Congressman Dennis Cardoza
18th Congressional District of California

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Cardoza joined with his colleagues from the San Joaquin Valley in a bipartisan effort to direct water from the San Joaquin Delta to local Valley growers and farmers.

In recent years, water deliveries to Valley agriculture have been significantly reduced. A federal judge’s ruling has ordered curtailments of water as a means of protecting endangered fish in the Delta. Cardoza and others have countered that the pumps are not the sole cause of declines in fish populations and that a comprehensive study of the Delta ecosystem is needed before placing undue and severe hardship on Valley farmers.
During a Rules Committee hearing today, Congressmen George Radanovich (R-Fresno) and Devin Nunes (R-Visalia) each offered two amendments to H.R. 2442, the Bay Area Regional Water Recycling Program Expansion Act of 2009.

One amendment from Congressman Radanovich would have blocked the legislation from taking effect until the Two Gates project is in place.  This project calls for placing gates in front of the Delta pumps that provide water to Valley farmers.  The aim is to protect fish from being sucked into the intakes. The other amendment adds the text of H.R. 856, the California Drought Alleviation Act of 2009, to the end of the bill.  Under the Drought Alleviation Act, which Congressman Cardoza is a co-sponsor of, the W.W. Bill Jones Pumping Plant and the Harvey O. Banks Pumping Plant would receive exemptions from the federal Endangered Species Act.  This in turn would allow the pumping stations to provide much needed water to Valley farmers and growers during times of drought emergency.

The amendments from Congressman Nunes call for a suspension of the Endangered Species Act as a means of providing water to growers in the Valley.  This would prevent the implementation of the December 15, 2008 Biological Opinion by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and the June 4, 2009 Biological Opinion by the National Marine Fisheries Service, which relate to the Delta smelt and the salmon, steelhead, green sturgeon and killer whales, respectively.

Congressman Cardoza voted in favor of the Radanovich and Nunes amendments to ensure they would receive a vote before the entire House of Representatives on Thursday.  Ultimately, however, the amendments were defeated by a vote of 5 to 6.  The rule passed the Rules Committee by a vote of 6 to 5, with Congressman Cardoza opposing the rule because the Radanovich and Nunes amendments were not made in order.

During debate in the Rules Committee, Congressman Cardoza joined with his Central Valley colleagues in pleading for a solution to the Central Valley water crisis. He further added, “I have been and will continue to pursue common-sense, workable solutions.  But my definition of ‘crisis’ is a disaster that requires an immediate response.  The fact is, there are greater things at play and it’s time to send a strong message that not enough is being done to address the Valley’s water needs.”