EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING | Agenda
MONDAY, MAY 17, 2021 FRIANT WATER AUTHORITY 854 N. HARVARD AVE., LINDSAY, CA 93247 DIRECTORS, STAFF & MANAGERS IN-PERSON/PUBLIC & OTHERS VIA WEBEX
8:30 AM (CLOSED SESSION) 10:30 AM (OPEN SESSION) VIA WEBEX FOR ALL OTHERS: Video system or application Dial: Webex.com, join, [email protected] Phone access dial 1-415-655-0001 Meeting number (access code): 1776 16 3342 Meeting password: 9dGmzxwfC52 (93469993 from phones)
In accordance with the Governor’s Executive Order (N-29-20) and continuing social distancing protocols to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus, due to space limitations, in-person participation at this meeting will be limited to Directors, FWA staff and staff of Friant Division Contractors. Members of the public may participate remotely as noted above. Email: You may submit comments on a specific agenda item via email to [email protected]. Please send your email at least one hour prior to the start of the meeting. If members of the public have any problems using the WebEx number during the meeting, please contact the FWA office at 559-562-6305. The Friant Water Authority thanks you for your understanding and for doing your part to prevent the spread of COVID-19. At the discretion of the Board of Directors, all items appearing on this agenda, whether or not expressly listed for action may be subject to action by the Board. The order of agenda items is subject to change.
CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL – (LOEFFLER) APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA – (LOEFFLER) PUBLIC COMMENT ON CLOSED SESSION ITEMS – (DAVIS) ADJOURN TO CLOSED SESSION
1. CLOSED SSESSION
A. CONFERENCE WITH REAL PROPERTY NEGOTIATORS Friant-Kern Canal Middle Reach Capacity Correction Project Right of Way (Government Code section 54956.8)
1. Property: Tulare County APN: 319-140-025 Agency negotiator: CEO, COO, General Counsel, CEA Negotiating parties: Mamzirp LLC Under negotiation: Price and terms of payment
Page 1 of 50 2. Property: Tulare County APN: 319-130-016 and 319-130-017 Agency negotiator: CEO, COO, General Counsel, CEA Negotiating parties: Andrew and Kathleen Zaninovich Family Trust Under negotiation: Price and terms of payment)
3. Property: Tulare County APN: 302-140-011; 319-140-001; 319-140-028 Agency negotiator: CEO, COO, General Counsel, CEA Negotiating parties: FLS Enterprises LLC Under negotiation: Price and terms of payment
4. Property: Tulare County APN: 302-240-013; 302-250-006; 320-030-006 Agency negotiator: CEO, COO, General Counsel, CEA Negotiating parties: Farmland Reserve Inc. Under negotiation: Price and terms of payment)
B. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL - ANTICIPATED LITIGATION (Government Code section 54956.9(d)(2) Significant Exposure to Litigation: Two potential matters.
C. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL-INITIATION OF LITIGATION (Government Code section 54956.9(d)(4)) Initiation of Litigation: Three potential cases.
RECONVENE INTO OPEN SESSION (10:30 AM) Announce reportable action taken during closed session.
PUBLIC COMMENT / PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS – (LOEFFLER) Public comment is welcome at this time on any matter within the jurisdiction of the Board that is not on the agenda. Under the State's open meeting law - the Brown Act - no action may be taken on any item not on the agenda. Public comment on items on the agenda will be allowed at the time the Board considers the item.
2. ACTION ITEMS
A. Approval of the Minutes – Executive Committee meeting of April 12, 2021.
3. DISCUSSION/DIRECTION A. FKC Middle Reach Capacity Correction Project Update. (DeFlitch/Davis/Phillips) B. External Affairs Update. (Amaral/Biering/Villines) C. Board Offsite and Agenda (Phillips) D. CEO Report. (Phillips)
ADJOURNMENT
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Public Participation Information
Agenda reports and other disclosable public records related to each Open Session agenda item are available on FWA's website under "Calendar" at Friantwater.org and at FWA's main office, 854 N. Harvard Ave., Lindsay, CA 93247, during regular business hours. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you require a disability- related modification or accommodation to participate in this meeting, including auxiliary aides or services, please contact Toni Marie at 559-562-6305 at least 48 hours prior to the meeting.
Page 3 of 50 Agenda No. 2.A
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING | Minutes MONDAY, APRIL 12, 2021 FRIANT WATER AUTHORITY 854 N. HARVARD AVE., LINDSAY, CA 93247 DIRECTORS, STAFF & MANAGERS IN-PERSON/PUBLIC & OTHERS VIA WEBEX 10:00 AM
CALL TO ORDER/ROLL CALL – Cliff Loeffler called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. Committee members present: Tantau, Camp, Kisling, Loeffler, Erickson, Borges; Staff present: COO DeFlitch, Marie, CEO Phillips, General Counsel Davis, GAC Biering, CEA Amaral, Bezdek, Hunter, Hickernell, Garcia, Swenson, Herrera, CFO Orvis, WRM Buck-Macleod. Others: Tomlinson, Quinley, Ewell, Muhar, Wallace, Fukuda, Geivet, Greci, Larsen, Atkinson, Miller, Wright; Committee Members Absent: Pitigliano APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA – The agenda was approved after a request to move the Board Recommendations to the end. (Erickson/Borges); approved unanimously - Ayes – Tantau, Loeffler, Camp, Kisling, Borges, Erickson; Nays – None; Absent – Pitigliano
PUBLIC COMMENT / PUBLIC PRESENTATIONS There was no public comment.
1. ACTION ITEMS
A. Approval of the Minutes – Executive Committee meeting of March 15, 2021. B. Approval of the Minutes – Special Executive Committee meeting of March 22, 2021. The Executive Committee meeting minutes of March 15, 2021 and March 22, 2021 were both approved. (Camp/Kisling); approved unanimously - Ayes – Tantau, Loeffler, Camp, Kisling, Borges, Erickson; Nays – None; Absent – Pitigliano
2. DISCUSSION/DIRECTION (45 MINUTES) A. FKC Middle Reach Capacity Correction Project Update i. Schedule - COO DeFlitch and Stantec’s Janet Atkinson went through the Project schedule as outlined in the agenda report. The team continues to work with the County of Tulare and the Bureau to address outstanding issues and enter into an MOU; all appraisals needed for the ROW purchases have now been approved and written offers have been sent to landowners; and Friant received the Clean Water Act Section 401 Water Quality Certification from the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board. B. Water Operations Update – WRM Buck-Macleod gave an update on water operation activities as outlined in the agenda report. Initial CVP Friant allocation is 20% of Class 1 supplies; the first ASO flight occurred during February 26-27 with a second flight scheduled for March 25-April 9; and PID and BCID recaptured 1,870 acre-feet in February.
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C. External Affairs Update - GAC Biering, Mike Villines and CEA Amaral provided an external affairs update as outlined in the agenda report. It was also reported that the canal capacity restoration group (FWA, SLDMWA, SWC) has been working together to develop informational material for SB 559 for a possible hearing on April 27, 2021; and FWA’s, the “Watering Hole” podcast launched last week with Congressman Devin Nunes as its first guest. D. San Luis Delta-Mendota Water Authority Update – CEO Phillips, and CFO Orvis gave an update on SLDMWA activities as outlined in the agenda report. E. Scheduling of AB 1234 Training – General Counsel Davis reported that it was time to hold an Ethics training class as state law requires it for public officials and designated staff every two years. The Executive Committee agreed with General Counsel General Counsel Davis’ recommendation to hold the training after the May Board meeting.
3. BOARD RECOMMENDATIONS (15 MINUTES) A. Proposed Cost Share and Contributed Funds Agreement with the Bureau of Reclamation for the FKC Middle Reach Capacity Correction Project – General Counsel Davis went through the Agreement; reviewed an optional form of MOU for those contractors requesting one; and discussed the removal of Article V of the Agreement. The Executive Committee then took action to recommend that the Board adopt proposed Resolution 21-04 that authorizes the execution of an MOU with Friant Contractors that request such document, and authorizes the execution of the Agreement, as recently revised by Reclamation, and with the removal of Article V (Rights to Use Capacity – Zone 3). (Tantau/Borges); approved unanimously - Ayes – Tantau, Loeffler, Camp, Kisling, Borges, Erickson; Nays – None; Absent – Pitigliano
PUBLIC COMMENT ON CLOSED SESSION ITEMS – There were no public comments made on any closed session items. ADJOURN TO CLOSED SESSION
4. CLOSED SSESSION
A. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL - EXISTING LITIGATION (Government Code section 54956.9(d)(1))
1. NRDC v. Murillo, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California (Sacramento Division), Case No. 88-cv- 01658-JAM-GGH
2. California Natural Resources Agency v. Ross, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California (Fresno Division), Case No. 1:20-cv-00426-DAD-SKO
3. Tehama-Colusa Canal Authority, et al., v. California Department of Water Resources, et al. ,, , Sacramento County Superior Court, JCCP No. 5117, Case No. CJC-20-005117
B. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL - ANTICIPATED LITIGATION (Government Code section 54956.9(d)(2) Significant Exposure to Litigation: Two potential matters.
Page 5 of 50 C. CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL-INITIATION OF LITIGATION (Government Code section 54956.9(d)(4)) Initiation of Litigation: Two potential cases.
D. CONFERENCE WITH REAL PROPERTY NEGOTIATORS (Government Code section 54956.8) Property: Friant-Kern Canal facilities and right-of-way Agency negotiator: CEO, COO, General Counsel Negotiating parties: United States (Bureau of Reclamation) Under negotiation: Cost Share Agreement (price and terms of payment)
RECONVENE INTO OPEN SESSION There was no reportable action taken during closed session.
ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 1:54 p.m.
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AGENDA REPORT NO. 3.A
DATE: May 17, 2021
TO: Executive Committee
THROUGH: Douglas DeFlitch, Chief Operating Officer
FROM: Janet Atkinson and Bill Swanson, Stantec; Lindy Lee, BRI
SUBJECT: Friant-Kern Canal Middle Reach Capacity Correction Project Update
SUMMARY OF KEY DEVELOPMENTS: The following is a summary of the key developments this month:
• Reclamation issued the Solicitation on the Government’s website for the Phase 1 Project on May 4th. The date for receipt of proposals will be June 17th. • Tulare County Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is undergoing final review. • BRI has received two (2) signed agreements and deeds (3 APNs out of 27 APNs) • BRI is in tentative agreement with five (5) property owners (8 APNs out of 27 APNs) • Reclamation received concurrence from the State Historic Preservation Officer for the eligibility of cultural and historic resources within the Project Area on May 7th, marking a major step in completing the cultural resources evaluation and mitigation for the Project.
DISCUSSION/UPDATE: The following is a summary of the work completed since the last BOD update and an update on the Project Schedule:
Schedule Update– Previously identified schedule milestones have all been met for the Project. The schedule table that follows looks ahead to the construction of the Phase 1 Project.
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Agenda Report No 3.A May 17, 2021 Page 2
Milestone Date
Pre-Solicitation Notice issued April 16, 2021
Solicitation Issuance as a Request for Proposals May 4, 2021
Proposals Received from Construction Contractors June 17, 2021
Notice of Award to Construction Contractor October 26, 2021
Notice to Proceed to Construction Contractor November 9, 2021
Replacement Pump Stations Design Completion March 11, 2022
Canal and Turnout Tie-ins January 26, 2024
Construction Completion September 1, 2024
Phase 1 Project Description - Main elements of the Phase 1 Project are described below.
• Limits of New Parallel Canal: Starting downstream of the existing Avenue 136 bridge and tying back into the existing FKC at the farm bridge located at Avenue 64, a distance of approximately 10 miles • 7 new roadway siphons • 9 new turnouts • 1 new check structure and siphon undercrossing at Deer Creek
Phase 1 Project Construction Contractor Solicitation • Reclamation issued the Solicitation on Government’s website on May 4th. The date for receipt of proposals will be June 17th. The Solicitation is available at the below link: https://beta.sam.gov/opp/532672528ee04a79a62ca67e254a7ad8/view • Supported planning activities for the Solicitation phase including preparation of materials for the pre- proposal meeting and review of planned site tour activities.
