Kulinowski announces resignation from Chemical Safety Board

Washington — Chemical Safety Board member Kristen Kulinowski has submitted her resignation and will be stepping down May 1, CSB announced April 27, leaving the agency with only one board member once again.

Kulinowski served as the interim executive authority until the Senate confirmed Katherine Lemos as CSB chair and CEO on March 23. Kulinowski’s five-year term as a board member was scheduled to expire in August.

“Being part of the CSB has been the honor of a lifetime,” Kulinowski said in an agency press release. “I thank the talented staff, who work tirelessly to advance the mission of the agency; my fellow members, from whom I learned so much; our stakeholders, whose support was critical to our continued success; and all the safety professionals who dedicate their efforts to creating safer workplaces.”

She added that she has “an exciting opportunity outside of government.” On her Twitter account, Kulinowski indicated she would have “more to say” on that next week.

“I will do what I can to support [CSB’s] important mission from my new perch outside of government,” Kulinowski wrote on Twitter. “Meanwhile, Chair Lemos is here and ready to go. The agency is fortunate to have such an accomplished and committed safety professional and experienced executive at the helm.”

Even before Kulinowski’s resignation, CSB lacked a quorum. In an interview with the Federal News Network published March 9, Kulinowski said the agency can still deploy investigators and others to incident sites, but “what may take a little bit longer is for us to release our final reports.”