- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
Governor vetoes funds for Clear Lake restoration, orders state agencies to work with county on solutions
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – A $1 million appropriation Lake County's state legislators had managed to have included in the 2015-16 state budget survived the negotiations process right up to the last minute, but was not included in the final document approved by Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday.
Instead, Brown exercised his line-item veto power – known as the “blue pencil” – and removed the money that Assemblyman Bill Dodd (D-Napa) and Sen. Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg) had worked to get for lake restoration projects.
The $1 million appropriation had been included in Assembly Bill 93, the Budget Act of 2015 by Assemblywoman Shirley N. Weber (D-San Diego). Along with that bill, the governor signed 17 related acts on Wednesday to bring the budget process in on time.
Clear Lake's appropriation was one of several items Brown either reduced or removed from AB 93, according to the final state budget document released on Wednesday.
Dodd and McGuire had proposed that the $1 million for wetland restoration, water quality improvement and manage invasive species come from the Fish and Game Preservation Fund Budget.
However, the legislators had been concerned in recent weeks that the governor might blue pencil the appropriation after a Department of Finance staffer questioned it in a Budget Conference Committee meeting, as Lake County News has reported.
As a result, local government and business leaders had rallied to send letters of support to the governor, urging him to OK the funds.
Despite reports that the Fish and Game Preservation Fund's budget was projecting a $25 million surplus for the coming year, in his veto message Brown said he was removing the item because the “Fish and Game Preservation Fund has a structural deficit and cannot absorb additional expenditures.”
He added, “There are existing grant programs that are available and appropriate to support the restoration of Clear Lake. I am directing my Administration to provide technical assistance to Lake County to assist them in identifying and applying for ecosystem restoration and drinking water grant funding.”
Along with that, the State Water Resources Control Board and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife said Wednesday that they had been directed by the governor to work with McGuire and Dodd to identify sources of state or other funding to help address the significant water quality problems plaguing Clear Lake.
“Clear Lake’s problems of deteriorating drinking water quality, loss of wetlands and threats of invasive species have been exacerbated by the ongoing drought. Voters recently approved Proposition 1, which provides significant amounts of funding for improving drinking water and ecosystem restoration,” the agencies said in a joint statement.
The State Water Resources Control Board and Fish and Wildlife said they have identified other funding sources – such as low interest loans – “that could be combined with possible Proposition 1 allocations to provide up to 100 percent of drinking water quality improvement project costs, in addition to funding for projects qualified under the ecosystem restoration program.”
State officials said they will work with Lake County leaders and communities in the process of pursuing grant funds, and also will provide appropriate technical planning assistance during the application process.
That process, the state agencies said, is expected to take place in the 2015-16 fiscal year “to help the communities of Lake County to address their water quality and ecosystem restoration problems as expeditiously as possible.”
For their part, while Dodd and McGuire said they were disappointed that the funds won’t immediately be appropriated, they were nevertheless encouraged by the strong commitment from the administration to get the funds from another source.
“Both Assemblymember Dodd and myself have been working with the Governor’s Office as well as the State Water Resources Control Board and the Department of Fish and Wildlife to advance Proposition 1 funding which will benefit the Lake’s ecosystem and Lake County’s drinking water supply,” McGuire said. “We are committed to securing these resources and look forward to working with Governor Brown and the residents of Lake County in the months to come.”
“While we wanted to see the governor approve the allocation the legislature approved for Clear Lake, we’re encouraged by the governor’s direction to the appropriate state agencies to work this upcoming budget year to help secure needed funding,” Dodd said. “We’ve worked closely with Lake County residents to elevate the issue of resorting Clear Lake to a level that the state cannot continue to ignore.”
Dodd added, “Sen. McGuire and I will be working hard to hold the board and the department accountable for their commitment.”
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