Senate committee hears support for bill to fund Delta levee and State Water Project repairs

Senator Mark McNerney asked the Senate Committee on Appropriations to place SB 872 on the suspense file after presenting the bill as a targeted response to failing Delta levees and subsiding State Water Project canals. "Water is basically a human right," McNerney said, and he described the bill as creating a fund that, upon appropriation, would direct $300,000,000 a year for 20 years toward levee and canal repairs, with the authority to accept general, special, greenhouse-gas reduction and bond funds.

Morgan Snyder, director of policy and programs at Restore the Delta, testified in support and urged the committee to fund levee upgrades she said are critical to protect Delta residents, tribal resources, agriculture and ecosystems. "Repair and maintenance of Delta levees are currently funded through a combination of state, local, and federal funding streams," Snyder said. She told the committee that many levees date to the late 1800s and early 1900s and do not meet U.S. Army Corps of Engineers standards. Snyder characterized the need as urgent and said the total estimated need is about $3,000,000,000; in her oral remarks she described SB 872 as a "proactive investment of $150,000,000 over 20 years" to make measurable progress.

Jennifer Pierre, general manager for the State Water Contractors, said the State Water Project moves water to roughly 27 million Californians and underpins agriculture and other statewide economic activity. Pierre cited a DWR estimate that the State Water Project repairs could cost about $3,000,000,000 and emphasized that subsidence has reduced canal efficiency, increasing the risk to water deliveries. "A functioning delivery system is critical," she said, and urged an aye vote to ensure state contributions accompany recent federal commitments for federally owned canals.

Committee members voiced support for prioritizing the infrastructure in the appropriations drop, noting the final funding decisions would occur later in the appropriations process. Without opposition, and with authors and multiple water agencies expressing support, the committee placed SB 872 on the suspense file for further consideration by appropriators.

Why this matters: Committee members and witnesses framed SB 872 as an attempt to avert catastrophic levee failure and preserve water reliability for millions of Californians; the bill would create a funding mechanism that can accept multiple funding sources but does not itself appropriate money. The bill will be considered in the appropriations budget decision process.