Galen Kusic
Editor
Up for reelection in 2012, State Senator Lois Wolk continues to fight for Delta representation and equality within the legislature. The senator has a busy 2012 ahead, with several main goals and focuses to improve the fifth district she calls home.
Wolk’s main focuses includes working on legislation for the Delta, levees and flood protection. She plans to keep close track on the BDCP and the Delta Plan, and to tackle water bond issues.
“I think more and more people are becoming dissatisfied with the plan (BDCP), and I’m one of them,” said Wolk. “It was a plan that was put together years ago and the centerpiece of it is the canal. It’s a grandiose project that I think is a 19th century project. As the plan goes along, more ratepayers particularly in southern California are becoming very skeptical if this is the right answer. If it is, it’s going to take 25 years to get there. There is a lot that has to be done in the meantime.”
Wolk discussed that the legislature should be looking at levee protection, recycling water, and reducing the reliance on the Delta. She feels that southern California and the Bay Area should be taking less water out of the Delta while shifting to clean up groundwater.
“Those projects could benefit local communities and the Delta at the same time,” said Wolk. “We want to insure the water supply and insure the Delta, which is dying. There is a lot of uncertainty about the BDCP, mostly about who can afford it.”
Wolk cites the BDCP plan to be flawed in several ways, as it’s a complicated series of issues. Powerful southern California interests have essentially bought the plan. Wolk conveys that the surprise is that it hasn’t been done yet. Even with all of their money, it can’t buy a plan that isn’t full of holes. The plan itself costs millions of dollars, but what will result from it will be billions.
“They haven’t allowed everyone in the door,” said Wolk. “That’s been the problem. You can’t do a plan of a scope of the Delta restoration without the Delta at the table. The people who live there, work there, recreate there. There are half a million people in the secondary zone.”
Wolk noted that the ignorance about the Delta in Sacramento is profound. It seems that legislators and a wide majority of the public do not understand the importance and fragileness of the Delta ecosystem and rivers that provide water for so many Californians.
“We are 20 minutes from a levee and 90 percent of the members haven’t been around a levee or know what it is,” she said. “The other challenge is our challenge. We have to be willing to change. There may be changes that are difficult. It’s not enough to just get to the table, you have to be able to engage and have something in your hand at the table.”
Wolk knows that Governor Brown is going to make his wishes known. She feels that folks have to be prepared for whatever decisions are made so that there can be an appropriate response. If a canal is to get approved, she acknowledges the need to have a realistic look at how to finance the project.
There has been no talk of how the funds would be allocated, and according to Wolk that has been the Achilles heel of the project all along: How much the project costs, and who is going to pay what.
Wolk brought up the questions that if they build a canal of that size, who is going to fix up the Delta? The taxpayer or the southern California ratepayers? If they refuse to do it under proposition 218, she believes the state would be stuck in a crisis. It is her understanding that Governor Brown has spoken as if this is a legacy project for him. She recognizes it is her job to try and dissuade him.
“They are looking at water from a 19th century prism,” said Wolk. “Water policy is really changing in the state. Since 1990, individual consumption has declined dramatically. Regional improvement of water supply has increased. People have recognized it is cheaper to clean up the dirty ground water that they have and use that again, than it is to build a boondoggle canal. It’s a different set of glasses to look through.”
Wolk touched on the proposed deregulation of striped bass and the lack of prioritization that is taking place across different state departments throughout California.
“When you are trying to deal with dredging issues, lack of water, pelagic organisms that are dying, the sinking levees. Is that the highest priority? Prioritization is something we really need to do in the Delta,” said Wolk. “Money is limited, so if we have problems, what is the most important one? I’m not sure limiting the bass fishery would be the first priority, fixing the levees would.”
Recently Senator Wolk applauded the California Wildlife Conservation Board’s allocation of $297,000 to develop a plan to manage vital Delta resources in Yolo and Solano Counties. The California Wildlife Foundation will work with the Department of Fish and Game to develop a management plan for Liberty Island.
