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Hastings Opposes Democrat Leaders’ Misplaced Priorities, Calls
for Relief for San Joaquin Valley Farmers and Families
“If the House is
going to provide authorization to spend tens of millions of
taxpayer dollars to provide recycled water to the San
Francisco Bay area, then this House should also be voting on
legislation that brings relief to Californians suffering from
this devastating
man-made
drought.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. –
Today, House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Doc
Hastings (WA-04) delivered the following speech regarding the
Bay Area Regional Water Program Recycling Act of 2009 (H.R.
2442). While Ranking Member Hastings supports water recycling,
he believes that Democrat Congressional leaders should use
this bill to also deliver immediate relief to California’s San
Joaquin Valley where 40,000 people are unemployed due to a
man-made, regulatory drought. Unfortunately, Democrat
Leaders did not allow a single amendment to be offered to help
farmers in the San Joaquin Valley. Full video and text
of the speech follows:
Click HERE to watch the floor speech
“Mr. Speaker, I
rise to reluctantly oppose this bill.
I, and my
colleagues on this side of the aisle, do support water
recycling as one of the tools for providing water to farmers
and communities – just as water storage is one of these tools.
The Democrat
sponsor of this legislation, and the Democrat manager of this
bill, is correct that Republican water recycling bills have
passed this House. The question is asked, why is this bill
different?
The answer is very
simple.
When there is an
economic disaster occurring in the San Joaquin Valley of
California… when a man-made and government-enforced drought
has dried up farm after farm… with 40,000 workers unemployed,
standing in food lines, and being ignored by the Democrat
leadership of this Congress… when solutions to bring water
and relief to this area are blocked and stymied by the
Democrat leadership of this House,… then a point comes when
Members have to say enough is enough.
The water recycling
bill before us benefits the San Francisco Bay Area. The
Speaker of the House represents the City of San Francisco, and
among her top deputies is the sponsor of this legislation,
also from the Bay Area.
The bill provides
millions in federal taxpayer dollars for the Bay Area…all
while tens of thousands of their fellow citizens suffer
economic devastation just a few hours south in the San
Joaquin Valley.
All that was sought
by two Republican Members from the San Joaquin Valley, with
the expressed support of their Democrat colleague from the
same area of California, was to have a chance to make their
case on the House floor and to vote on a solution to this
disaster.
They didn’t ask for
a guarantee of victory. They just asked for the ability to be
heard and have the U.S. House of Representatives vote on their
proposals.
That chance has
been denied.
It’s been blocked.
It’s been deemed
non-germane.
It’s been labeled
as irrelevant to the bill before us.
Mr. Speaker, might
does not make right when it comes to who controls this House…
and what they are unwilling to do would help tens of thousands
suffering as a result of lawsuits and the policies and actions
of the federal government.
It’s been stated
that the drought disaster is a California issue. The
implication is that it is not of concern to other Americans.
This is simply wrong.
What is happening
in the San Joaquin Valley of California does affect all
Americans. If this water recycling bill to benefit the Bay
Area is worthy of consideration by the Representatives of all
fifty states here in the House,… then so is the drought
disaster.
If this can happen
in California, then what of the farmers in the San Joaquin
Washington state district that I represent? Hundreds of
thousands of acres of farmland are irrigated with water
delivered by federal pumps and from federal reservoirs.
I do not ever want
to see the day that a government-enforced drought devastates
the communities that I represent.
This isn’t the
first instance when federal policies have threatened to cut
off water to tens of thousands.
Earlier this
decade, the City of Albuquerque was threatened with the loss
of its water supply due to the presence of the silvery
minnow. Congress acted to provide relief to New Mexico when
the House and Senate, in a bipartisan way, voted for a remedy.
Today, no relief
comes to the San Joaquin Valley of California as it did to the
people of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
The relief that is
sought is not a bailout. It’s not a plea for money or
stimulus funding. The relief they seek simply involves action
by the federal government to let water flow to the farmers of
this fertile valley, rather than letting it run out to sea.
If the House is
going to provide authorization to spend tens of millions of
taxpayer dollars to provide recycled water to the San
Francisco Bay area, then this House should also be voting on
legislation that brings relief to Californians suffering from
this devastating man-made drought.
So, Mr. Speaker, on
these grounds, I urge a no vote on this bill.”
Background on California’s Man-Made Drought
·
California’s water storage and transportation system includes
1,200 miles of canals and nearly 50 reservoirs that provide
water to 23 million people and irrigate four million acres of
land throughout the state.
·
In May 2007, a Federal District Court Judge ruled that
increased amounts of water had to be re-allocated towards
protecting the Delta smelt – a three-inch fish on the
Endangered Species List.
·
Because of this ruling, more than 150 billion gallons of water
this year alone will be diverted away from farmers in the San
Joaquin Valley and into the San Francisco Bay – eventually
going out into the Pacific Ocean.
·
For the first time ever, farmers on the west-side of the San
Joaquin Valley were told they would receive 0% water
allocation from the Bureau of Reclamation for their crops this
season. That number was subsequently increased to a mere 10%.
·
The lack of water has caused 500,000 acres of farm land to dry
up – a land mass equivalent to the size of the State of Rhode
Island. Also, according to a May 2009 report by U.C. Davis,
the water restrictions have left nearly 40,000 people
unemployed.
·
The Central Valley town of Mendota, which recently had to turn
away unemployed farm families from food lines, is currently
experiencing a 40% unemployment rate.
·
Because California is the number one agricultural producer in
the United States, no water means a smaller food supply,
higher food prices nationwide, and increased reliance on
foreign food sources.
·
There is no proof that this water loss to the ocean will
actually benefit the Delta smelt. And despite calls for help
from Republicans, Chairman Rahall and Speaker Pelosi refuse to
temporarily suspend portions of the Endangered Species Act, as
they consented for the snail darter in Tennessee and the
silvery minnow in New Mexico, in order to return the flow of
water to the farmers in the San Joaquin Valley. Furthermore,
the Obama Administration continues to turn down California’s
requests for emergency assistance.
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