Rep. Darrell Issa and other Congressional Republicans Thursday successfully navigated a controversial new water bill through the U.S. House of Representatives despite vocal opposition from House Democrats, among them Rep. Scott Peters.
Introduced by Rep. David Valadao, a Republican representing Kings County and parts of Bakersfield, the Western Water and American Food Security Act of 2015 (HR 2829) would loosen environmental regulations surrounding the amount of water pumped from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to drought-stricken, agricultural areas. In a statement released Thursday, Issa said the bill would “make water more readily available to communities in California and western states by expanding our water infrastructure, allowing for more water conveyance and storage.”
The bill passed the House 245-176, though only five Democrats voted in support. Peters took to the House floor to voice his opposition, saying the bill “undermines the State of California’s water policies to move water away from one set of communities and into different ones.”
The White House has vocally opposed the bill, saying that should it make it to President Obama’s desk he would likely veto it.
The bill is unlikely to make it that far, however, as it faces much opposition in the Senate, where Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein says that the bill violates environmental law and primarily benefits large agribusinesses in the state. California’s other Democratic Senator, Barbara Boxer, has introduced an alternative water bill, dubbed the Water in the 21st Century Act (S 176), which is still in committee.
