A message to the people of California - And for all of our readers, a request.

A message to the people of California...

Congressman Devin Nunes talks to reporters in his Washington, DC office (September 30, 2009).

Recently, I employed the assistance of Senator Jim DeMint (South Carolina) in my effort to gain passage of a temporary reprieve from the government-imposed drought in our state.

The Senator’s amendment would have assured reliable water deliveries to our region for one year, as Congress and the State of California continue to examine long-term solutions to the challenges associated with the Delta.

Since the DeMint amendment’s defeat, there has been some confusion related to the position of your organization.  Specifically, there have been questions as to whether or not California’s farming community has or will endorse efforts to provide our state immediate relief and supply reliability for the upcoming planting season (the goal of the DeMint amendment).

I hope you will agree that short-term relief is urgently needed.  The current plan of waiting for a new study that could last two years is not a reasonable alternative.  Even if a long term solution is implemented, it will take years – perhaps a decade or more – for completion.  For many, including Westside farmers, this will be too late.

For my part, I intend to continue to seek national recognition of and attention to the government-imposed drought.  However, if we are to continue to work with like-minded Senators and allies in the House, it is essential to end the confusion and to speak with a unified voice.  We must have a temporary reprieve from the biological decisions that are drying up our state.

For this reason, I am requesting that you communicate in writing your clear support or opposition to my efforts – as well as those in the Senate.  The question is simple.  Should we pursue a one or two year suspension of the Endangered Species Act as a stopgap against the ongoing devastation experienced in our state?

In the coming weeks, no matter what legislative form our efforts take, the goal will not change.  We will pursue long-term solutions and we will accept additional water studies but we will insist that Congress provide Californians the same consideration provided New Mexicans when a government-imposed drought threatened the water supply of Albuquerque in 2003.  We will insist that water flows while decisions are being made.

Thank you for your interest and support on behalf of California’s farmers and rural communities.  Please send your letter to me as soon as possible via fax 202-225-3404 or call me if you have any questions.

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From the Editor: 

We endorse unequivocally Rep. Nunes efforts, and echo his consistent calls for a resumption of adequate water deliveries to Fresno (NObama) County farmers, and all of the farms of the Central Valley's West Side. We appreciate the support that we've received from Americans throughout the Nation, and ask that, even though it looks as though we're finally making headway in this fight, to continue to "pour on the pressure."