California Republicans in the House introduced legislation Thursday that they said will help solve the state’s water crisis, though the bill is likely to run into opposition from Democrats.
The legislation would ease the conditions for when water could be pumped south of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to the parched, agricultural hotbed of the Central Valley and more populous cities to the south. It also would provide more flexibility to construct dams and reservoirs and preserve water rights for longtime holders, supporters said.
The bill, which also would affect drought issues in other western states, is likely to see floor action in the coming months. House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has signed onto the bill, and while GOP aides wouldn’t comment on timing, they underscored in a background media call that it was a priority for the caucus.
“The tragedy of the current drought is no longer isolated to California’s Central Valley, and its response must include tangible solutions that provide us the opportunity to pursue the California Dream,” McCarthy said.
The push comes after the Senate failed in December to pass a California drought bill that had already cleared the House. McCarthy’s office collaborated with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., on the legislation, but ultimately couldn’t get it passed. But Republican aides were hopeful that the Republican-controlled Senate would give it a better chance.
But Golden State Democrats are lining up behind other legislation. Republican staff said Feinstein wasn’t going to propose a bill to mirror the House version, a sign that differences remain.
Democrats contend senior water rights holders are a major cause of the drought — many of those are in agriculture, which has been loathe to curtail water use even though the industry swallows 80 percent of the state’s resources. They also want to ensure increased water pumping doesn’t threaten the populations of the endangered delta smelt and other fish, which has hamstrung agencies’ abilities to send more water south of the delta.
GOP lawmakers said the legislation maintains Endangered Species Act protections for the fish.
“Our bill takes important steps that are the direct result of bipartisan and bicameral conversations, and I look forward to the continued engagement with my House colleagues as well as action from the Senate in the near future. Despite what opponents might say, our legislation does not gut — let alone modify — the Endangered Species Act,” said Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Calif.
The bill would allow pumping so long as it didn’t harm species’ long-term survivability and there were no alternatives available. It also would require federal agencies to count farm-raised fish and consider the upper limits of populations, which would raise the threshold for pumping-related disturbances.
“In independent biological reviews we have found more fish,” a Republican aide said.
GOP staff also said water rights were a state matter. California already has taken steps to limit water use. Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown issued statewide water restrictions in April to curtail water use 25 percent compared with 2013.
California Democrats have complained much of the burden will fall on cities rather than agriculture, which, due to legacy water rights laws, are not subject to the limits. But Brown noted water allocations have fallen, indirectly hitting farmers. In May, farmers gave up a quarter of their water rights this season in exchange for the state not pursuing cuts next season.