Environmental Compliance, Cultural Resources and Permitting – Following is a description of NEPA/CEQA compliance and permitting activities for the Project conducted since the last BOD meeting. Reclamation received concurrence from the State Historic Preservation Officer (SHPO) regarding the eligibility of the cultural resources that were evaluated as part of the Middle Reach project. This is an important step in completing the cultural resources compliance for the project. Concurrence includes the findings of the recently completed geoarchaeology testing (small excavations within areas of high sensitivity to look for buried resources).
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Agenda Report No 3.A May 17, 2021 Page 3
The next steps to complete this process will include SHPO concurrence on the Historic Properties Treatment Plan (HPTP) (a.k.a. mitigation) which is currently in process, and then execution of the measures outlined in the HPTP (e.g. photo documentation and recordation of the canal).
Engineering and Design – Following is a description of engineering and design activities for the Project conducted since the last BOD meeting. • Continued to support Reclamation in the preparation of the Phase 1 Project solicitation documents. Work has included preparation of estimated construction schedule with logic-driven, sequenced construction activities for all elements of the work. Conducted several coordination calls to discuss construction sequencing, and established interim and final construction completion dates. Completed specification revisions associated with commissioning and sequencing activities. Completed final quantity takeoffs for inclusion in the solicitation documents. • Reviewed the County-provided draft MOU for design elements, and provided supporting information as needed. • Submitted final plans and specifications to Tulare County. • Completed truck turning analyses at several locations a requested by Tulare County and submitted for review. • Supported specialty utility relocation firm in providing utility relocation materials requested by utility companies. This included participation in multiple coordination calls and requests for information from Southern California Edison and other impacted utilities. • Completed review of 4 utility relocation designs prepared by impacted utility companies. • Supported the land acquisition team as needed. Activities included preparation of land acquisition figures and concepts to support acquisition, as well as preparation of access easements. Working towards identification of landowner items added during the negotiations for incorporation in the solicitation documents. • Continued design for replacement pump stations and follow-up activities from the March site visit. • Prepared electrical single line diagrams for replacement pump stations. • Completed initial civil site layouts for pump stations and connecting pipelines • Completed initial mechanical layouts for pump stations. • Contacted pump manufacturers to discuss pump selections and pump delivery timeframes • Received information from Teapot Dome ID on the pump station delivery line and receiving reservoir and initiated steady state and transient hydraulic analyses. • Prepared discipline-specific design criteria information to be included in the 30-percent design submittal. • Prepared description of the existing pump stations to be included in the 30-percent design submittal and transmitted to Reclamation for their use and information.
Feasibility Report • Completed a briefing with Reclamation on the Ability to Pay (ATP) Study, and continuing to progress the completed work product. The ATP Study is a key deliverable required to initiate negotiations for the Repayment Agreement between Reclamation and FWA. Land Acquisition
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Agenda Report No 3.A May 17, 2021 Page 4
• Continued to make progress on the action items established during joint Friant, BOR, Stantec weekly meetings. For the Phase 1 Project; • BRI has submitted all twenty-seven (27) appraisals to AVSO for review and AVSO has approved all of the appraisals. • BRI has mailed twenty-seven (27) First Written Offer packages to the owners.
• BRI has identified funding allocations for Friant and BOR and revised applicable First Written Offers to be under BOR authority; pending approval of BOR forms of purchase documents. • BRI is in the process of ordering Pro Forma ALTA Policies for parcels that BOR will be handling. • BRI is coordinating with Nelson Enviro, LLC to have the Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) updates as required by ASTM International Standard E1527-13 for parcels that BOR will be acquiring directly. • BRI has received two (2) signed offers and is processing the transactions through BOR and the Title Company. • BRI continues to draft Preliminary Title Reports Opinions to clear title for final ALTA insurance policies required by BOR. • BRI is in negotiations with owners who received the First Written Offers. • BRI will be handling the questions on the acquisitions and processing counter offers with both BOR and FWA for settlement. • BRI is processing two (2) administrative settlements for FWA and BOR review and approval. • OPC continues to coordinate with the ROW group and design meetings on matters related to utility issues/rights/easements determination.
• OPC and BRI are coordinating in the effort of mitigation service related utility conflicts with the affected property owners.
• OPC received signed Revised Relocation Claim Letter from FWA and delivered to all affected utility owners directing the utility owners to focus only on Phase 1 ROW conflicts.
• OPC is continuing research and review of prior rights documents regarding responsibility for utility relocation costs. • SCE is meeting with OPC and Stantec every two weeks to ensure adherence to schedule and progress of relocation plan development. • SCE is currently delivering relocation plans through OPC who is verifying with Stantec that the plans will accommodate the construction of the project. • OPC has received utility relocation designs from SoCal Gas. OPC is currently working with BOR to determine best path forward for issuing permits/easements/Joint Use Agreements. • OPC is coordinating utility owner design reviews with Stantec to resolve relocation plan issues. • OPC has verified that some conflicting SCE facilities lie outside of the SCE easement areas that were provided. These conflicts will result in a change in the responsibility for payment from BOR/Friant to SCE. • DUCOR communication has delivered a relocation plan that has been approved for construction. • OPC has weekly discussions and is continuously setting meetings with affected communication companies (AT&T, CVIN, Ducor, Charter).
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Landowner Coordination and Outreach- Following is a description of landowner coordination and outreach activities for the Project conducted since the last BOD meeting. • Avenue 32 Vacation: The reciprocal easement and maintenance agreement for the Avenue 32 vacation is being routed for signatures by participating landowners the week of May 10 and is scheduled for delivery to the County of Tulare Resource Management Agency on May 13, 2021. The agreement is a component of the Memorandum of Understanding to be executed by the County, Reclamation and FWA. • Geo-archeological surveys for Deer Creek are slated to be implemented in mid-May and will focus on lands north of the creek channel. Access to conduct the surveys on the south bank of Deer Creek were declined by the landowner. Surveys for Tule River and White River have been deferred until initiation of Phase 2 of the Project. • In support of a Phase 1 FKC Project Site Visit to be conducted by Reclamation as part of the Phase 1 Solicitation, prepared and distributed a letter to Phase 1 property owners notifying them of the Site Visit and request permission to temporarily stake the future Reclamation Right-of-Way. Conducted follow-up calls with landowners to confirm staking and amend existing Right-of-Entry agreements to cover planned field activities. • Continued assistance to the appraisal and acquisition team for contacts with landowners, including support to identify and solicit support for access easement to properties affected by the Project. • Continued coordination and facilitation of internal and Project-level Right-of-Way Team meetings, coordination meetings with Tulare County staff, and other ad-hoc meetings, as necessary. The internal meetings include FWA, BRI, OPC staff and focus on appraisal and real estate activities, utility relocations, and landowner coordination.
FUTURE ACTIVITIES PLANNED. The following activities are planned for the next reporting period.
• Phase 1 Project Construction Contractor Solicitation –A virtual pre-proposal meeting will be conducted on May 18th. A site visit will be conducted on May 20th. Will provide support activities including participation for pre-proposal meeting and site tour. Continue to respond to questions received from the proposers, and other ancillary items as-needed.
• Feasibility Report –Finalize document based on input received during several briefings conducted recently.
• Environmental Compliance, Cultural Resources and Permitting –Continue coordination as needed with Reclamation and FWA. Continue permitting support for the project including: provide Reclamation support to obtain the letter of permission to the ACOE. Given concurrence of the SHPO, the letter of permission from the ACOE should be completed soon. Continue preparing mitigation compliance strategy.
• Engineering and Design –Continue to support the utility relocation coordination and designs prepared by others. Coordinate with Friant Division Contractors on the replacement pump stations and continue to progress the 30-percent level designs. Work towards completion of a mutually acceptable MOU with Tulare County. Support Caltrans encroachment permit for the SH190 crossing as needed.
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• Land Acquisition: o BRI will continue completing Preliminary Title Report Opinions for submittal to Reclamation, these are completed for the solicitor’s office on each First Written Offer submittal to BOR for review. o BRI will continue to work with the sellers to complete the purchase. o BRI will be preparing condemnation requests for properties where a voluntary acquisition may not be possible in event of the need to initiate Condemnation Proceedings on Phase 1 parcels. o BRI will prepare additional administrative settlements. o BRI will send letters rescinding the First Written Offers made on behalf of FWA that will be purchased under BOR authority and will send new First Written Offers using a federal form of agreement. o OPC has set of formal meetings with SCE on a biweekly basis. o OPC will continue to work with all utility companies to find solutions to the relocation issues based on the phasing of construction. o SCE to deliver preliminary relocation plans for all conflicts in Phase 1. o OPC will be reviewing and determining rights based on SCE delivered conflict matrix. o OPC will finalize permit/easement/Joint Use Agreement process and necessary documentation required by BOR. o OPC will be coordinating with communication companies in regard to SCE preliminary plans where joint pole relocations are necessary.
Landowner Coordination and Outreach: Anticipated activities include continued facilitation of Right-of- Way team meetings (internal and external), facilitation of coordination meetings with Tulare County staff; access coordination for geo-archeological surveys. Continue appraisal and acquisition as-needed support. Complete amendment of Right-of-Entry agreements with landowners to support staking activities in support of the project site visit. Complete coordination of the execution of Avenue 32 vacation packages with landowners and relay notarized copies to County, FWA and real estate staff. Provide as-needed website management.
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AGENDA REPORT NO. 3.B
DATE: May 17, 2021
TO: Executive Committee
Alex Biering, Government Affairs and Communications Manager FROM: Johnny Amaral, Chief of External Affairs
SUBJECT: External Affairs Update
SUMMARY: Update on State and Federal affairs and communications activities.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: None; informational only.
SUGGESTED MOTION: None; informational only.
DISCUSSION: State Affairs
Senate Bill 559 was heard in the Senate Committee on Appropriations on May 10, with Alex Biering giving brief testimony along with Senator Melissa Hurtado; the committee placed the bill in the “Suspense” file, which is standard practice for any bill dealing with funding amounts larger than $100,000. The committee will likely take up the bill again in the summer.
On May 10, Gov. Newsom proclaimed a drought emergency for 41 counties in California, including all of the San Joaquin Valley. Among other things, the proclamation (attached) directs the State Water Board to consider modifying reservoir releases to protect salmon and steelhead; eases regulatory requirements and expedites approval for voluntary water transfers; and directs the Department of Water Resources to install salinity barriers in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Additionally on May 10, the Governor released a $100 billion spending plan (attached) for the State of California that proposes $5.1 billion in water-related investments, including $200 million specifically for restoring conveyance capacity on the Friant-Kern Canal, California Aqueduct/San Luis Canal, and the Delta-Mendota Canal. As of now, there is no firm plan for how the proposed $200 million in funding might be allocated across the projects if approved as part of the 2021/22 budget.
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Federal Affairs
The House and Senate were in session last week. The House took up 22 bills under suspension of the rules, including several bills related to federal grant funding to address critical mental health needs, including by strengthening suicide-prevention efforts, school-based mental health services, and addressing disparities in mental health care among underserved and high-poverty communities. For the remainder of the week, the House deliberated over the Comprehensive Debt Collection Improvement Act (H.R. 2547), which subjects private debt collectors to additional restrictions when collecting money from medical patients, small businesses, private student loan borrowers, homeowners, service members, and other consumers; and the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (H.R. 1065), which requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees and job applicants.
The Senate considered Andrea Palm to be Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services and Cynthia Marten to be Deputy Secretary of Education.
