In this story from yesterday’s Bee we see how the politics around flood protection strategies are heating up.
Let’s hope that the heat and increased attention being paid to a long overdue problem results in long-term fixes that give the community of Sacramento optimal protection from flooding.
From our perspective that will require a major new dam on the American River to hold the water from the pineapple express storms that are often prone to target the American River Watershed.
Here is an excerpt.
Levee talks spark anger, doubt
Democrats question if governor's really serious about plan.
By Andy Furillo -- Bee Capitol Bureau Published 2:15 am PST Thursday, March 2, 2006
With the deadline for a June bond ballot bearing down fast, Democratic legislative leaders expressed befuddlement and anger Wednesday over Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's latest proposal to front-load spending on Northern California levee repairs.
Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez, D-Los Angeles, called the Governor's Office sloppy for presenting a new, $6 billion plan as recently as Tuesday night, just days from the March 10 deadline the Legislature must meet if it wants to put an infrastructure bond on the June ballot.
"I gotta tell you," Núñez told reporters on his way into a "Big Five" meeting with Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders, "a lot of members of my caucus feel the way this is being handled by the governor and his administration is not only sloppy, but that there is no seriousness here."
The speaker also questioned the new-found urgency the governor has placed on the state's levee system.
"We all know what the problem is. What has changed in the last month?" Núñez said, adding, "Hopefully, it's not just gamesmanship."
Schwarzenegger communications director Adam Mendelsohn noted the Republican governor first proposed a levee bond in January. But he said the governor's recent tour of the Sacramento region with Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., persuaded him to speed up state efforts.
"The governor and Senator Feinstein toured the levees by helicopter," Mendelsohn said. "She told him the state needed to do more, and he felt this was critical enough to declare a state of emergency. In Washington, Senator Feinstein applauded the governor's action, and now the two of them will work together to strengthen the levees."
