on the city's police commission and has served on various state and city commissions, was also the subject of the lawsuit in October. By four former and current DWP employees. claims retaliation. She denied any wrongdoing in connection with the lawsuit.

She was appointed to the volunteer board by former Mayor Eric Garcetti in 2018 and has served as its president since 2020. She is leaving DWP, the country's largest municipal water and power company, at a critical time as it strives to address environmental issues. the goal.

The utility's chief executive, general manager Martin Adams, is also set to retire in March.

Mr McLain-Hill was a strong power company leader who challenged DWP policies and supported worker protections. She worked on a variety of environmental and women's issues, and spearheaded efforts to increase the diversity of the utility's workforce.

At the same time, she clashed with Adams, and their rocky relationship fueled divisions among the staff.

It remains to be seen whether Mayor Karen Bass will choose the manager preferred by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 18, which represents thousands of DWP workers.

Dozens of IBEW members attended Tuesday's rally in support of McClain-Hill, holding white placards thanking her. “President Cynthia McClain-Hill, a working-class changer,” the message read. She received a standing ovation.

DWP's next general manager will play a key role in determining whether Los Angeles achieves 100% climate-friendly energy by 2035. This ambitious goal was set by Mr. Garcetti and supported by Mr. Bass. City officials have major hurdles to overcome, including whether they can keep the lights on without burning natural gas, a fossil fuel, at four local power plants.

Environmentalists want Mr. Adams' successor to ensure efforts to remove fossil fuels from the power grid by 2035. IBEW members have been staffing local gas plants and fighting to keep them open.

The next general manager will also be forced to grapple with worsening water scarcity as global warming reduces water supplies across the board, exacerbating California's historic swings between drought and floods. right.

Bass' office declined to respond to questions from the Times after a message circulated among IBEW executives over the weekend urging members to support McLean-Hill at Tuesday's final board meeting. .

Bass, who has the power to appoint and remove commissioners, also did not respond to other questions about McClain-Hill, including whether the mayor still supports the commissioners.

In the lawsuit targeting McLean Hill, an employee alleged that a DWP employee and a DWP contractor worked together to intentionally place false labels on bills sent to the utility company and that the contractor sponsored He claimed that McClain-Hill allowed him to receive free food and drinks at a meeting in Beverly Hills in April. .

Internal emails between DWP staff discussing invoices and meetings are included in a separate state court complaint filed last month by former attorney and DWP consultant Paul Paradis, raising further questions. The complaint by Paradis, who became an FBI informant after admitting his involvement in the bribery scheme, alleges how McClain Hill secured a $700-a-night hotel room while attending a conference in Dubai. It also details whether the person received the

McClain-Hill told the Times that her bill and hotel room accommodations were appropriate. Accenture, the contractor that organized the Beverly Hills conference, declined to comment.

A DWP spokesperson told the Times that DWP staff had asked Accenture to count the cost of the conference as a DWP-related business expense. DWP declined to answer other questions about the bill.

Times staff writer Sammy Ross contributed to this report.