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra testified on Wednesday before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health regarding the HHS fiscal year 2022 budget. Several Senate committees held nomination hearings for various Biden Administration nominees, including: Shannon Estenoz to be the Interior Department’s Assistant Secretary of Fish and Wildlife and Parks; Radhika Fox to be the EPA’s Assistant Administrator for Water; Adrianne Todman to be Deputy Secretary of Housing and Urban Development; and Nuria Fernandez to be Federal Transit Administrator. Additional Senate committees voted to advance numerous Biden Administration nominees to the full chamber for consideration, including: Tommy Beaudreau to be Deputy Secretary of the Interior; Todd Kim to be DOJ’s Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division; and Lina Khan to be a Commissioner on the Federal Trade Commission.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) held a ceremonial swearing-in on Tuesday afternoon for Rep.-elect Troy Carter (D-LA), who will fill Louisiana’s 2nd congressional district seat, which has been vacant since former Rep. Cedric Richmond joined the Biden Administration in mid-January as Director of the White House Office of Public Engagement. Carter will add to the Democrats’ majority in the chamber, giving Democrats a 219-212 edge in the House.
On Wednesday, the 212-member House Republican Conference voted behind closed doors and by secret ballot to oust Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) from her current leadership role as Chair of the House Republican Conference, the No. 3 House GOP position which she has held since January 3, 2019. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA) endorsed Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to replace Rep. Cheney as House GOP Conference Chair once she is successfully ousted.
President Joe Biden met individually with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chair Tom Carper (D-DE) at the White House to discuss infrastructure and the American Jobs Plan. On Tuesday, Biden met virtually with a bipartisan group of governors from Ohio, Utah, Massachusetts, Maine, Minnesota, and New Mexico to hear about “innovative ways governors are working to get people in their states vaccinated.” On Wednesday, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris met with the top four congressional leaders, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), to discuss the American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan. On Thursday, Biden was 2 Page 3.B.2 Page 14 of 50 Agenda Report No. 3.B May 17, 2021 Page 3 scheduled to hold a meeting with a group of six Senate Republicans, five of whom are Ranking Members of Senate committees with infrastructure-related jurisdiction, to discuss the American Jobs Plan: Sens. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), John Barrasso (R-WY), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Roy Blunt (R-MO).
BUDGET IMPACT: None.
ATTACHMENTS: Gov. Newsom’s Emergency Proclamation (May 10, 2021); Factsheet on Water Investments in Gov. Newsom’s “California Comeback Plan” (May 10, 2021); Bill Tracker (May 12, 2021); Family Farm Alliance Executive Director’s Report for May 2021.
3 Page 3.B.3 Page 15 of 50 EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT STATE OF CALIFORNIA
PROCLAMATION OF A STATE OF EMERGENCY
WHEREAS climate change is intensifying the impacts of droughts on our communities, environment, and economy, and California is in a second consecutive year of dry conditions, resulting in drought or near-drought throughout many portions of the State; and
WHEREAS recent warm temperatures and extremely dry soils have further depleted the expected runoff water from the Sierra-Cascade snowpack, resulting in a historic and unanticipated estimated reduction of 500,000 acre feet of water - or the equivalent of supplying water for up to one million households for one year - from reservoirs and stream systems, especially in the Klamath River, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and Tulare Lake Watersheds; and
WHEREAS the extreme drought conditions through much of the State present urgent challenges, including the risk of water shortages in communities, greatly increased wildfire activity, diminished water for agricultural production, degraded habitat for many fish and wildlife species, threat of saltwater contamination of large fresh water supplies conveyed through the Sacramento San Joaquin Delta, and additional water scarcity if drought conditions continue into next year; and
WHEREAS Californians have saved water through conservation efforts, with urban water use approximately 16% below where it was at the start of the last drought years, and I encourage all Californians to undertake actions to further eliminate wasteful water practices and conserve water; and
WHEREAS on April 21, 2021, I issued a proclamation directing state agencies to take immediate action to bolster drought resilience and prepare for impacts on communities, businesses, and ecosystems, and proclaiming a State of Emergency to exist in Mendocino and Sonoma counties due to severe drought conditions in the Russian River Watershed; and
WHEREAS additional expedited actions are now needed in the Klamath River, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and Tulare Lake Watersheds; and
WHEREAS it is necessary to expeditiously mitigate the effects of the drought conditions within the Klamath River Watershed Counties (Del Norte, Humboldt, Modoc, Siskiyou, and Trinity counties), the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Watershed Counties (Alameda, Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Contra Costa, El Dorado, Fresno, Glenn, Lake, Lassen, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Modoc, Napa, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Benito, San Joaquin, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Solano, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne, Yolo, and Yuba counties), and the Tulare Lake Watershed Counties (Fresno, Kern, Kings, and Tulare counties) to ensure the protection of health, safety, and the environment; and
WHEREAS under Government Code Section 8558(b), I find that the conditions caused by the drought conditions, by reason of their magnitude, are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment, and facilities of any single local government and require the combined forces of a mutual aid region or regions to appropriately respond; and
Page 3.B.4 Page 16 of 50 WHEREAS under Government Code Section 8625(c), I find that local authority is inadequate to cope with the drought conditions; and
WHEREAS to protect public health and safety, it is critical the State take certain immediate actions without undue delay to prepare for and mitigate the effects of, the drought conditions statewide, and under Government Code Section 8571, I find that strict compliance with various statutes and regulations specified in this proclamation would prevent, hinder, or delay the mitigation of the effects of the drought conditions in the Klamath River, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and Tulare Lake Watershed Counties.
NOW THEREFORE, I, GAVIN NEWSOM, Governor of the State of California, in accordance with the authority vested in me by the State Constitution and statutes, including the California Emerg~ncy Services Act, and in particular, Section 8625, HEREBY PROCLAIM A STATE OF EMERGENCY to exist in the Klamath River, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and Tulare Lake Watershed Counties due to drought.
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT:
l. The orders and provisions contained in my April 21, 2021 Proclamation remain in full force and effect, except as modified. State agencies shall continue to implement all directions from that proclamation and accelerate implementation where feasible.
2. To ensure that equipment and services necessary for drought response can be procured quickly, the provisions of the Government Code and the Public Contract Code applicable to procurement, state contracts, and fleet assets, including, but not limited to, advertising and competitive bidding requirements, are hereby suspended to the extent necessary to address the effects of the drought in the Klamath River, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and Tulare Lake Watershed Counties. Approval of the Department of Finance is required prior to the execution of any contract entered into pursuant to this provision.
3. To support voluntary approaches where hydrology and other conditions allow, the Department of Water Resources and the State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board) shall expeditiously consider requests to move water, where appropriate, to areas of need, including requests involving voluntary water transfers, forbearance agreements, water exchanges, or other means. Specifically, the Department of Water Resources and Water Board shall prioritize transfers that retain a higher percentage of water in upstream reservoirs on the Sacramento, Feather, and American Rivers for release later in the year. If necessary, the Department of Water Resources shall request that the Water Board consider changes to water rights permits to enable such voluntary movements of water. For actions taken in the Klamath River and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Watershed Counties pursuant to this paragraph, the following requirements of the Water Code are suspended:
a. Section l 726(d) requirements for written notice and newspaper publication, provided that the Water Board shall post notice on its website and provide notice through electronic subscription · services where interested persons can request information about temporary changes; and
Page 3.B.5 Page 17 of 50 b. Section 1726(f) requirement of a 30-day comment period, provided that the Water Board shall afford a 15-day comment period.
4. To ensure adequate, minimal water supplies for purposes of health, safety, and the environment, the Water Board shall consider modifying requirements for reservoir releases or diversion limitations-including where existing requirements were established to implement a water quality control plan-to conserve water upstream later in the year in order to protect cold water pools for salmon and steelhead, improve water quality, protect carry over storage, or ensure minimum health and safety water supplies. The Water Board shall require monitoring and evaluation of any such changes to inform future actions. For actions taken in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Watershed Counties pursuant to this paragraph, Water Code Section 13247 is suspended.
5. To ensure protection of water needed for health, safety, and the environment in the Klamath River and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Watershed Counties, the Water Board shall consider emergency regulations to curtail water diversions when water is not available at water right holders' priority of right or to protect releases of stored water. The Department of Water Resources shall provide technical assistance to the Water Board that may be needed to develop appropriate water accounting for these purposes in the Sacramento San Joaquin Delta Watershed.
6. To ensure critical instream flows for species protection in the Klamath River and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Watersheds, the Water Board and Department of Fish and Wildlife shall evaluate the minimum instream flows and other actions needed to protect salmon, steelhead, and other native fishes in critical streams systems in the State and work with· water users and other parties on voluntary measures to implement those actions. To the extent voluntary actions are not sufficient, the Water Board, in coordination with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, shall consider emergency regulations to establish minimum drought instream flows.
7. Operative paragraph 4 of my April 21, 2021 Proclamation is withdrawn and superseded by the following, which shall'apply to the Russian River Watershed identified in my April 21, 2021 Proclamation as well as the Klamath River, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and Tulare Lake Watershed Counties:
To prioritize drought response and preparedness resources, the Department of Water Resources, the Water Board, the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Department of Food and Agriculture, in consultation with the Department of Finance, shall:
a. Accelerate funding for water supply enhancement, water conservation, or species conservation projects. b. Identify unspent funds that can be repurposed to enable projects to address drought impacts to people, ecosystems, and economic activities. c. Recommend additional financial support for groundwater substitution pumping to support Pacific flyway habitat needs in the lower Sacramento River and Feather River portions of the Central Valley in the Fall of 2021.
Page 3.B.6 Page 18 of 50 8. Consistent with operative paragraph 13 of my April 21, 2021 Proclamation, the Department of Water Resources shall take actions, if necessary, to implement plans that address potential Delta salinity issues. Such actions may include, among other things, the installation and removal of, Emergency Drought Salinity Barriers at locations within the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary. These barriers shall be designed to conserve water for use later in the year to meet state and federal Endangered Species Act requirements, preserve to the extent possible water quality in the Delta, and retain water supply for human health and safety uses. The Water Board and the Department of Fish and Wildlife shall immediately consider any necessary regulatory approvals needed to install Emergency Drought Salinity Barriers. For actions taken pursuant to this paragraph, Section 13247 and the provisions of Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 85225) of Part 3 of Division 35 of the Water Code are suspended.
9. To support the movement of water from areas of relative plenty to areas of relative scarcity in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Tulare Lake Watershed Counties, the Department of Water Resources shall expedite the consideration and, where appropriate, the implementation of pump-back delivery of water through the State Water Project on behalf of local water agencies. l 0. To proactively prevent situations where a community runs out of drinking water, the Water Board, the Department of Water Resources, the Office of Emergency Services, and the Office of Planning and Research shall assist local agencies in identifying acute drinking water shortages in domestic water supplies, and shall work with local agencies in implementing solutions to those water shortages.
11 . For purposes of carrying out or approving any actions contemplated by the directives in operative paragraphs 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, and 9, the environmental review by state agencies required by the California Environmental Quality Act in Public Resources Code, Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) and regulations adopted pursuant to that Division are hereby suspended to the extent necessary to address the impacts of the drought in the Klamath River, Sacramento San Joaquin Delta and Tulare Lake Watershed Counties. For purposes of carrying out the directive in operative paragraph 10, for any (a) actions taken by the listed state agencies pursuant to that directive, (b) actions taken by a local agency where the Office of Planning and Research concurs that local action is required, and (c) permits necessary to carry out actions under (a) or (b), Public Resources Code, Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) and regulations adopted pursuant to that Division are hereby suspended to the extent necessary to address the impacts of the drought in counties where the Governor has proclaimed a drought state of emergency. The entities implementing these directives shall maintain on their websites a list of all activities or approvals for which these provisions are suspended.
12. To ensure transparency in state agency actions, the Water Board and Department of Water Resources will maintain on their websites a list of the activities or approvals by their agencies for which provisions of the Water Code are suspended under operative paragraphs 3, 4, or 8 of this proclamation.
Page 3.B.7 Page 19 of 50 13. To ensure that posting and dissemination of information related to drought emergency activities is not delayed while accessible versions of that information are being created, Government Code Sections 7405 and 11546.7 are hereby suspended as they pertain to the posting of materials on state agency websites as part of responding to the drought emergency, provided that any state agencies failing to satisfy these code sections shall make and post an accessible version on their websites as soon as practicable.
