Lawmakers Adjourn for the Year, Water Talks Continue
Despite the end of the legislative year, lawmakers have an obligation to accomplish a comprehensive water solution. Even though the legislative year has ended, I’ve been at the Capitol meeting with my colleagues to discuss solutions to get water flowing in our state and help our economy get back on track.
I am encouraged by the progress being made. There are quite a few hurdles to overcome – but they are not insurmountable. The proposals that the majority were putting up for a vote at the end of session would have not added a single drop of new water in our state. We need to better manage our water resources and the majority party’s legislation would have only created trap doors to surface storage projects that will significantly improve the state’s water reliability, such as Temperance Flat Reservoir near Fresno. Republicans also agree our fragile Delta needs to be fixed, but we have been clear that environmental protection should not come at the price of economic destruction.
I will continue to work until we achieve a complete solution that meets California’s water needs now and into the future.
Click here to read more about Republican efforts to solve the state’s water crisis, including my Safe, Clean, Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act, comprehensive legislation focusing on water supply, conveyance and Delta protection.
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Legislative Wrap Up
Lawmakers wrapped up their legislative year in the early morning hours of September 12th. Now the Governor has until October 11 to act on more than 700 bills.
One of the bills awaiting the Governor’s approval is Senate Bill 532, which will protect funding for traffic relief in Stanislaus County for the North County Corridor project and restore local control to Highway 201.
The Governor has already signed the following bills that I authored:
Senate Bill 198: This bill allows healthcare districts to refinance their debt for up to 20 years. Currently they can only finance for up to 5 years.
Senate Bill 230: This bill simplifies the process for property owners and businesses to dispose of tires that have been illegally dumped on private property.
Some bills that I authored will be considered next year when the legislature reconvenes, such as:
Senate Bill 85: This bill would help bring equity to property tax allocations for counties (Alpine, Lassen, Mariposa, Plumas, Stanislaus, Trinity and Yolo) that have lost revenue due to a funding shift intended to help counties following the passage of Proposition 13.
Senate Bill 451: This bill would establish a state purchase preference for solid wood products originating from CA forests. More than 300 jobs were lost in Tuolumne County this summer after a sawmill closure in Sonora. The sawmill owners cited California’s tough regulations and anti-business climate as reasons for the closure.
I’ll be spending even more time in the district through the end of the year to meet with constituents about ideas for additional legislation to work on next year.
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Registration Opens for Natural Resources Summit
Registration is now open for my annual Natural Resources Summit, which this year will focus on the connection between healthy forests and a reliable water supply for the entire state. The summit will be held Friday, October 30 at the Mother Lode Fairgrounds in Sonora.
This year’s keynote speaker is Dr. Tom Bonnicksen, Professor Emeritus at Texas A&M University. Dr. Bonnicksen is a nationally-recognized expert in healthy forest management. He originated the concept of “restoration forestry,” which he says allows our forests to become more natural, healthy, and fire resistant.
TuCARE (Tuolumne County Alliance for Resources and Environment, Inc) is once again sponsoring its tour of the south-eastern section of the Stanislaus National Forest, including a visit to one of the few working logging operations left in the area. The tour will conclude at Cherry Lake where the participants will hear from Donn Zea, President and CEO of Northern California Water Association. The tour will be held on Thursday, October 29.
Both events are free, thanks to the generous support of PG&E, Sonora Area Foundation, and others. Space is limited for both events, so advance registration is required for the tour and recommended for the summit.
Click here to learn more about the event and to register to attend.
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