Water

Water

Water

Approximately two-thirds of California's water supply originates north of the Delta, a great portion of which is within the counties I represent. Northern California water users hold longstanding superior water rights, many of which predate the construction of either the Central Valley Project or State Water Project. As such, I will always fight to ensure our area of origin water rights are fully protected and enforced.

In Congress, I have been working hard to build new water storage, such as Sites Reservoir. If this project existed right now, we would be able to store nearly 280 billion gallons of water this year, enough to serve 6.3 million Californians. My legislation authorizing the construction of Sites, as well as language guaranteeing more water for the North State to protect us from water grabs, has been included in every water bill considered in Congress.

For more information concerning my work and views related to Water, please contact me.
 

More on Water

Congressman LaMalfa Demands Meaningful Solutions to Wildfires and Drought in the West

Jul 29, 2022 Press Release
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R – Richvale) voted against the Democrats’ “Wildfire Response and Drought Resiliency Act”. Instead of green-lighting proven wildfire prevention activities such as landscape scale thinning and responsible harvesting, this bill creates more red tape and duplicative processes that will bog down existing Forest Service work. This bill claims to increase wildland firefighter pay, when in fact all crewmembers already earn above the proposed minimum pay, and it excludes nearly 40% of the federal wildland firefighting workforce from the “new benefits” promised in the legislation. This bill fails to address the root causes of catastrophic wildfires or implement aggressive landscape management practices, instead forces the Forest Service spend years creating a new 10-year strategy to confront wildfires - only six months after the agency completed its planning to implement a new 10-year strategy.

LaMalfa: “Water Changes Were Needed Months Ago”

Apr 6, 2022 Press Release
Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R – Richvale) commented on the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) and California Department of Water Recourses’ (DWR) announcement that they have issued a Temporary Urgency Change Petition (TUCP) to California water operations. The new order allows DWR and BOR to conserve more water in Shasta and Oroville, reduce Delta outflow requirements for salinity, and reduce the mandatory minimum flows in the river to save water. There had been a TUCP in place for much of the fall, however, BOR and the DWR allowed it to lapse in January. Congressmen LaMalfa, McCarthy, McClintock, Valadao, and Calvert had asked for this additional flexibility to be issued in February in order to store additional water during the winter months.

Rep LaMalfa Responds to Governor Newsom’s Drought Announcement

Mar 28, 2022 Press Release
Washington D.C. -Today, Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) responded to Governor Newsom’s proclamation extending the statewide drought emergency and request that the California Water Board pressure cities and urban water districts move to a Tier 2 drought, meaning they would mandate 10-20% reduction in water use and eliminate water usage of certain ornamental uses. In California, the environment receives roughly 50% of all water in the state, followed by agriculture at 40% and urban/ manufacturing at 10%.

LaMalfa Announces Sites Reservoir Now Eligible for $2.2 Billion in Low Interest Loans

Mar 17, 2022 Press Release
Washington, D.C. – Today, the United States Environmental Protection Agency formally invited the Sites Project Authority to apply for a Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) program loan. In total, Sites will be eligible for up to $2.2 billion in low-interest loans, which accounts for 49% of the project’s cost. Although the WIFIA program is primarily used for wastewater and drinking water systems, the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 directed the EPA and Reclamation to work towards opening the program to some Reclamation water projects as well. In October 2019, the Trump Administration completed a Memorandum of Understanding between EPA and Reclamation to create a WIFIA process for Reclamation projects. In July 2021, Congressmen LaMalfa and Garamendi led a bipartisan letter with other members of the California delegation asking the EPA to allow the Sites Project Authority to apply for a WIFIA loan.

Congressman LaMalfa Leads Letter Requesting More Flexible Water Operations In Water Year 2022

Feb 25, 2022 Press Release
Washington, D.C. – Yesterday, Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R – Calif) led a group of California Congressional Members in a letter to the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) and the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) requesting them to jointly resubmit a Temporary Urgency Change Petition (TUCP) for Water Year 2022 to the California State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) to lower operational requirements over the next several months due to the worsening drought conditions. Members of the California delegation, including Congressman Kevin McCarthy (R – Calif), Congressman Ken Calvert (R – Calif), Congressman Tom McClintock (R – Calif), and Congressman David Valadao (R – Calif) joined.

LaMalfa Sets Priorities as Executive Vice Chair of Western Caucus

Feb 3, 2022 Press Release
Washington, D.C. – Yesterday the Congressional Western Caucus hosted a 2022 Kick-off Chairmen’s Briefing to outline their goals and priorities for the Caucus in 2022. Chairman Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.), Senate Western Caucus Chairman Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Republican Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), and other members of the Caucus discussed their policy priorities for the upcoming year. The Congressional Western Caucus is made up of over 60 Members who serve as the voice of rural America in Congress. Many of the Caucus’s policy priorities for the upcoming year regard improvements in domestic energy policy, private property rights, water policy, forest revitalization, and farming and agriculture.

Democrats Ignore Sediment Concerns on Proposed Klamath Dam Removal

Sep 20, 2021 Press Release

(Washington, D.C.) Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) issued the following statement following consideration of his amendment to improve the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' understanding of sediment-related hazards by studying the failures of the Condit Dam removal project. 

LaMalfa: Klamath Dam Removal Plan is a Man-Made Disaster

Aug 30, 2021 Press Release

(Washington, D.C.) Representative Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) issued the following statement after submitting comments to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) related to its plan to conduct an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed removal of four hydroelectric dams located along the Klamath River. Three of these facilities, Iron Gate, Copco 1, and Copco 2, are located in Siskiyou County within California's 1st Congressional District. The fourth dam, J.C.

LaMalfa: Newsom Administration Wasted Water

Aug 6, 2021 Press Release

(Chico, CA) Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) issued the following statement after Hyatt Power Plant at Lake Oroville official stopped making power today.  Hyatt can make up to 900 megawatts and typically produces 450 megawatts of power, enough to power 800,000 homes.  Because of low water levels, only 10 megawatts had been produced in recently. Today the power plant went offline as the lake’s water level sank to one of the lowest levels on record.
 

State and Federal Representatives Decry CA Water, Power, and Wildfire Mismanagement

Aug 6, 2021 Press Release

OROVILLE – Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale), Senator Jim Nielsen (R-Tehama), and Assemblyman James Gallagher (R-Yuba City) joined forces today at Lake Oroville to demand urgent action to address the gross mismanagement of the state’s water, power, and wildlands. The lawmakers spoke to the media above the Hyatt Power Plant, which will soon stop generating electricity for the first time in history due to low water levels at Lake Oroville.

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