WATCH: Sen. Padilla highlights three California watershed restoration bills at ENR committee hearing

September 12, 2024 - WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Wednessday, the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources held a hearing on three of U.S. Senator Alex Padilla’s (D-Calif.) bipartisan bills to promote ecosystem restoration, water conservation, and drought resiliency across the Colorado, Sacramento, and San Joaquin River watersheds. The Committee considered his legislation to increase funding for the Lower Colorado River Multispecies Conservation and the San Joaquin River Restoration Programs, as well as the Sacramento RIVER Act to support drought resiliency and water conservation in the Sacramento watershed.

“California’s rivers provide essential water resources for municipal, agricultural, and environmental use in California, but long-term drought, historic flooding, and rising project costs are threatening these watersheds,” said Senator Padilla. “My bipartisan bills would support ecological restoration across the Sacramento River, San Joaquin River, and Colorado River watersheds to bolster our drought resiliency and water supply for California’s water users.”

Lower Colorado River Multispecies Conservation Program

Padilla’s bipartisan legislation would increase the funding available for species conservation by creating an interest-bearing account for funds that the Colorado River Lower Basin states and the federal government contribute to the Lower Colorado River Multispecies Conservation Program (LCR MSCP). Currently, the Bureau of Reclamation holds the funding that states contribute in an account that does not collect interest. Representatives Ken Calvert (R-Calif.-41) and Grace Napolitano (D-Calif.-31) are leading companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

The LCR MSCP, formally established in 2005, aims to establish over 8,000 acres of native riparian and aquatic habitat from Lake Mead to the Mexican border. The program has already been successful in stocking thousands of native fish and increasing numbers of breeding migratory birds within 5,000 acres of new riparian habitat.

However, the value of the program’s $626 million budget for its 50-year term has eroded over time as inflation has increased project costs. The lack of reinvestment due to the fact that the account is not able to collect interest effectively costs the LCR MSCP at least $2 million annually that could be used to fund future program work. Creating an interest-bearing account would significantly improve the program’s ability to restore riparian and aquatic habitat in the Lower Colorado River.

The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.). The House bill is cosponsored by Representatives Dina Titus (D-Nev.-01) and Susie Lee (D-Nev.-03).

Earlier this year, Senator Padilla applauded the Colorado River Lower Basin states’ conservation proposal for the Post-2026 Coordinated Operation of the Colorado River Basin. Last December, Padilla applauded the Department of the Interior’s announcement of approximately $367 million to California partners to protect the Colorado River Basin, including nearly $295 million for several water conservation agreements with California water agencies.

Full text of the bill is available here.

San Joaquin River Restoration Program Funding Cap Increase

To further support the ongoing implementation of the San Joaquin River Restoration Program (SJRRP), this bipartisan legislation would raise the cap on federal appropriations for the program by $500 million while increasing the authorization of appropriations for Friant Division canal improvements.

Congress authorized the San Joaquin River Restoration Program (SJRRP) following the San Joaquin River Restoration Settlement, which was the result of an 18-year lawsuit over operations of the Friant Division of the Central Valley Project. The SJRRP is a comprehensive, long-term effort in the Central Valley to restore flows to the San Joaquin River from Friant Dam to the confluence of the Merced River and restore a self-sustaining Chinook salmon fishery in the river, while reducing or avoiding adverse water supply impacts from restoration flows. 

Because the original estimated cost of implementation has risen, the restoration program needs continued funding for projects that are vital to securing a healthy river.

The legislation is cosponsored by Senator John Hoeven (R-N.D.).

Senator Padilla joined authorities and officials from the Department of the Interior earlier this year to celebrate the signing of a long-term drought plan for south of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta (Delta), as well as an $81 million investment to help implement the plan and strengthen drought resilience. This investment, which comes from the Inflation Reduction Act, is helping to safeguard crops during drought years, provide critical water supply to refuges and cities south of the Delta, and protect the San Joaquin River by carrying over water from wet to dry years. Padilla secured $6.1 million for San Joaquin Valley drought relief for wildlife refuges in the FY 2023 appropriations package. He has also consistently pushed for levee repairs and additional federal assistance in the Central Valley following devastating flooding in the region.

Full text of the bill is available here.

Sacramento RIVER Act

This bipartisan legislation would support ecosystem restoration, drought resiliency, and water conservation in the Sacramento River watershed. Representative Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.-01) is leading companion legislation in the House of Representatives.

This bill would authorize the Interior Department to, upon request from affected entities, create a federal leadership committee to strengthen federal coordination of ecosystem restoration among regional, local, and national stakeholders, ensuring alignment on strategy, vision, and execution of habitat restoration projects to support a wide array of at-risk species. This federal water leadership committee would better position Interior to work with other federal agencies like the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Army Corps of Engineers to leverage federal funding and oversee a holistic approach to federal efforts. This could be particularly impactful in the Sacramento Valley, where a coalition known as the Floodplain Forward Coalition, which is made up of nonprofit organizations, farmers and other local landowners, local governments, federal and state agencies, water suppliers, and academic institutions, is working to develop and implement nature-based solutions that mimic natural floodplain processes and provide benefits for the environment, migratory birds and fish, and our farms, towns, and cities.

Additionally, the legislation would incentivize water users to temporarily sell surplus water by allowing the revenue from sales to go toward local efforts on drought resiliency, flood control, or other Bureau of Reclamation repayment obligations. Current law says that revenue from the sale of surplus water goes to the Department of the Treasury, disincentivizing water users from selling surplus water in times of drought.

Padilla secured $5 million in the first package of FY 2024 appropriations bills for Sacramento River Basin floodplain reactivation to support efforts to reactivate floodplains at a landscape scale and restore ecological function to the Sacramento River Basin. He also secured $7.8 million for the river’s floodplain reactivation and $1.7 million for Sacramento River fish screens in the FY 2023 appropriations package. Padilla recently secured a new study in the Water Resources and Development Act of 2024 to examine ways to modify the existing Sacramento River levee system for floodplain management and ecosystem restoration.

Full text of the bill is available here.
Source: Senator Alex Padilla