“We felt there was no management plan at Liberty Island,” said Wolk. “All three islands at the funnel needed a management plan. California is now the owner; the federal government sold the land for a dollar. One of the issues was who is in charge – that was unacceptable. That funnel at the bypass has to be under state control.”
Senate Bill 200 was designed to allocate money for levee improvements and maintenance. A champion for levee improvement projects, Wolk authored legislation to extend the state’s authorization to reimburse local agencies for up to 75 percent of levee maintenance and improvement costs. Without the bill, the state’s reimbursements would drop to 50 percent after July 1, 2013.
“The levees need continuing maintenance,” said Wolk. “You can’t just fix them forever. The other fact we know is there is not a lot of money. It’s critical we prioritize for safety. Any levee that has a person behind it has to be first priority, and it has to protect the water supply. It’s a good bill.”
The Central Valley Flood Protection Plan recently came out, and it is going to take a projected $18 billion to bring Delta levees up to the appropriate FEMA standards. To do that, the legislature is suggesting another bond.
“Governor Brown should restructure this current bond and focus on the levees that we need to protect,” said Wolk. “There is no way around it.”
Senate Bill 200 is critical to levee protection because reclamation districts don’t have a lot of money, nor do the counties, so increasing the amount of money the state will put in and decreasing the amount locals will put in is key.
Senator Wolk will be running for reelection in November, and is excited about the new redistricting which will again include Rio Vista within the fifth district’s border.
“I like my current district, but the new district brings back Rio Vista, Benicia and Vallejo and all of Solano County, which I consider my second home,” said Wolk. “It was silly to represent four of the five Delta counties and not Rio Vista. I’ve always enjoyed working with the council and the school district. I like the community.”
Instead of representing San Joaquin, Wolk moves over further into Contra Costa. She will represent the whole Delta, and the ports at Crockett.
“It’s a time that the people are very worried about the future,” she said.
Wolk disclosed that the election could be a watershed election, and that there will be reform measures. She hopes California forwards budget reform, as she has supported it strongly in the legislature, but Governor Brown wouldn’t sign the bill.
“There will be taxes on the ballot, and a lot of changes in the senate and the assembly that I think make experience very important,” said Wolk. “I hope people will support me for that. I have a lot of experience and I just love this district, I’d love to finish my career representing this district.”
Wolk touched on the trigger cuts affecting numerous Californians, including cuts to childcare and the disabled.
“Childcare is an incredibly difficult problem,” said Wolk. “Its one of the needs we have that we’re not doing a very good job of meeting. Its not just those that have low income, its across the board. If you can afford it, the percentage of your income is dramatic that goes to childcare. Its one of the really problematic areas, if you don’t have family around to spell you, its very difficult.”
Wolk relayed information that in Yolo County childcare goes for around $1,000 per child. That’s a considerable amount of money when there are only a few jobs, and those jobs aren’t paying much.
“Many of us in the caucus aren’t comfortable with those cuts, and we’d like to see some of the revenue come back to see some of those areas restored,” she said. “The changes that Governor Brown is contemplating, there are billions in reserves – and that is a revenue source that just hasn’t been used.”
In light of redevelopment agencies dissolving, Wolk has a bill to come up with an alternative to redevelopment with infrastructure financing. While there hasn’t been much talk about it, it’s very soon after the California Supreme Court decision. Wolk is hopeful that when the dust settles there will be more interest in her legislation and a realistic view of the problems that need correcting.
The Senator will be looking at all the initiatives and taxes, budget reform and redevelopment and realignment as Chair of the Senate Governance and Finance Committee.
“We’ll be starting with informational hearings on tax initiatives and bond indebtedness and how serious that is and what plans there are,” she said. “It’s a heavy load, but I like it.”
To learn more about the Senator, her policies and voting record,
visit her website at www.sen.ca.gov/wolk. |
