TULARE, CA – Today, the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries held a field hearing in Tulare on Congressman David G. Valadao’s legislation H.R. 215, the Working to Advance Tangible and Effective Reforms (WATER) for California Act. Ahead of the hearing, members of the committee received a presentation and tour of Friant Dam from Friant Water Authority and toured a local dairy farm impacted by recent flooding. The Subcommittee heard testimony from water stakeholders and farmers directly impacted by California's water storage problems.  

“The devastating flooding impacting the Central Valley right now emphasizes the urgent need to be proactive about fixing our water storage and infrastructure issues so that we are better prepared for these kinds of weather events, and resilient to periods of drought,” said Congressman Valadao. “If we don’t take action to fix the complex and contradictory laws and regulations that control how much we’re able to pump, and what storage projects we’re able to move forward, our ability to feed the nation will  be in jeopardy. Thank you to Chairman Westerman for bringing the Natural Resources Committee to the Central Valley to hear firsthand about some of our area’s water problems and how the WATER for California Act could address some of these challenges. I also want to thank Subcommittee Chairman Cliff Bentz for his continued leadership on this important issue.”

Chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee Bruce Westerman (AR-04), Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries Chairman Cliff Bentz (OR-02), Reps. John Duarte (CA-13), Tom McClintock (CA-05), Jim Costa (CA-21), and Doug LaMalfa (CA-01) joined Rep. David Valadao (CA-222) in the hearing.

Watch the full hearing here.