As a lifelong democrat, an elected water board member (since 2003) and current board President of Newhall County Water District (NCWD), I am a strong supporter of recently passed legislation to create the new Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency. I am now hopeful that Governor Jerry Brown will sign the legislation, which passed with overwhelmingly bipartisan support.
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The story of how we arrived at the cusp of a new era of water management for the Santa Clarita Valley is a testament to how we work better together.
In 14 years as an elected water representative, I have seen our local agencies do many great things, and our valley is well planned for water, even in times of drought. However, I have also seen way too many public time and money spent on “turf battles” and “dividing up the pie” on piecemeal actions when really we are all one watershed and one community.
My “day job” is environmental engineering, and as an engineer, I hate to see inefficiency. I was involved in negotiating the terms of the legal settlement that led to both NCWD and Castaic Lake water Agency (CLWA) agreeing to come together and do things better for the Valley. Both agencies’ elected officials know we can do better, together, with a fresh start with conditions cemented in place to protect our customers. Many late night meetings brought us to 14 or 15 of us at CLWA and NCWD supporting deal points that included legislation that became SB634.
This was one of the proudest moments of my life as a public servant. To see two agencies agree to set aside egos and seek to do things better was inspiring. This was not “politics as usual,” but rather an example of watershed-wide water governance that can become a model for other areas. This moment will likely not come again in our Valley.
And the benefits for our community will be tangible and lasting, including:
- Upwards of $14 million of savings in the first 10 years
- Equal voting rights and representation for the first time in our Valley
- Stronger protections for the Upper Santa Clara River Watershed
- A commitment to local and veteran hiring for $200 million in planning recycled water projects
That is why I am tremendously hopeful that Governor Jerry Brown sign SB 634 to make this once-in-a-generation opportunity a reality.
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Oh brother, the hype is incredible. HOw can they be reducing costs and hiring veterns, They’re not going to be hiring, the are going to be letting people go. (Attrition they claim, as they said in all the informational meetings). These guys will say anything to get complete control of our water supply under CLWA. Gutzeit should be ashamed of herself. She was not elected to eliminate her water district, she was elected to manage it.
And here’s more interesting news about this terrible bill out just a few days ago. You’ve got to wonder why our Senator Wilk wanted to help Jerry Brown and his sister. What is going on? Why is no one reporting this?
Consumer Watchdog: Will Governor Really Sign Bill Benefiting Sister’s Development Company?
Oct 6, 2017, 2:39pm EDT
SANTA MONICA, Calif., Oct. 6, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Governor Brown’s sister Kathleen was paid $122,667 in 2016 as a member of the board of Five Point Holdings, a developer about to benefit from Governor Jerry Brown’s signature on a bill crafted to ensure that its controversial planned community called Newhall Ranch has plentiful access to water in a thirsty desert, Consumer Watchdog said today.
“It’s outrageous that the Governor would consider signing legislation that benefits just one company, let alone one where his sister sits on the Board,” said consumer advocate Liza Tucker. “Governor Brown should veto the legislation. Unfortunately, this could be just the latest in what looks like a pattern of companies paying Kathleen Brown to be a director and benefiting from that association.”
Kathleen Brown joined the board of Sempra Energy, owner of Southern California Gas and of San Diego Gas & Electric, in 2013 and has been paid $1 million for her work. Brown’s regulators at the Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources approved the reopening of the Aliso Canyon natural gas reserve before revealing what caused the biggest methane well blowout in US history or who was responsible. Brown’s PUC concurred in that decision though the well is not needed for energy reliability and residents who live near the damaged well continue to report illnesses.
For more on Kathleen Brown, Sempra, and how the company has benefited, see: http://www.consumerwatchdog.org/PowerPlay
The Newhall Ranch development will be one more source of revenue to feed Brown’s massive pet Twin Tunnels project routing Sacramento River water under the San Francisco Bay Delta to the South. The tunnels will endanger the environment, cost billions more than necessary to shore up infrastructure, and bring no additional water to Los Angeles, said Tucker.
The legislation, SB 634, specifically authorizes the reconstituted agency to “acquire water and water rights, including water from the State Water Project…” which is supposed to pick up 55 percent of the tunnels’ cost.
“Kathleen Brown’s presence on the board, acknowledged in a Five Point Holdings summer 2017 prospectus filed with the SEC, may have been one reason that the legislation was introduced,” said Tucker. “Her presence on various boards, including Sempra Energy which is pushing for Southern California ratepayers to finance a giant natural gas pipeline to export liquid natural gas abroad, raises questions about whether the public’s business is really about the business of corporations at public expense.”
Kathleen Brown is a partner in the government and regulatory practice of the powerful lobbying and legal firm of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips.
The Newhall Ranch community, first proposed in the 1980s, is slated to be built in northern Los Angeles County and will provide 21,500 houses and more than 11 million square feet of commercial space house, as well as golf courses, schools and recreational centers along the Santa Clara River. The project has raised questions about where water will come from to feed such a dense community, and the additional pollution and urban sprawl that it will create far away from regional job centers. Five Point is also developing communities around Great Park in Orange County and at the San Francisco Shipyard and Candlestick Point.
SB 634 would merge the Newhall County Water District with the much-larger Castaic Lake Water Agency to create the Santa Clarita Valley Water Agency that would feed surface, ground, and recycled water to a sprawling new development planned by Five Point. The legislation abolishes the right of taxpayers to vote on any such dissolution or merger of the Newhall County Water District, which residents have protested.
The project was stalled by environmentalists filing legal challenges, but a settlement was recently reached with some of the groups when Five Point agreed to provide about $25 million for conservation efforts aimed at protecting a rare fish, and to fund a cultural center on ancestral Indian lands.
View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/consumer-watchdog-will-governor-really-sign-bill-benefiting-sisters-development-company-300532684.html
SOURCE Consumer Watchdog
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