February 22, 2018 - WASHINGTON – On Wednesday, Feb. 14, U.S. Representative Jeff DenhamJeff Denham (R-Turlock) spoke at a hearing with the House Natural Resources Committee Subcommittee on Water, Power and Oceans where he addressed legislation he authored to bring more water to the Central Valley.
 
Rep. Denham authored H.R. 434, the New WATER Act, to authorize a pilot project to help finance development of water resource infrastructure in reclamation states, such as California. The bill encourages private investment in systems that serve the public interest by providing low-interest, government-backed loans with a long repayment period. In order to be approved, projects must be capable of generating sustainable revenue streams, whether through user fees or other dedicated sources.
 
The New WATER Act, if signed into law, will provide a direct benefit to California ratepayers and help bring down the costs of major California water infrastructure projects. California alone has 12 projects being held up by Sacramento that could be helped by this legislation. 
 
Jim Watson, general manager of the Sites Project Authority, testified at the hearing: “On a project like Sites, which will add as much as 1.8 million acre-feet of off stream surface water storage north of the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta, greatly increasing the reliability of statewide water supplies for environmental, agricultural and urban uses, financing from the New WATER Act could drive down the cost of water by 20-25 percent or more.”
 
Rep. Denham: “This is something that’s affected our state, but certainly the Central Valley, where we’ve seen water tables dry up, community water systems completely empty, and the economic viability of certain towns completely dried up as well. I do believe this is a social justice issue and one that we’ve got to resolve.”
Source: Congressman Jeff Denham