Free Republic

What happened the $7.5 Billion Water Bond Money that voters approved in 2014? Some are asking that question today after Governor Jerry Brown announced he wants to spend $437 million to deal with California's aging water infrastructure that the Governor says is "maxed out." Exhibit "A' would be crumbling infrastructure at Oroville Dam. So, what about that Water Bond Measure? Back in 2014 California voters approved Proposition 1. The $7.5 billion dollar bond measure passed with 67% of the vote. So far, only about $177 million dollars of that has been spent. According to the Public Policy Institute of California...

In the event of a major earthquake or flood and many levees failing simultaneously in California's Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, as many as 515,000 residents and 520,000 acres of land would be in immediate danger; the long term effects could be even more widespread, as nearly 28 million residents depend on the Delta for water and irrigation; California lawmakers have increasingly turned their attention to securing the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta's levees, but experts say that only little progress has been made After witnessing the destructive potential of broken levees during Hurricane Katrina, California lawmakers have increasingly turned their attention...

Sacramento -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who promised not to sign any bills until lawmakers reach a budget deal, reversed his position today and signed a bill for a statewide bullet train system that he strongly supports. The governor also wants to make exceptions for three other proposals that he has been promoting: budget reform; changing the state lottery to allow California to borrow against future ticket sales; and a bond proposal for water infrastructure. The high-speed rail legislation will replace a $10 billion bond measure on the November ballot with a revised version of the proposal that makes the bullet...

SACRAMENTO – With scattered rationing punishing cities and farms statewide, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein Thursday jointly unveiled a $9.3 billion water bond proposal, convinced that fears over prolonged shortages and environmental collapse in the vital Sacramento delta will be enough to overcome resistance to building dams and a north-to-south delivery canal. Schwarzenegger, a Republican, and Feinstein, a Democrat, plan to aggressively push lawmakers to approve taking the bond measure to voters in November. The plan still faces tough odds. The ballot is already crowded with controversial initiatives addressing same-sex marriage, abortions for minors and caged farm...

SACRAMENTO -- A new water bond has risen from the ruins of two weeks of backbiting and false hope. Good thing too. U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, an influential Democrat, has sent a letter accusing Democrat leaders of blocking progress on negotiations over how to respond to California's water crisis and subtly threatening to back a GOP/pro-business bond if they don't get their act together. State Sen. Mike Machado, a Linden Democrat who has been actively pursuing a deal and working with Republicans regularly, submitted a $6.8 billion compromise Thursday. Significantly, Machado's announcement included words of encouragement from Sen. Dave Cogdill,...

A long-stalled attempt to place an unprecedented water bond before California voters on Feb. 5 is making new progress, with a proposed $10 billion plan that would include money for both groundwater and surface storage. A final agreement could be reached by the end of this week, with floor votes in the Senate and Assembly by next week. If approved by voters, the bond would be nearly double the size of the water quality bond that voters authorized last year, about $5.4 billion. That bond was part of a larger infrastructure improvement package approved by voters to overhaul California's aging...