This proclamation is not intended to, and does not, create any rights or benefits, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity, against the State of California, its agencies, departments, entities, officers, employees, or any other person.
I FURTHER DIRECT that as soon as hereafter possible, this proclamation be filed in the Office of the Secretary of State and that widespread publicity and notice be given of this proclamation.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of Californi to be affixed this 10th day of May 2021 .
Governor of California
ATTEST:
SHIRLEY N. WEBER, PH.D. Secretary of State
Page 3.B.8 Page 20 of 50
NEWSOM’S $5.1 BILLION PLAN FOR WATER INFRASTRUCTURE, DROUGHT RESPONSE AND IMPROVED CLIMATE RESILIENCE ______It’s time to build the infrastructure for the next century. With climate change, the hots are getting hotter and the dries are getting drier. Drought is a recurring theme in California and wreaks havoc on California’s communities. That’s why Governor Newsom is proposing a $5.1 billion investment over 4 years for drought infrastructure, preparedness and response to ensure a more climate resilient system. In addition to the $5.1 billion, the plan includes $1 billion to help Californians pay their overdue water bills. Under Governor Newsom’s $100 billion California Comeback Plan, California will come roaring back from this pandemic. ______KEY ACTIONS FOR DROUGHT PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE:
● INVESTMENTS TO SUPPORT SAFE DRINKING WATER, WATER SUPPLY AND RELIABILITY, AND FLOOD RESILIENCE ○ $1.3 Billion for Drinking Water/Wastewater Infrastructure especially for small and disadvantaged communities. ○ $150 Million for Groundwater Cleanup and water recycling to improve climate resilience. ○ $300 Million for SGMA Implementation to improve water supply security, water quality, and water reliability. ○ $200 Million for Water Conveyance to address subsidence and rising cost of moving water through the Friant-Kern Canal, the Delta-Mendota Canal, the California Aqueduct, and the San Luis Canal.
Page 3.B.9 Page 21 of 50 ○ $220 Million for Salton Sea to maximize habitat outcomes and provide immediate economic relief to the community. ○ $140 Million for Flood to reduce flood risk for 1.1 million people and over $100 billion of assets. ○ $200 Million for Oroville Pump Storage to increase clean electricity generation to improve grid reliability. ○ $60 Million for State Water Efficiency and Enhancement (SWEEP) in grants to help farmers reduce irrigation water use and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture pumping.
● IMMEDIATE DROUGHT SUPPORT ○ $91 Million for Critical Data Collection to improve forecasting. ○ $27 Million for emergency and permanent solutions to drinking water drought emergencies. ○ $500 Million for Multi-benefit Land Repurposing to support growers. ○ $300 Million for Drought Relief and Urban Water Management Grants for approximately 2,400 small community water systems that serve schools and all of California’s 58 counties as they plan for drought and potential water shortages. ○ $33 Million for fisheries and wildlife to protect and conserve California’s diverse ecosystems.
● NATURE-BASED SOLUTIONS ○ $266 Million for Water Resilience Projects to improve ecosystem health for native fish in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers and their tributaries. ○ $230 Million for ecosystems to improve passage for wildlife or fish. ○ $200 Million for Habitat Restoration and multi-benefit projects including tidal wetland, floodplain, and flood-risk reduction projects to restore fish and wildlife habitat.
______
Page 3.B.10 Page 22 of 50
Legislative Tracker
FRIANT WATER AUTHORITY
May 12, 20211
State Bills
Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status AB 11 Climate change: regional climate Would require the Strategic Growth Council, by January 1, NYC Two-year bill; may be acted change authorities (Ward) - 2023, to establish up to 12 regional climate change authorities on again in January 2022. 1/21/21 version to coordinate climate adaptation and mitigation activities in their regions, and coordinate with other regional climate adaptation authorities, state agencies, and other relevant stakeholders.
AB 51 Climate change: adaptation: Would require the Strategic Growth Council, by July 1, 2022, Two-year bill; may be acted regional climate adaptation to establish guidelines for the formation of regional climate on again in January 2022. planning groups: regional climate adaptation planning groups. The bill would require the adaptation plans (Quirk) - 12/7/20 council, by July 1, 2023, and in consultation with certain state version entities, to develop criteria for the development of regional climate adaptation plans.
AB 125 Equitable Economic Recovery, Would enact the Equitable Economic Recovery, Healthy Food NYC Passed Ag Committee on Healthy Food Access, Climate Access, Climate Resilient Farms, and Worker Protection Bond 4/15; referred to Natural Resilient Farms, and Worker Act of 2022, which, if approved by the voters, would authorize Resources Committee. Protection Bond Act of 2022 (Rivas) the issuance of bonds in the amount of $3,302,000,000, – 4/12/21 version pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law, to finance programs related to, among other things, agricultural lands, food and fiber infrastructure, climate resilience, agricultural professionals, including farmers, ranchers, and farmworkers, workforce development and training, air quality, tribes, disadvantaged communities, nutrition, food aid, meat processing facilities, fishing facilities, and fairgrounds. Recent amendments increased the total bond value by about $200,000,000, most of it focused on energy efficiency.
1 Updates since the last version are included in bold text. Page 3.B.11 Page 23 of 50 Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status AB 252 Department of Conservation: Would require the Department of Conservation to establish Support if Heard in Appropriations on Multibenefit Land Repurposing and administer a program named the Multibenefit Land Amended 4/28 and placed in the Incentive Program: administration Repurposing Incentive Program for purposes of providing Suspense File. (Rivas) – 3/29/21 version grants to groundwater sustainability agencies or counties, or other specified entities designated by groundwater sustainability agencies or counties, for the development or implementation of local programs supporting or facilitating multibenefit land repurposing at the basin scale. The bill would establish procedures for the department’s administration of the program and would require the department to develop guidelines to implement the program and to exercise its expertise and discretion in awarding program funds to eligible applicants. Recent amendments expanded eligibility of mutual water companies to receive grant funding and added requirements for stakeholder engagement.
AB 315 Voluntary stream restoration This bill would require the state to indemnify and hold Favor Passed by Water, Parks & landowner liability: indemnification harmless a landowner who voluntarily allows land to be used Wildlife Committee on 4/8 (Stone, M) - 4/21/21 version for such a project to restore fish and wildlife habitat from civil and Judiciary Committee on liability for property damage or personal injury resulting from 4/17; referred to the project if the project meets specified requirements, Appropriations Committee. including that the project is funded, at least in part, by a state or federal agency, and the liability arises from the construction, design specifications, surveying, planning, supervision, testing, or observation of construction related to the project to restore fish and wildlife habitat.
2 Page 3.B.12 Page 24 of 50 Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status AB 350 Agriculture: Cannella Would require, upon an appropriation of funds, the Watch Passed by Agriculture Environmental Farming Act of Department of Food and Agriculture to establish and Committee on 4/15; 1995: technical assistance grant administer a 3-year grant program to fund technical referred to Water, Parks, program: groundwater assistance to support landowners located in critically and Wildlife Committee. conservation planning (Villapudua) overdrafted basins, as defined, in the San Joaquin Valley in - 3/22/21 version reaching water use reduction goals established pursuant to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. The bill would require the department, in its development of the grant program, to establish various criteria, guidelines, restrictions, processes and regulations for the qualification and administration of grants to technical assistance providers, as specified. The bill would require the department to ensure that at least 25% of the grant program funds are used to provide technical assistance to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, as defined. Recent amendments would require the program to fund one technical assistance provider in each of the 8 San Joaquin Valley counties, and also limits funding for the providers to $800,000 total.
AB 352 Agricultural land conservation: Would revise and recast provisions of the California Farmland Favor Two-year bill; may be acted California Farmland Conservancy Conservancy Program Act to, among other things, specify on again in January 2022. Program Act (Rivas) - 1/28/21 legislative intent to remove barriers to socially disadvantaged version farmers and ranchers, as defined, participating in the agricultural economy and stewarding working lands under conservation. The bill would expand the use of moneys in the fund for the program to include technical assistance grants, as described, to eligible assistance entities, as defined, and acquisition assistance grants to eligible assistance entities for the sole purpose of reducing barriers to land access for socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers, as specified. The bill would require that not less than 25% of the program funds be provided to applicants that lease or sell to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.
3 Page 3.B.13 Page 25 of 50 Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status AB 377 Water quality: impaired waters Would require all California surface waters to be fishable, PRO: California Oppose Passed Environmental (Rivas) – 4/13/21 version swimmable, and drinkable by January 1, 2050, as prescribed. Coastkeeper Alliance Safety and Toxic Materials The bill would prohibit the state board and regional boards (SPONSOR), Committee on 4/21; from authorizing an NPDES discharge, waste discharge environmental referred to Appropriations requirement, or waiver of a waste discharge requirement that NGOs, Clean Water Committee. causes or contributes to an exceedance of a water quality Action, coastal standard, or from authorizing a best management practice health advocates. permit term to authorize a discharge that causes or contributes to an exceedance of a water quality standard in OPP: Municipalities, receiving waters. The bill would prohibit, on or after January commodities groups, 1, 2030, a regional water quality control plan from including a water districts schedule for implementation for achieving a water quality standard that was adopted as of January 1, 2021, and would prohibit a regional water quality control plan from including a schedule for implementation of a water quality standard that is adopted after January 1, 2021, unless specified conditions are met. Recent amendments specify that the bill’s provisions would only apply to surface water.
AB 559 San Joaquin River Conservancy: Current law requires that the governing board of the PRO: Passed Natural Resources governing board (Arambula) - conservancy consist of 15 voting members, as prescribed, Defenders of and Water Committee on 4/15/21 version including, among others, one resident of Fresno County, and Wildlife, Sierra Club, 3/24 and Government one resident of Madera County appointed by the Governor California Native Organization on 4/21; now from a list of candidates provided by the board of supervisors Plant Society in Appropriations. of these counties, respectively. Current law requires the board of supervisors of these counties to develop their lists OPP: None from a list submitted by environmental justice organizations and property owners of their counties pursuant to a rotating appointment qualification requirement, as specified. Current law subjects the meetings of the governing board of the conservancy to the Ralph M. Brown Act. This bill instead would require the Board of Supervisors of Fresno and Madera County, respectively, to develop their lists of candidates from a list submitted by nonprofit organizations that have a presence within their counties, respectively, and that support outdoor recreation, conservation, environmental justice, or social justice issues.
4 Page 3.B.14 Page 26 of 50 Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status AB 564 Biodiversity Protection and Would establish the Biodiversity Protection and Restoration NYC Two-year bill; may be acted Restoration Act (Gonzalez, Lorena) Act and would provide that it is the policy of the state that all on again in January 2022. – 2/11/21 version state agencies, boards, and commissions shall utilize their authorities in furtherance of the biodiversity conservation purposes and goals of certain executive orders. The bill would require all state agencies, boards, and commissions to consider and prioritize the protection of biodiversity in carrying out their statutory mandates. The bill would require strategies related to the goal of the state to conserve at least 30% of California’s land and coastal waters by 2030 to be made available to the public and provided to certain legislative committees by no later than June 30, 2022.
AB 703 Open meetings: local agencies: Current law, by Executive Order N-29-20, suspends the Ralph Support Two-year bill; may be acted teleconferences (Rubio) - M. Brown Act’s requirements for teleconferencing during the on again in January 2022. 2/16/2021 version COVID-19 pandemic, provided that notice requirements are met, the ability of the public to observe and comment is preserved, as specified, and that a local agency permitting teleconferencing have a procedure for receiving and swiftly resolving requests for reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities, as specified. This bill would remove the requirements of the act particular to teleconferencing and allow for teleconferencing subject to existing provisions regarding the posting of notice of an agenda and the ability of the public to observe the meeting and provide public comment. The bill would require that, in each instance in which notice of the time of the teleconferenced meeting is otherwise given or the agenda for the meeting is otherwise posted, the local agency also give notice of the means by which members of the public may observe the meeting and offer public comment and that the legislative body have and implement a procedure for receiving and swiftly resolving requests for reasonable accommodation for individuals with disabilities, consistent with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, as provided.
