California governor proposes $1 billion for drought relief

With snow pack in the Sierra Nevada mountains at or near all-time lows and his state facing a fourth consecutive year of extreme drought, California Governor Jerry Brown has proposed a $1 billion package of drought relief to expedite projects aimed at conserving water and helping communities. The proposal includes little in the way of new money, drawing mostly from previous bond authorizations—including a $7.5 billion water bond approved by California voters in November 2014—but it would accelerate the distribution of funds to help water infrastructure projects get started and to provide food and water to struggling communities. “This drought shows no sign of abating, and this package is a welcome step to accelerate relief to communities that are hardest hit,” said Timothy Quinn, executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies. “The expedited bond funding will help needed projects get out of the gate more rapidly—including recycled water projects that are ready to go and can be brought online relatively quickly. It also jump-starts some longer term projects that will help improve the resiliency of our system to combat future droughts.”