Washington, D.C. – Congressman Jerry McNerney (D-Stockton) wrote to the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development of U.S. House Appropriations Committee today, requesting that the committee takes action to ensure a cost-per-taxpayer analysis be conducted on any plan related to the Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP). He also wrote to the Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee to request that language be included in this year’s appropriations bill preventing the Department of the Interior from evaluating any permit related to the BDCP before a comprehensive analysis is conducted of how to improve the state’s water supply and preserve the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
“I will use all of the tools at my disposal to help ensure that any plan moving forward related to the BDCP is based on comprehensive analysis and accurate science. As it stands, the current plan includes no input from the farmers, families and small business owners who stand to see their livelihoods destroyed, and we cannot let that happen. These people must have their voices included in the process,” said Congressman McNerney.
Congressman McNerney suggested the inclusion of the following language in this year’s Energy and Water Development and Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bills:
- No federal agency shall issue a permit or assist in the planning of the Bay Delta Conservation Plan until the pro rata cost of such plan for taxpayers who file income tax returns in California is determined and a report issued to the House and Senate on such costs
- The Department of Interior shall not evaluate any permit application in relation to the Bay Delta Conservation Plan unless the plan includes a comprehensive analysis of how to improve and expand water storage, water reuse, and water recycling efforts in order to reduce water exports from the San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta
Estimates for BDCP place the project’s cost anywhere from $12-20 billion. To date, the state of California has not identified the cost to taxpayers. Furthermore, there has yet to be a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis on the proposed plan. The federal government conducts cost-benefit analyses on a wide range of projects and environmental rules, and the BDCP should be held to the same standards and oversight.
“No plan should be moving forward without the input of all parties that stand to be affected, and the Department of Interior should be assisting in that process. To decimate one of the state’s most robust water resources without comprehensive input, scientific study, and a thorough examination of the potential cost of such a project is foolhardy and a disservice to the taxpayers from across California who will foot the bill,” said Congressman McNerney.
The letters Congressman McNerney sent to the Appropriations Subcommittees on Energy and Water Development and Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies can be seen here and here .