AB 754 Sustainable Groundwater This bill would extend the deadline for all high- or medium- NYC Passed out of Water, Parks Management Act (Mathis) – priority basins not subject to critical conditions of overdraft to & Wildlife Committee on 4/15/21 version be managed under a groundwater sustainability plan or 4/26; now in coordinated plans until 180 days after January 23, 2022. The Appropriations. bill would make conforming changes to the authority of the board to designate a high- or medium-priority basin as a probationary basin for the failure to manage a basin under a groundwater sustainability plan or coordinated plan by the applicable deadlines.
5 Page 3.B.15 Page 27 of 50 Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status AB 833 State government: grants: This bill would require any state grants to a local government NYC Two-year bill; may be acted administrative costs (Quirk-Silva) – to include a maximum allocation of funds that may be on again in January 2022. 2/17/21 version expended for administrative costs, as defined, and would prohibit a local government, as defined, from expending more than 5% of grant funds for administrative costs, except as provided. The bill would specify that it is not intended to affect federal funding.
AB 908 Natural Resources Agency: Would require the Natural Resources Agency, to the extent a Watch Two-year bill; may be acted statewide natural resources specified appropriation is made, to prepare a comprehensive, on again in January 2022. inventory. (Frazier) - 2/17/21 statewide inventory of the natural resources of the state and version establish treatment measures necessary to protect those resources, and to post its initial inventory on its internet website on or before January 1, 2023, with annual updates on or before January 1 of each year thereafter.
AB 1099 State funding: environmental The State General Obligation Bond Law contains procedures NYC Two-year bill; may be acted equity. (Rivas) – 3/25/21 version for use in authorizing the issuance, sale, and providing for on again in January 2022. the repayment of, state general obligation bonds. Current law establishes various funds in the State Treasury for purposes of providing financial incentives to eligible entities for specified purposes. This bill would require the administration of proceeds from the sales of bonds issued under a bond act that is enacted by the Legislature and is approved by the voters on or after January 1, 2022, pursuant to the State General Obligation Bond Law and that addresses environmental issues, and the administration of certain funds established on or after January 1, 2022, that provide financial assistance to eligible entities to incorporate certain principles of environmental equity.
6 Page 3.B.16 Page 28 of 50 Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status AB 1164 Dams and reservoirs: exclusions. Current law excludes certain obstructions from being NYC Passed out of Water, Parks (Flora) - 3/22/21 version considered a dam, including a barrier that is not across a & Wildlife on 4/26; now in stream channel, watercourse, or natural drainage area and Appropriations. that has the principal purpose of impounding water for agricultural use. This bill would specify that the exclusion from being considered a dam for a barrier that is not across a stream channel, watercourse, or natural drainage area and that has the principal purpose of impounding water for agricultural use applies only to a barrier owned or operated by a private entity. The bill would provide that a barrier owned or operated by a public entity that is not across a stream channel, watercourse, or natural drainage area and that has the principal purpose of impounding water for agricultural use shall not be considered a dam only if certain criteria are met. Recent amendments include minor definitional clarifications.
AB 1399 Diversion or use of water: penalties Spot bill related to penalties for unauthorized diversion of NYC Two-year bill; may be acted (Flora) – 2/19/21 version water. on again in January 2022.
AB 1500 Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Would enact the Safe Drinking Water, Wildfire Prevention, NYC Passed by Water, Parks & Prevention, Drought Preparation, Drought Preparation, Flood Protection, Extreme Heat Wildlife Committee on 4/6; Flood Protection, Extreme Heat Mitigation, and Workforce Development Bond Act of 2022, Passed by Natural Mitigation, and Workforce which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the Resources on 5/3; now in Development Bond Act of 2022. issuance of bonds in the amount of $7,080,000,000 pursuant Appropriations. (Garcia, E) – 5/11/2021 version to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance projects for safe drinking water, wildfire prevention, drought preparation, flood protection, extreme heat mitigation, and workforce development programs. Recent amendments increase total funding in the bond for clean drinking water, improved water data, and other categories. An urgency clause was also added and the date for appearing on the ballot was changed to June 7, 2022.
7 Page 3.B.17 Page 29 of 50 Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status SB 45 Wildfire Prevention, Safe Drinking Would enact the Wildfire Prevention, Safe Drinking Water, Support if Passed Governance & Water, Drought Preparation, and Drought Preparation, and Flood Protection Bond Act of 2022, Amended Finance on 4/15; heard on Flood Protection Bond Act of 2022 which, if approved by the voters, would authorize the 5/3 in Appropriations and (Portantino) – 4/8/21 version issuance of bonds in the amount of $5,595,000,000 pursuant placed in the Suspense File. to the State General Obligation Bond Law to finance projects for a wildfire prevention, safe drinking water, drought preparation, and flood protection program.
SB 274 Local government meetings: Would require a local agency with an internet website, or its Favor Passed the Senate Floor on agenda and documents designee, to email a copy of, or website link to, the agenda or 4/22; now in the Assembly. (Wieckowski) – 4/5/21 version a copy of all the documents constituting the agenda packet if the person requests that the items be delivered by email. If a local agency determines it to be technologically infeasible to send a copy of the documents or a link to a website that contains the documents by mail or by other electronic means, the bill would require the legislative body or its designee to send by mail a copy of the agenda or a website link to the agenda and to mail a copy of all other documents constituting the agenda packet, as specified. SB 351 Water Innovation Act of 2021 Would create the Office of Water Innovation at the California Passed Natural Resources (Caballero) – 4/20/21 version Water Commission for the furtherance of new technologies and Water Committee on and other innovative approaches in the water sector. The bill 4/15; heard in would require the office, by December 31, 2023, to take Appropriations on 5/10 and specified measures to advance innovation in the water sector. placed in the Suspense File. The bill would make findings and declarations regarding the need for water innovation.
8 Page 3.B.18 Page 30 of 50 Bill Title (Author) & Date Description Positions FWA ACWA Status SB 559 Canal conveyance capacity Would establish the Canal Conveyance Capacity Restoration Support Passed by Natural restoration (Hurtado) – 4/19/21 Fund in the State Treasury to be administered by the Resources & Water version Department of Water Resources. The bill would require all Committee on 4/27 heard in moneys deposited in the fund to be expended, upon Appropriations on 5/10 and appropriation by the Legislature, in support of subsidence placed in the Suspense File. repair costs, including environmental planning, permitting, design, and construction and necessary road and bridge upgrades required to accommodate capacity improvements. The bill would require the department to expend from the fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, specified monetary amounts to restore the capacity of 4 specified water conveyance systems, as prescribed, with 2 of those 4 expenditures being in the form of a grant to the Friant Water Authority and to the San Luis and Delta-Mendota Water Authority. The bill would make these provisions inoperative on July 1, 2030, and would repeal the provisions as of January 1, 2031. Recent amendments added coauathors.
SB 698 Water rights: reasonable and Spot bill related to water rights. NYC Referred to Rules beneficial use of water. (Grove) – Committee. 2/19/21 version
9 Page 3.B.19 Page 31 of 50
MEMORANDUM
TO: BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ADVISORY COMMITTEE FROM: DAN KEPPEN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR SUBJECT: EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT DATE: MAY 10, 2021 CC: MARK LIMBAUGH, JOSH ROLPH, NORM SEMANKO, JANE TOWNSEND
This executive director’s report (EDR) is intended to keep you apprised as to what is happening behind the scenes on policy issues the Alliance is engaged in, some of which we will discuss on our next joint ZOOM meeting of the Board of Directors and Advisory Committee, scheduled for Friday, May 14, 2021, at noon (Pacific, including Arizona) 1:00 p.m. (Mountain); 2:00 p.m. (Central), 3:00 p.m. (Eastern). In the past month, much of our efforts have focused on engaging the Biden Administration, tracking water legislative developments in Congress, working on messaging associated with the Western drought, and advocating that Western water infrastructure provisions be included in COVID recovery stimulus legislation. These issues and other matters important to our members are further discussed in this EDR.
BIDEN ADMNISTRATION DEVELOPMENTS
1. White House: Western Water Drought Relief Working Group
The Biden-Harris administration last month announced the formation of an Interagency Working Group to address worsening drought conditions in the West and support farmers, Tribes, and communities impacted by ongoing water shortages. The Working Group will be co-chaired by the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture to build upon existing resources to help coordinate across the federal government, working in partnership with state, local, and Tribal governments to address the needs of communities suffering from drought-related impacts. The White House released a readout from the National Climate Task Force Meeting announcing the new Working Group. The Working Group will work to identify immediate financial and technical assistance for
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Page 3.B.20 Page 32 of 50 impacted irrigators and Tribes. Development of longer-term measures to respond to climate change and build more resilient communities and protect the natural environment will also be a priority, including through President Biden’s proposed American Jobs Plan and through a recommitment to strengthening the National Drought Resilience Partnership (NDRP). Formed in 2013, the NDRP brings together multiple federal agencies to build long-term drought resilience, including developing innovative science-driven actions to address water supply challenges.
A rare "Joint Statement" was issued last month from U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in response to the worsening drought conditions in the West. Farmers served by the Klamath Irrigation Project along the California-Oregon border are facing historically low water allocations. Further south, neighboring California is in a critically dry year, the same as in 2015. Water will be extremely tight for thousands of farmers around the state, and many of them have already received notice that their water supplies are being cut by up to 95 percent. The California Farm Water Coalition (CFWC) last month posted a blog that explains what the devastating drought of 2015 can tell us about the impacts of a drought in 2021. The Family Farm Alliance, CFWC and other Western agriculture and water organizations believe the drought underscores the urgent need to take immediate action to help better manage impacts to water resources from drought in the West.
2. Appointments
Biden Cabinet nominees with important roles that impact Western farmers and ranchers are steadily being confirmed by the U.S. Senate. The Senate on April 14 confirmed Brenda Mallory to lead the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) on a 53 to 45 vote. Mallory served as general counsel at CEQ during the Obama administration and drew Republican opposition over concerns that she would work to unwind Trump administration NEPA rules that sped up permitting timelines and shrank review documents.
a. Recent White House Nominees
President Biden announced several picks for environmental and climate posts scattered throughout the government last month. The recent nominations will now be considered by the Senate. The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) will hold a confirmation hearing on the nominations of Ms. Shannon Estenoz to be Assistant Secretary of Fish and Wildlife and Parks of the Department of Interior, Ms. Radhika Fox to be Assistant Administrator for Water of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Michal Freedhoff to be Assistant Administrator for Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention of the EPA. The Alliance last month sent a letter to the Senate EPW Committee in support of Radhika Fox’s nomination.
i. Department of Interior
A slate of nominations for top Interior positions were announced by the Biden White House last month, including Tommy Beaudreau to be Deputy Secretary. Mr. Beaudreau was nominated after
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Page 3.B.21 Page 33 of 50 the Biden administration withdrew the candidacy of Elizabeth Klein amid concerns from Republican senators about her anti-fossil-fuel agenda. Klein will remain at Interior serving as a senior advisor. The Senate Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) Committee is scheduled to vote on Thursday to advance Mr. Beaudreau's nomination. It appears that he has significant support from both sides of the aisle to be cleared to receive a Senate floor vote. At his confirmation hearing, Mr. Beaudreau seemed to receive bipartisan support due to his background as a former director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and chief of staff to ex-Interior Secretary Sally Jewell in the Obama Administration official, as well as being an energy attorney.
President Biden last month nominated Interior 's principal Deputy Solicitor, Mr. Robert Anderson, to the position of Solicitor for the Department, a post he has temporarily filled in the administration's first months. Mr. Anderson, who was on the Biden transition team before joining the Administration, previously served on President Obama's transition team. He also held the post of Associate Solicitor for Indian Affairs and counselor to the Secretary under then-Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt. He is an enrolled member of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa in Minnesota and began his legal career at the Native American Rights Fund.
