WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman David G. Valadao (CA-22) released the following statement after the House passed H.R. 4394 - Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2024. Among other provisions, the bill text includes Rep. Valadao’s Working to Advance Tangible and Effective Reforms (WATER) for California Act.

“Ensuring communities throughout the Central Valley have access to a clean, reliable water supply is my top priority,” said Congressman Valadao. “Without a reliable water supply, our farmers, ranchers, and producers in California’s Central Valley won’t be able to grow food for the nation. The strength of our local economies, livelihoods, and government services depend on access to this critical resource.

“For too long, complex and contradictory laws and regulations that control how much water we’re able to pump, and what storage projects we’re able to build and use, have amplified water shortage problems across the western United States.  This bill will help alleviate some of these issues by providing eligibility for funding for the Shasta project and bringing much needed accountability to the way water is managed. I look forward to working with my colleagues to continue advancing this critical legislation for the Central Valley.”

Congressman Valadao’s water legislation is included in Title V of the Energy and Water Appropriations Bill, which is available here.  

• Requires the Central Valley Project (CVP) and State Water Project (SWP) be operated consistent with the 2019 Biological Opinions (BiOps), which were independently peer-reviewed and informed by the most accurate, best available science, but allows modification under certain circumstances.
• Why it matters: The 2019 BiOps and Preferred Alternative inform corresponding long-term operations plans for the CVP and SWP. The Biden administration’s misguided attempt to reverse the 2019 BiOps has caused significant uncertainty for Valley farmers about their water supply.
• Helps to ensure CVP and SWP water stakeholders receive the water they contract and pay for.
• Why it matters: For the past two years, excluding the 2023 water year, South-of-Delta agricultural repayment and water service contractors have received zero percent of their allocation from the CVP. This has resulted in extreme water loss for both agricultural producers and rural communities.
• Provides eligibility for funding for the Shasta Enlargement Project.
• Why it matters: The Shasta Enlargement Project is the most per acre/foot cost-effective water storage project in California, but the infrastructure bill explicitly excludes any of the $1.15B allocated for storage projects from going to the Shasta Project.
• Reauthorizes the successful surface water storage project program and coordinated operations of the CVP and SWP established by the WIIN Act.
• Why it matters: Water storage is critical to better preparing communities for drought conditions. The authorities under the WIIN Act that brought more water to the Valley expired in 2021, and this bill extends the storage project authorizations to 2028 and the operations provisions of the WIIN Act to 2033