Cut State Water Projects Ties to State Budget

Tuesday, 15 March 2011

Sacramento Bee
Terry Erlewine, General Manager, State Water Contractors

The State Water Project delivers water to more than 25 million Californians and 750,000 acres of farmland. For 50 years it has reliably powered California's economy and provided the foundation on which families, farms and businesses succeed. But in recent years its reliability has faltered due to the state's unending fiscal crisis.

As recently as December 2010, the SWP was unable to deliver more than 70,000 acre-feet of water because understaffing delayed needed maintenance and repair. One acre-foot of water is more than 325,000 gallons, or enough to cover a football field one foot deep. Making the SWP reliable for the next 50 years will require changes in how it is operated and maintained.

Recently, the Public Policy Institute of California released a report called "Managing California's Water, From Conflict to Reconciliation." One of its recommendations is to improve the SWP by making it an independent utility, separate from the California Department of Water Resources.

PPIC's recommendation echoes a similar recommendation last August by the Little Hoover Commission. Both think tanks are highly respected, nonpartisan policy organizations. Individually, their recommendations get noticed. Collectively, their recommendations require action.

While the SWP has long functioned as a utility, according to the Little Hoover Commission this purpose is sometimes inconsistent with the Department of Water Resources' broader functions. The commission notes that the department's role as the SWP operator conflicts with its broader statewide responsibilities to plan and manage the state's overall water supply.

The Little Hoover Commission recommends that the state maintain its oversight, policy and environmental responsibilities, but shift day-to-day operations, maintenance and water-delivery activities to an independent public entity.

Creating an independent public entity removes the SWP from the politics of the state budget. The money to run the SWP comes from the 29 public water agencies that receive water from it, not from the taxpayers. Yet, because it is part of the state bureaucracy, the SWP is subject to furloughs, hiring freezes and other across-the-board actions that cut its ability to efficiently deliver water, but don't reduce the budget deficit by one dime.

The SWP's employees represent the best of the best when it comes to operating a world-class water system. They're highly skilled and dedicated and consistently work above and beyond the call of duty. But right now, they're being prevented from doing everything necessary to maintain the water delivery system. That's bad for morale and for the families, farms and businesses that rely on a safe and reliable water supply. We can and should protect our water supply by separating the SWP from the state and protecting it and its employees from the consequences of endless budget deficits.

This idea is not new. The Central Coast Water Authority is a local public agency that operates and maintains the Coastal Branch of the SWP and delivers water to Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. Separating the rest of the SWP from the state can be accomplished in the same way the Coastal Branch was separated in 1991. Likewise, water contractors of the Central Valley Project have been in charge of operations and maintenance of Delta pumping facilities and other key infrastructure since 1992.

Gov. Jerry Brown, in his effort to solve the state's budget challenges, is looking for ways to bring government closer to the people. Part of his effort is to localize services that are better provided by municipal and regional governments.

Transferring operations and maintenance of the SWP to local public agencies that can protect its financial integrity, protect its employees from budget deficits and reverse the decline of its reliability will ensure the SWP will be able to support California's economy and its environment for generations to come.