Additional Interior nominations recently announced include Winnie Stachelberg as assistant secretary for policy, management and budget; and Tanya Trujillo as assistant secretary for water and science. Tonya Trujillo – who spoke at our February “virtual” annual conference - previously worked with the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission and handled water issues for then- Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NEW MEXICO). Estenoz, who was also on the Interior transition team for Biden, previously served as the COO and vice president of policy at the Everglades Foundation. Stachelberg is the executive vice president for external affairs at the Center for American Progress. Sources are also reporting that Tracy Stone-Manning will likely get the nod to lead the Bureau of Land Management. Stone-Manning is currently the associate vice president for public lands at the National Wildlife Federation and previously served as chief of staff to former Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, director of Montana Department of Environmental Quality, and senior advisor for Sen. Jon Tester (D-MONTANA). The timing of a formal nomination remains unclear.
ii. Department of Agriculture
The White House last month announced that President Biden would nominate Robert Bonnie, who is currently Deputy Chief of Staff and leads the Department’s efforts on climate change, to be undersecretary of Agriculture for farm production and conservation. Bonnie served as undersecretary for environment and conservation during the Obama Administration, and during the 4 years of the Trump Administration was vice president for land conservation at the Environmental Defense Fund. The American Farm Bureau praised his nomination, citing his experience and engagement with farmers and ranchers during his past stints with USDA. The Family Farm Alliance two weeks ago sent a formal letter of support for Mr. Bonnie’s confirmation to the Senate Committee on Agriculture.
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Page 3.B.22 Page 34 of 50 USDA last month announced the names of individuals who will hold senior positions in Washington, D.C. Notably, Mike Schmidt was named Senior Advisor in the Office of the Secretary. Previously, Schmidt served as Senior Advisor for USDA’s Farm Production and Conservation Mission Area since January 20, 2021. Senior Professional Staff for the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, & Forestry under ranking member Senator Debbie Stabenow. Schmidt held several positions at USDA in the Obama Administration. Other recent appointees at USDA include Karama Neal (Administrator for the Rural Business-Cooperative Service), Lisa Ramirez (Director of the Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement) and Doug McKalip (Senior Advisor in the Office of the Secretary).
iii. Department of Commerce
Rick Spinrad, a professor of oceanography at Oregon State University, was picked by President Biden to lead the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. He retired in 2016 as chief scientist at NOAA and held similar science positions at the U.S. Navy.
3. Biden Infrastructure Plan
Joe Biden addressed Congress on April 28 for the first time as president. While he highlighted COVID relief and the pace of vaccinations, infrastructure was on everyone’s mind, with bipartisan negotiations continuing on Capitol Hill. Biden’s proposed $2.2 trillion American Jobs Plan was rolled out on March 31 and encompasses a broad array of both infrastructure and a greener economy. President Biden on the day of his speech unveiled his new $1.8 trillion American Families Plan, that focuses on childcare, health care and access to preschool and community college, less than a month after his $2.3 trillion infrastructure package was rolled out. Republicans were quick to criticize the plan, as described below.
a. Initial Reaction from Western Ag Organizations
President Biden’s $2.2 trillion infrastructure plan is of interest to Western water users and many others. It has been met with both support and opposition in Congress, as Democrats and Republicans begin to craft their own proposals on infrastructure. Some farm groups are wary. The American Farm Bureau Federation said it worries the tax increases the administration and congressional Democrats are considering paying for the improvements will be borne by some farmers. While details from the White House infrastructure plane include references to resilience, drought and water recycling, many advocates were disappointed not to see more direct reference to repair and construction of water storage and conveyance systems. A national coalition of over 200 agricultural organizations and urban and rural water districts – led by the Family Farm Alliance, California Farm Bureau, Western Growers, Association of California Water Agencies and National Water Resources Association – are urging the federal government to further bolster investment in the nation’s aging water facilities. Our coalition in a press release said it looks forward to working with the administration and Congress on the larger need for Western water infrastructure, such as above- and below-ground water storage facilities, conveyance and
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Page 3.B.23 Page 35 of 50 desalination, along with federal financing mechanisms for such water projects.
b. Congressional Response
Weeks after the ambitious Biden infrastructure plan was rolled out, top GOP Senators released their $568 billion plan for investing in more traditional infrastructure, leaving out President Biden’s “human infrastructure” proposals that would provide funding for more domestic social programs. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell today essentially said no Senate Republicans will support the Biden plan as constructed. He also said there will not be support for undoing the 2017 tax bill to support $4 trillion in spending.
Republican lawmakers provided their own $568 infrastructure counteroffer, which is limited to traditional infrastructure priorities, such as roads, bridges, ports, and airports, as well as newer priorities such as water infrastructure, expanded broadband, and modernization of the electric grid. The Republican proposal includes $14 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation for water storage. The 58-member bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus has also released a similar policy framework for infrastructure, focusing on streamlined permitting, financing, public-private partnerships and tax enforcement. One of the more controversial and contentious parts of all infrastructure proposals is how to pay for huge additional investments in infrastructure, with everything on the table – from increased corporate tax rates to modernized excise taxes.
The White House plans to meet with multiple lawmakers from both parties this week to push their multitrillion-dollar infrastructure plan. The upcoming meetings come as Senate Democrats are looking to move a surface transportation reauthorization bill through the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee by Memorial Day.
c. Alliance Efforts
Last fall, before the election, a group of us – Family Farm Alliance, Western Growers, California Farm Bureau, NWRA and Association of California Water Agencies – starting planning for the possible eventuality that Joe Biden would win the presidency, and that Democrats might gain control of the House and the Senate. This was similar to the dynamic that existed in late 2008, when President Obama was elected, and Democrats in Congress helped push the big economic stimulus infrastructure package that was signed into law later that year.
It’s always a challenge getting lawmakers to talk about water when infrastructure is teed up in Washington. When water infrastructure makes it to the front burner, policy makers are usually talking about drinking water, especially since the incident in Flint, Michigan. The goal of our coalition was to get “our type of infrastructure” – “Western” water infrastructure needs like repairing aging water facilities and building new storage and conveyance facilities – included in the mix when infrastructure talks began in this new Congress.
Sure enough, the Democrats last January assumed control of the White House and both chambers
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Page 3.B.24 Page 36 of 50 of Congress. Our first task was to demonstrate to the new Administration and Congress that there was interest in the West for such an effort. In January, we submitted letters to President-elect Biden and leaders of Congress signed by over 200 Western ag, urban and water organizations in support of an “all of the above” infrastructure package, including a suite of water supply enhancement and demand management actions. We’ve pulled several of these interests from a dozen Western states and established advocacy and communications teams to reach out to Western Members of Congress, Congressional leadership, and the Administration.
We’ve developed a well-justified “ask” of the types of projects and estimated dollar amounts that we began shopping to Congressional water committees and Congressional leadership, beginning last week. These meetings have been a combination of fact-finding -trying to find intel on how infrastructure negotiations are proceeding – and also getting feedback from committee staff on how realistic our “ask” is. Based on what we’ve heard back so far, I think we’re in the ballpark, and in fact, our numbers were pretty close to those included in a Republican counterproposal for Western water projects. Now, we’re working with the state groups to meet with their Western Senate offices, using lists of potential projects in each state, developed by those groups. This week, the state groups are taking the lead to hit Democrat, and then Republican, members of the House of Representatives for each state. Our goal is to try make sure that every Western member of Congress is aware of the importance of including Western water infrastructure this year. Much of this advocacy work will take place in May, and will be supported by state-driven media and public outreach efforts.
It’s still not clear which vehicle our issues will be hitched to in this Congress, and it’s not clear whether infrastructure will be a bipartisan effort, although we continue to urge lawmakers to strive for bipartisanship. For now, we have a pretty good team in place, and it’ll really start clicking this month. Several media publications picked up on the press release, and Dennis Nuxoll from Western Growers was quoted in E&E Daily. I also co-authored an op/ed with Western Growers and the California State Water Contractors on the importance of Western water infrastructure, which Mike Wade from California Farm Water Coalition is shopping around with large urban newspapers. Last month, I toured a reporter from USA-Today around the Klamath Project, and emphasized the similarities between the regulatory nature of the drought here and in the Central Valley.
4. 30 x 30 Plan
The U.S. Interior Department last week published the 24-page report on “Conserving and Restoring America the Beautiful,” which was transmitted to the White House National Climate Task Force last week as directed by Sec. 216(a) of President Biden’s Jan. 27 Executive Order on “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad.” This initiative is commonly referred to as "30 x 30", with a voluntary nationwide conservation goal to conserve 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030. The report recommends 8 key principles to guide the effort and 6 preliminary, non-exhaustive recommendations for early focus (see respective lists below), and recommends that federal agencies (1) establish formal and informal venues for external engagement, including
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Page 3.B.25 Page 37 of 50 through tribal consultations and public comment opportunities, and (2) explore the creation of advisory councils, intergovernmental working groups, and other potential engagement mechanisms.
Recommended Principles
• Pursue a Collaborative and Inclusive Approach to Conservation
• Conserve America’s Lands and Waters for the Benefit of All People
• Supporting Locally Led and Locally Designed Conservation Efforts
• Honor Tribal Sovereignty and Support the Priorities of Tribal Nations
• Pursue Conservation and Restoration Approaches that Create Jobs and Support Healthy Communities
• Honor Private Property Rights and Support the Voluntary Stewardship Efforts of Private Landowners and Fishers
• Use Science as a Guide
• Build on Existing Tools and Strategies with an Emphasis on Flexibility and Adaptive Approaches Recommendations for Early Focus
• Create More Parks and Safe Outdoor Opportunities in Nature-Deprived Communities
• Support Tribally Led Conservation and Restoration Priorities
• Expand Collaborative Conservation of Fish and Wildlife Habitats and Corridors
• Increase Access for Outdoor Recreation
• Incentivize and Reward the Voluntary Conservation Efforts of Fishers, Ranchers, Farmers, and Forest Owners
• Create Jobs by Investing in Restoration and Resilience
The report says that the next update due at the end of 2021 should include progress on areas of collaboration, assessment of land-cover changes, and review of fish and wildlife habitat and population conditions.
Republican response to the report was more critical. House Committee on Natural Resources Ranking Member Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) in a prepared statement said he was pleased to see the Department of Interior publicly release the report and appreciated its distinction between “conservation” and “preservation” and the need to improve access to outdoor recreation. Rep.
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Page 3.B.26 Page 38 of 50 Westerman noted that the report “still falls short of a serious proposal and has far too many unanswered questions”. Areas of concern include how 'conservation' of our lands and waters will be defined, and the current baseline for what is considered 'conserved.'
“Although I am pleased to see the administration is finally publicizing information on a previously undefined goal, the lack of specific details in the report is unacceptable,” he said.
5. Alliance Actions on Biden Climate Change Initiative
The Family Farm Alliance last month helped prepare two comment letters to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in response to an agency request for public input on Biden Administration climate and forest initiatives. The Alliance was also represented on a United Nations landscape roundtable discussion. President Biden in January issued an Executive Order (EO) on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad. This EO laid out a series of actions for federal agencies to take regarding climate change mitigation and resilience, including directing the Secretary of Agriculture to collect stakeholder input on a climate-smart agriculture and forestry strategy. As part of this process, USDA sought input from the public to ensure that relevant information is considered. This was a good opportunity to provide comments to USDA on a variety of issues important to our membership, including climate-smart agriculture and forestry, biofuels, bioproducts, renewable energy, and catastrophic wildfire. We’re hopeful that Secretary Vilsack and his leadership team at USDA will consider them as the agency develops a climate-smart agriculture and forestry approach.
a. High Points of Alliance Comment Letter to USDA
The 18-page long Alliance letter to USDA provided background on Western agriculture and forestry challenges, and recommended several actions regarding climate-smart agriculture, with an emphasis on looking to experienced Western producers who have a proven track record for innovation. The letter urges USDA to encourage more participation, more investment and more recognition of private property owners efforts engage in landscape-scale solutions. It notes that existing USDA programs (like the Regional Conservation Partnership Program) provide funding, financing and authority to conduct many climate-smart agricultural and forest programs.
