A proposal to halt pending lawsuits that stem from the 2019 biological opinions issued by fisheries agencies, seeks a cease-fire to the litigation and allows the Biden administration to begin a new set of biological opinions.
(Photo: BlurAZ / Shutterstock.com)

By Natalie Willis, Reporter, Valley Ag Voice 

Following the Nov. 5 presidential election, California Governor Gavin Newsom called a special session to safeguard certain state policies and requested $25 million from the state legislature to fund potential legal battles with President-elect Donald Trump.  

Governor Newsom’s proclamation to “safeguard California values and fundamental rights in the face of an incoming Trump administration” through the litigation fund proposal aims to provide legal support for the state to defend policies potentially at risk from federal actions, though it has yet to be approved. 

During this special session, the California Legislature will consider providing legal resources to address a myriad of “California values” it fears the new administration will threaten, such as clean water.  

“California is a tent pole of the country – from the economy to innovation to protecting and investing in rights and freedoms for all people,” Newsom stated. “We will work with the incoming administration, and we want President Trump to succeed in serving all Americans. But when there is overreach, when lives are threatened, when rights and freedoms are targeted, we will take action. And that is exactly what this special session is about – setting this state up for success, regardless of who is in the White House.” 

The state’s legal expenses, including personnel and administrative costs, are typically covered through the state’s general fund which is sourced from taxpayer revenue. California spent $42 million to support litigation in Trump’s first term, according to Governor Newsom’s office.  

WATER POLICY REWINDS 

As tensions rise between Sacramento and Washington, the next four years are expected to bring significant political conflict that could impact water policy and allocations for farmers in the Central Valley.  

During his campaign, Trump pledged to reduce protections for the delta smelt and prioritize water allocations for California farmers and ranchers. Speaking at a September press conference held at his golf club near Los Angeles, Trump addressed the state’s barren farmland, attributing the reduced water allocations primarily to environmental regulations protecting the endangered fish species. 

“You have so much water, and all those fields that are right now barren, the farmers would have all the water they needed. And you could revert water up into the hills, where you have all the dead forests, where the forests are so brittle…The land would be damp, and you’d stop many of these horrible fires that are costing billions and billions of dollars by the federal government,” Trump said. 

During Trump’s first term, the state filed over 120 lawsuits challenging the administration’s actions. Of these, around 20 lawsuits pertained to water policy or water-related issues. 

Most notably, the state sued the federal government in 2019 over its biological opinions for prioritizing agricultural water deliveries through changes to the coordinated operations of the federal Central Valley Project and the California State Water Project.  

The opinions relaxed environmental protections for endangered species, such as the Delta smelt and winter-run Chinook salmon, to allocate more water for agricultural and urban uses. Although the opinions were formed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service, the state and various environmental groups argued that they violated environmental protections under the Endangered Species Act. 

When President Biden took office, his administration reversed the Trump-era biological opinions and implemented an interim operations plan while crafting new rules. The interim plan, aimed at balancing environmental protection and water deliveries, restricted reservoir releases to safeguard salmon populations thereby reducing water for agricultural purposes. 

Now, as Trump prepares to take office again on Jan. 20, state legislators are preparing for the possibility of filing additional lawsuits. Democratic Assemblymember Steve Bennett told ABC30 that water policies are among the primary concerns for the state. 

“You’re going to see the state of California be very vigorous in defending the values that we’ve already implemented into our water policies,” Bennett said. 

In a recent effort to insulate itself from federal changes to the SWP, Governor Newsom’s administration finalized new state rules for the system of pumps, aqueducts, and reservoirs that send water from Northern to Southern California.  

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife granted the incidental take permit to DWR following the approval of a final environmental impact report for the sustained operation of the State Water Project. 

“In California, incidental take permits play a crucial role in regulating infrastructure projects that could threaten protected fish and wildlife,” Chuck Bonham, director of CDFW said in a press release. “By mandating that the State Water Project operations avoid and reduce impacts while also restoring habitats, improving water flow, monitoring, and supporting hatchery production, we aim to ensure that all affected fish and wildlife species have the chance to thrive.” 

 The incidental take permit covers five species protected under the California Endangered Species Act — delta smelt, longfin smelt, white sturgeon, winter-run Chinook salmon, and spring-run Chinook salmon. The new permit went into effect on November 4. 

While safeguarding fish species, the initial SWP allocation — which provides water to 29 public agencies — announced by the Department of Water Resources is forecasted at just 5% of the requested supplies for 2025.  

“The December initial water supply forecast is the first allocation of the new water year and is based on current reservoir storage and conservative assumptions for precipitation to come,” DWR stated. “For comparison, last year, the initial allocation for Water Year 2024 was 10 percent of requested supplies, and it eventually increased to 40 percent by the end of the season.” 

According to AP News, California farmers are hopeful that the new presidential administration will follow through on necessary allocations and ensure a more stable water flow from the federally managed Central Valley Project.  

Yet, as evidenced by the request for $25 million in litigation funds, moves by the Trump administration to create more supply for agriculture instead of fish may spark a legal battle — and farmers are caught in the middle. 

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