In this story from today’s Bee the governor signs the infrastructure bond bill allowing voters the opportunity to vote on infrastructure in November, about $3 billion of which would go to Sacramento area levees, which is good news, but there was no water storage capacity in this bill, which is the bad news.
Here is an excerpt.
Bond measure heavy on Delta help
Levee proposal gets governor's signature for November ballot.
By Andy Furillo -- Bee Capitol Bureau Published 12:01 am PDT Saturday, May 20, 2006
California would be in line for $4.5 billion in flood control projects if voters approve a measure that was authorized for the Nov. 7 ballot on Friday by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The Sacramento metropolitan area and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta would be in line for the bulk of some $3 billion in the ballot bond set aside for levee repairs. The heart of the Central Valley, northward through Shasta County and south to Kern County, also figures to benefit from levee repair money under the bond measure.
Virtually every other corner of the state also has danger zones targeted for bond money, from the frequently overflowing Napa River to the Santa Ana River's concrete banks winding through the suburbs of Orange County.
"Public safety is my No. 1 priority," Schwarzenegger said in a statement released by his press office. "The bond, along with our agreement with the federal government and funds from the state, will allow us to fix the most critical levee sites before the next flood season and shore up our deteriorating levee system in the years to come."
Schwarzenegger signed the levee bond measure in Stockton, where he also put his name on a bill by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, that appropriates another $500 million from the general fund for levee repairs.