The Alliance letter also provides recommendations on employing USDA programs to catalyze biofuel, bioproducts and renewable energy projects in Western watersheds and finding ways to use those programs to decrease wildfire risks in the West, a topic of that was recently discussed at a recent hearing on the U.S. Forest Service’s budget outline for the next fiscal year. The Forest Service already needs to more than double the pace at which it’s thinning or carefully burning land it oversees if the threat of wildfire is to be tamed. Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen told a House Appropriations subcommittee the agency would need to treat an additional 2.6 million acres a year, on top of the 2 million or 3 million it already does, for the next decade to eliminate a backlog that's dominated the agenda for several years. The Alliance comment letter closes with recommendations that emphasize the need to improve inter-agency coordination and incentive-
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Page 3.B.27 Page 39 of 50 based water quality trading programs.
b. WACC Letter
The Alliance also worked with the Western Agriculture and Conservation Alliance (WACC) to craft a another, more conservation-oriented response to USDA’s request. The WACC was formed in February 2012 to support the common interests of agriculture, conservation, and other interests tied to resources on behalf of a viable and sustainable rural West. No other national coalition combines industry and conservation interests to advocate for resource sustainability for all. We believe that unless agricultural producers and conservation come together, the public policies and resource management strategies necessary to maintain a viable and sustainable rural West will be impossible to achieve. The WACC focuses on resource issues on working lands, which in the West are on both private and public lands. Private lands in the West are often located in riparian areas and are both the most fertile for agriculture production and the best habitat for biodiversity. Farmers and ranchers have cultivated these areas for more than 100 years in some cases.
5. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: “Waters of the U.S.”
The Biden administration is facing renewed pressure from environmental groups to revive the Obama Administration’s “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) Clean Water Act rule, which was criticized by the Family Farm Alliance and others as federal overreach and economically harmful to agriculture and industry. President Trump’s EPA replaced the rules with a more narrowly focused scope, something we supported, but not environmental groups. President Biden’s EPA is undergoing a review process to determine the best course of action. EPA Administrator Michael Regan said a new plan would reverse course from the Trump era, but also wouldn’t be a verbatim reimplementation of Obama administration. Neither of those options, Mr. Regan recently told a Congressional committee, reflects “the will of the people.” We’re hopeful about Mr. Regan’s promises to reach out to ag groups on this matter. Meanwhile, litigious environmental groups are pushing courts to remove the hold on their lawsuits against the Trump-era rule, which the Biden administration requested to hold as it conducts its review.
6. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation)
a. New Technical Reports & Interactive Web Tool
Reclamation recently released final technical reports supporting the Water Reliability in the West- 2021 SECURE Water Act Report. Reclamation’s 2021 West-Wide Climate and Hydrology Assessment and seven individual basin reports provide detailed information on climate change impacts and adaptation strategies to increase water supply reliability in the West. A new 2021 SECURE Report Web Portal is also available to provide a user-friendly, web-based format for delivery of information in the reports. The 2021 West-Wide Assessment provides estimates of changes in temperature, precipitation, snowpack, and streamflow across the West using consistent methodology, similar to previous SECURE Water Act Reports. For this report, additional drought
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Page 3.B.28 Page 40 of 50 analyses based on paleohydrology (using tree rings) was performed. These results will enable water managers to compare the frequency and severity of droughts that occurred several hundred years ago to projections of future droughts and develop water management strategies.
b. MR&R Needs
In 2019, Congress passed the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, Public Law No. 116-9, Title VIII, Subtitle G – Bureau of Reclamation Transparency Act (Transparency Act). The Transparency Act requires Reclamation to provide Congress with a detailed assessment of major rehabilitation and replacement (MR&R) needs, categorization of the importance of these repair needs, and regular reporting of information related to Reclamation’s investments in infrastructure. The Transparency Act requires Reclamation to submit a list of MR&R needs at reserved works (Reclamation-operated and maintained) by March 2021 and a list of MR&R needs at both reserved and transferred works (partner-operated and maintained) by March 2023, with additional reports every two years. In compliance with the Transparency Act, Reclamation has transmitted the first Asset Management Report to Congress containing MR&R needs at reserved works facilities. This report can be accessed at https://www.usbr.gov/infrastructure. In the coming months, your Reclamation area office will be reaching out to you to further collect MR&R needs at transferred works facilities.
c. WaterSMART Changes
Reclamation is proposing several changes to the WaterSMART program for 2022. Reclamation is seeking public comment on draft eligibility and evaluation criteria for three funding opportunities within the WaterSMART Program to assist with these changes. Reclamation proposes updates to the eligibility requirements and evaluation criteria for the Drought Resiliency Projects and Water and Energy Efficiency Grants funding opportunities. Reclamation is also launching a new funding opportunity for Environmental Water Resources Projects. This new funding opportunity will focus on projects that have environmental benefits, are developed as part of a collaborative process, and may be eligible for up to 75% federal funding. The changes were developed to incorporate recent amendments to the SECURE Water Act, implement priorities identified in Presidential Executive Order 14008: Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad and Executive Order 13985: Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government, and support the goals of the Interagency Drought Relief Working Group established in March 2021.
The proposed draft eligibility and evaluation criteria are available on the WaterSMART website. Please send your comments to Sheri Looper at [email protected] by June 4, 2021. We'll work with Mark Limbaugh and his team at The Ferguson Group to put together some draft comments for you to review, edit, or use as the basis for your own comments.
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Page 3.B.29 Page 41 of 50 DEVELOPMENTS IN CONGRESS
Mark Limbaugh reports that Congressional Members from both parties seem to be trying to find common ground between Biden's $4 trillion infrastructure proposals and Senate Republicans' $568 billion counterproposal, but bipartisanship has been limited to only one $35 billion drinking water/wastewater infrastructure bill (S. 914) passing the Senate. But companion water infrastructure bills in the House have much larger price tags which will require Senate GOP support to pass. Lack of GOP support for a large expensive infrastructure package could lead Dems to again use the Senate budget reconciliation process that bypasses the 60-vote filibuster barrier and only requires a majority Senate vote to pass a large infrastructure package.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) last week came out against President Biden's ambitious infrastructure plans, suggesting Republicans are not willing to spend much more than what they have already offered in their $568 billion proposal and that the President's proposal to pay for the plans by raising corporate tax rates are a nonstarter. Yet this week, Leader McConnell indicated GOP support for a $600-$800 billion package, still much smaller than the President’s $2.25 trillion proposal.
Congress last month got its first look at President Biden’s fiscal year 2022 budget outline. The Administration is expected to release the traditional full budget later this year, likely by late May. The big news out of the $1.52 trillion discretionary request is an expansive 16 percent proposed increase in nondefense programs. Defense spending, by contrast, would get only a 1.7 percent increase. President Biden would also halt the use of Overseas Contingency Operations emergency funding that has been used to pay for military operations in the Mideast, but has also increasingly been tapped for more routine expenses, leaving critics to describe it as a slush fund. The release of the outline means the start of the traditional parade of agency leaders to Capitol Hill for testimony.
Republicans in Congress are seizing on disappointing jobs data to argue that President Biden’s spending and tax plans are already causing a slowdown in the economy. Last Friday’s jobs report — which showed U.S. employers added 266,000 jobs in April, far below expectations — could pose a challenge for President Biden as he seeks to enact his proposals for $4.1 trillion in new spending financed by tax increases on wealthy individuals and corporations.
6. Hearing on Farmland Conservation Programs
A House Agriculture subcommittee this week will explore the impact of farmland conservation programs on climate change, potentially giving clues on how the next farm bill will address the issue in 2023. The Subcommittee on Conservation and Forestry, chaired by Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) takes testimony on the programs, which have long been a part of the farm bill but have a new climate focus with Democrats setting the agenda in Congress and at the White House. The hearing is one of two House committee sessions this week on agriculture, the other being an Appropriations subcommittee hearing on the research, education and economics mission area of the Department of Agriculture. All the conservation programs at USDA have bipartisan
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Page 3.B.30 Page 42 of 50 support, although Republicans in the 2018 farm bill debates leaned more heavily toward the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, which rewards farmers for specific practices on part of a farm, and away the Conservation Stewardship Program, which tends to look at practices across an entire farming operation.
7. WIFIA Legislation
Congressman John Garamendi (D-CALIFORNIA) last week introduced legislation (H.R. 2979) making low-interest federal financing available for reservoir and drought resiliency projects, with Congressman Dan Newhouse (R-WASHINGTON) as the original cosponsor. This bipartisan legislation (H.R. 2979) would amend the Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) of 2014 to make public water projects like the off-stream Sites Reservoir Project eligible for low-interest, longer-term federal loans from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Specifically, the bill would allow water projects with longer useful life spans, like Sites Reservoir, to receive federal WIFIA financing for 55-year loan terms instead of the current 35-year loan terms, thereby lowering the capital costs for such projects.
8. Dems Re-Up Sustainable Agriculture Bill; House Republicans Drop Their Own Bills
Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) recently introduced the "Climate Stewardship Act," a modified version of legislation introduced last Congress. The bill would reestablish the Civilian Conservation Corps, provide billions in new funding for the Department of Agriculture's working lands conservation programs, establish a NOAA grant program for wetlands restoration, and advance the goal of planting 100 million trees in urban areas, among other things.
Republicans from the House Agriculture Committee also unveiled five bills addressing conservation partnerships and climate change:
• Rep. Glenn Thompson’s (R-PA) Sponsoring USDA Sustainability Targets in Agriculture to Incentivize Natural Solutions Act which establishes an account within USDA to accept and match private sector contributions for conservation initiatives. • Rep. Doug LaMalfa’s (R-CA) Restoring Environments, Soils, Trees and Operations to develop the Rural Economy Act which provides new authorities and funding for landscape-scale watershed restoration and forest health; • Rep. Rodney Davis’ (R-IL) Naturally Offsetting Emissions by Managing and Implementing Tillage Strategies Act that establishes a program to help producers promote soil health, sequester carbon and reduce net emissions; • Rep. Dusty Johnson’s (R-SD) Forestry Improvements to Restore the Environment Act that requires a survey of Forest Service land impacted by wildfire and aims to expedite forest treatments and timber salvage opportunities; and
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Page 3.B.31 Page 43 of 50 • Rep. Ashley Hinson’s (R-IA) Producing Responsible Energy and Conservation Incentives and Solutions for the Environment Act which modifies existing federal programs to increase the cost share for the purchase of precision agriculture equipment, systems, and technology.
9. Canal Conveyance Capacity Restoration Act
Congressman Jim Costa (CA-16) last month held a press conference over Zoom to answer questions on the introduction of the Canal Conveyance Capacity Restoration Act. This important water bill would authorize more than $653 million to restore the capacity of the Delta-Mendota Canal, Friant-Kern Canal and California Aqueduct. Repairs to these canals will improve water availability, help California’s drought resilience and reduce reliance on groundwater pumping. The bill also authorizes an additional $180 million to restore salmon runs on the San Joaquin River.
10. Outdoor Restoration Partnership Act
Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet last month introduced the Outdoor Restoration Partnership Act to create or sustain over two million jobs in the outdoors by investing in forest and watershed restoration. This legislation will provide direct support to local, collaborative efforts to restore habitat, expand outdoor access, and mitigate wildfire. It will also spur federal investment in areas at high-risk of wildfire, with high priority wildlife habitat, or in the wildland-urban interface – where homes and businesses meet wildland vegetation -- to build climate resilience in the West.
The Family Farm Alliance has long held that the best natural resource solutions are unique and come from the local, watershed and state level. Alliance President Pat O'Toole was quoted in Senator Bennet's press release. Forests and watersheds are the natural infrastructure that sustains our economy in the West. Catastrophic wildfires and prolonged drought are becoming the norm, yet Congress has failed to fully invest in our Western lands, undermining our economy and way of life. As a result, local governments are often left to foot the bill for conservation, restoration, and wildfire mitigation. The bill text is available HERE. A one-pager on the bill and a list of supporting organizations is available HERE. A section-by-section summary of the bill is available HERE.
