Redirect The Money

TO >> Critical Water Infrastructure

COOK Co-sponsors Legislation

See previous article, this website:  http://www.bigbearlake.net/account/sites/ETNews/pages/Rural-Water-Infrastructure-

March 8, 2019

Washington D.C.____ Representative Paul Cook (R-Apple Valley) announced Friday that he has co-sponsored the Repurposing Assets to Increase Long-term Water Availability (RAILWAY) Act. The Bill would repurpose federal funds from the failed California High-Speed Rail (HSR) Project to water storage infrastructure and to help communities where residential drinking water wells have run dry or have elevated nitrate levels. 

The High-Speed Rail Project has been fraught with mismanagement and high costs. Initially projected to cost $33.6 billion, it has ballooned to more than an estimated $77 billion. In addition, the project has continually failed to meet deadlines and the $10-$12 billion in promised private investment has never materialized.

Last month, Governor Gavin Newsom said that the HSR Project would take too long to build and that there ‘simply isn’t a path to get from Sacramento to San Diego.’   

Following his announcement, the U.S. Department of Transportation notified the State of California that it’s rescinding nearly $929 million in unspent federal funds that were previously allocated for the project. 

The RAILWAY Act would ensure an end to federal funding for the HSR Project. Moreover, it would redirect funds to critical water infrastructure in California to increase water storage capacity and help protect against droughts by expanding existing reservoirs and building new ones.

The RAILWAY Act grants would also provide funding through the US Department of Agriculture to award grants to rural communities to help them develop new sources of water and reduce, or eliminate, elevated nitrate levels in drinking water. 

Representative Paul Cook states, “The last major reservoir in California was built forty years ago. Since then, our population has grown significantly, and we’re ill-prepared to endure droughts. It’s time we take action to increase our water supply and modernize our water infrastructure. This Bill makes good use of funds that were already going to be spent in California. I hope that Congress will pass this legislation quickly.”