14. Republicans Take Aim at Permitting Processes and Regulations
Congressional Republicans have introduced bills to streamline permitting regulations and limit jurisdictional reach of federal agencies. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UTAH) last month introduced several bills to reform the federal permitting process to make "maintenance projects affordable again." The package, dubbed the "UNSHACKLE Act," combines several bills that would amend National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process and transparency requirements. The Trump Administration overhauled the NEPA rules, seeking to "streamline" environmental review. President Biden is widely expected to revise the Trump changes, which went into effect last year. Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-OH), a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I)
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Page 3.B.32 Page 44 of 50 Committee, has reintroduced legislation in the 117th Congress to limit EPA’s Clean Water Act (CWA) authority over dredge-and-fill permits and pesticide spraying. H.R. 1820 would prevent EPA from retroactively “vetoing” a CWA Section 404 permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps); the legislation is similar to other GOP bills introduced in previous Congresses. Meanwhile, H.R. 1821 would exclude pesticides regulated and approved under the Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act from needing a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit for application on or near waterways. The bill is identical to legislation that has previously passed the House, but has failed to gain traction in the Senate.
ALLIANCE INTIATIVES
15. Western Agriculture and Conservation Alliance (WACC)
The Family Farm Alliance co-founded the WACC a decade ago, with the intent of finding solutions to Western water and environmental challenges where we could partner with constructive conservation groups. Last month, the WACC finalized a water infrastructure letter that urges Congressional leaders to support investments in irrigation and municipal water infrastructure that provide important co-benefits of enhanced drought resilience and aquatic habitat. Our letter details ways to make these essential and successful western water infrastructure investments. The WACC is also working on a comment letter to address USDA’s request for comments on climate change policy (see related discussion, above). Climate-smart agriculture, forestry and wildfire are all good areas for the WACC to engage in.
11. Universal Access to Clean Drinking Water for Native Americans
Last month, we were contacted by Anne Castle, former Assistant Secretary for Water and Science at the Department of Interior, who currently is a Senior Fellow at the Getches-Wilkinson Center at the University of Colorado. She has been working with a “small but dedicated” team to bring attention to the lack of access to clean drinking water in Indian country. This work was started within and is supported by the Colorado River Water and Tribes Initiative. The initiative was launched to both educate the public about the lack of this basic service that most Americans take for granted and make real, tangible progress on the ground. They have a research team working on a report showing the specific lack of access experienced by the 30 tribes in the Colorado River Basin, the applicability of the federal trust responsibility, and the various federal agency programs that cover at least a piece of this problem. While this fact finding work has been in the Colorado River Basin, the message is broader and nationwide. The Alliance board of directors later in April issued a statement by Alliance President Patrick O’Toole in support of this initiative. Pat’s statement is intended to qualify our support, and ties to the 2021 priorities adopted by the Board earlier this year.
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Page 3.B.33 Page 45 of 50 12. Excess Capacity D&S
Late last year, the Bureau of Reclamation coordinated with the Alliance and other stakeholder interests to host a stakeholder ZOOM call on two draft Directives and Standards (D&S’s) that Reclamation had been finalizing on excess capacity in Reclamation facilities. We send out a detailed memo on that meeting, prepared by The Ferguson Group. The issues of concerns raised were satisfactorily addressed by Reclamation, who has incorporated those changes into the Reclamation Manual and posted online. You can link to them from the Rec Manual D&S page here, or use these direct links: https://www.usbr.gov/recman/pec/pec05-10.pdf, and https://www.usbr.gov/recman/pec/pec05-11.pdf. The Alliance and several of its members played key roles in getting water users concerns reflected in the final D&S.
13. U.S. Water Alliance “Listening Sessions”
Last month, I represented the Alliance on a virtual forum hosted by the U.S. Water Alliance, an organization for which I once served as a director on its board. This was one of a handful related forums that are taking place this spring; this one included about two dozen representatives from diverse water and environmental organizations from the Southwest and Rocky Mountain region.
I was one of four speakers asked to provide introductory comments in response to the question: when you think about water sector recovery, what is giving you hope? Before I shared “my hopes”, I acknowledged the grim reality many of our farmers are facing this summer. I noted that the only silver lining is that the drought will hopefully draw public and political attention of the need to find solutions in order to maintain food security for the nation and the economic wellbeing of the Western landscape. New opportunities are now emerging to invest in Western water traditional and natural infrastructure, better manage our forests, and put farmers and ranchers in a leadership role to tackle climate change challenges. There are also opportunities to create collaborative partnerships between tribal, federal, state and local entities who are also interested in finding solutions to our water-climate problems. These solutions can be reached using adaptive strategies that can work on the ground.
WESTERN WATER “HOT SPOTS”
Many of our farmers and ranchers this year are going to be hit hard by this drought. The April 29 U.S. Drought Monitor showed 96% of the West at least “abnormally dry,” with 84% in “moderate to exceptional drought”. When you look at the U.S. Drought Monitor Map, the Southwest looks like a big, ugly bruise. The lowest snowpack percentage is in Arizona and New Mexico, where conditions are much below normal. More than three-fourths of Oregon is in some stage of drought entering this month. I’ve seen dust storms in recent weeks, and blowing dust has also been observed in eastern Washington.
So, many farmers and ranchers that make up our membership throughout the West are going to be hit hard by this year’s drought. Perhaps the only silver lining in this disaster is that it will hopefully
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Page 3.B.34 Page 46 of 50 draw public and political attention of the need to take immediate action to help better manage impacts to water resources from drought in the West. The May 2021 edition of the Family Farm Alliance “Monthly Briefing” highlighted the drought and how our members are responding.
14. Central Valley Project (CALIFORNIA)
About 2 million acres of California’s irrigated farmland has already had its water supply cut by 95 percent. Another million acres has lost 80 percent of its water supply this year. The Sacramento Valley is experiencing its driest conditions in 40 years. Ag service contractors on the West side of the Sacramento Valley were told by Reclamation last week to hold off on deliveries, which will total only 5% of their allocation. Ag service contractors on the West side of the San Joaquin Valley have been in a similar holding pattern for weeks.
15. Colorado River Basin
As recently reported in E&E News, a recent decision from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals could have far-reaching implications as the federal government, states and tribes begin renegotiating Colorado River water allocations in the midst of a relentless drought. The Navajo Nation sued federal regulators in 2003, arguing that the government's operations guidelines for the Colorado River didn't consider the tribe's water rights or the amount needed to meet the government's treaty obligations to the reservation. A federal district court dismissed the claim, but the 9th Circuit disagreed. The appeals court found that the Navajo Nation has major water problems, and Judge Ronald Gould raised questions about whether the government is fulfilling its treaty with the tribe. The Colorado River Basin’s seven states, the Interior Department and the 30 federally recognized tribes within the basin are about to begin negotiating new operations guidelines for the Colorado River that will determine each state's allocations. In the upcoming negotiations, the tribes could argue that those rights must be protected before the states get their allocations — putting more strain on an already stressed system.
Lake Mead is currently 38 percent full, only five feet above the Tier 1 shortage trigger elevation. Given the extraordinarily dry 2020/21 winter and persistent drought conditions, by the end of 2021, water levels at the reservoir are projected to fall to a point (1075 feet) that trigger 2022 reduced deliveries of Colorado River water. In 2000, the elevation of Lake Mead was over 1210 feet. The “Tier” system was adopted by the Seven Basin States and the Department of the Interior basin states as part of a shortage sharing agreement that Mexico also signed. An official shortage determination will not be made until August, but Reclamation determined in April that Tier 1 cuts appeared likely. The reductions would constitute about 30 percent of CAP’s normal supply; about 18 percent of Arizona’s Colorado River supply; and less than 8 percent of Arizona’s total water use. Arizona’s usual 2.8 million acre-foot share, delivered through the 336-mile Central Arizona Project (CAP) canal system, will be cut by 512,000 acre-feet, absorbed by CAP customers, mainly agriculture in central and south-central Arizona. Despite mitigation efforts, some farmers may have to reduce irrigated acreage by 30-40 percent.
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Page 3.B.35 Page 47 of 50 A few farmers with ties to the Alliance have been interviewed by the media in recent coverage of the Colorado River Basin drought. Alliance Director Don Schwindt is featured in this recent Water Education Colorado article. Former Alliance Director Dan Thelander (ARIZONA) is pictured and quoted in this article from CNN.
16. Klamath Basin (CALIFORNIA / OREGON)
Here in the Klamath Basin, where I live, we’ve seen the lowest inflow into Upper Klamath Lake – our primary storage reservoir – in 40 years. Of the water that is available, more than 95% of it will be sent downstream or kept behind the dam, all in the name of single-species management for fish protected under the Endangered Species Act. Twenty years of this sort of management by federal agencies – driven in part, by court-ordered direction – is whittling away local farmers and two national wildlife refuges. In April, the Klamath Tribes filed a lawsuit and motions for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction, seeking higher Upper Klamath Lake levels. Last week, the Court denied the motions. The decision does not change the fact that farmers and ranchers and wildlife supported by the Project can expect only a paltry amount of water this year. Meanwhile, I’ve been working with local water users, Oregon Farm Bureau, and three county boards in recent weeks, seeking ways to support agricultural communities during this year’s historic drought. A primary purpose has been to seek additional federal, local and state funding for drought relief this summer.
ADMINSTRATIVE AND MISCELLANEOUS
• Congrats to Alliance Treasurer Dan Errotabere, who is stepping down as President of the Westlands Water District Board of Directors. Dan was elected to the Westlands Board of Directors in 1993 and was most recently re-elected in 2017. He and his family currently farm in the Five Points area, growing processing tomatoes, processing garlic, processing onions, garbanzo beans, and almonds.
• Chris Udall is the latest Alliance Advisory Committee member to appear in the media in support of the Western water initiative that the Alliance is helping to advance, along with ACWA, California Farm Bureau, NWRA and Western Growers. Chris and his team at Agribusiness & Water Council of Arizona are doing a tremendous job of leading communication efforts in his state. This guest commentary was posted on several websites. Chris also was interviewed by News Channel 3 & 5 in the Phoenix area last week.
• Alliance Advisory Committee Member Tom Myrum, executive director of the Washington State Water Resources Association, penned an excellent guest column which was published in the Sunnyside (WASHINGTON) Sun. Tom and his team at WSWRA, along with the Yakima Basin Joint Board (YBJB) and the Columbia Basin Development League (CBDL) have been spearheading efforts in Washington State in support of a West-wide effort that we are helping to drive, along with the Association of California Water Agencies, California Farm Bureau, NWRA and Western Growers.
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• The Water We Talking About? podcast hosted by Water Online recently featured an extended interview with yours truly. For the full interview, click here, where you can also access the podcast on Apple, Spotify, and Google Podcasts.
• Last month, I represented the Alliance on a virtual forum hosted by the U.S. Water Alliance, an organization for which I once served as a director on its board. This was one of a handful related forums that are taking place this spring; this one included about two dozen representatives from diverse water and environmental organizations from the Southwest and Rocky Mountain region.
• I was one of four speakers asked to provide introductory comments in response to the question: when you think about water sector recovery, what is giving you hope? Another one of the four speakers was our newest Advisory Committee member, Paula Garcia (NEW MEXICO). Before I shared “my hopes”, I acknowledged the grim reality many of our farmers are facing this summer. I noted that the only silver lining is that the drought will hopefully draw public and political attention of the need to find solutions in order to maintain food security for the nation and the economic wellbeing of the Western landscape.
• I “virtually” briefed the board of directors of the Idaho Water Users Association last week, along with Mark Limbaugh. My focus was the 2021 Western drought and our Western water infrastructure initiative.
• I’ll be presenting (via ZOOM) to three Rotary Clubs across the West in coming months. This Wednesday, the audience will be the Fort Collins (COLORADO) Rotary Club, which is interested in learning more about what the Family Farm Alliance does.
I appreciate all the helpful input I have received from many of you in the past month. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about this report.
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