Bond benefiting S.J., Mother Lode on ballot
By Hank Shaw
Capitol Bureau Chief
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
SACRAMENTO - An independent bond proposal that could send $1 billion to San Joaquin County, the Delta and the Mother Lode for upgrading the region's levees, parks, forests and rivers will be on the November ballot.Bankrolled by a slew of environmental groups and supported by groups such as Ducks Unlimited and the Contra Costa Water District, the $5.4 billion proposal must compete with a $37-billion quartet of legislative public-works bonds already on the ballot.
But the measure could face a grumpy voting public; voters rejected a $600-million library bond last week, much to the surprise of supporters. Fiona Hutton, spokeswoman for the water-bond effort, said she's not worried for the fall.
"I think the dynamics of that election were different," Hutton said. "It was a record low turnout, and it really didn't have any campaign to speak of. We'll have a very well-run ad campaign as well as a large grass-roots effort."
The secretary of state cleared the measure for the ballot after supporters submitted nearly twice the 373,000 signatures it needed to qualify.
"This is a well-balanced bond measure that for the first time in many years would focus on Delta water-quality improvements for drinking-water quality," said Walter Bishop of the Contra Costa Water District.
The bond proposal roughly mirrors Propositions 40 and 50 - natural-resources bonds voters passed in 2002. Much of its contents also appeared in the state Senate's version of a megabond that failed on a party-line vote March 11.
It would include funding for:
» Flood control in the Delta: $275 million. This would be on top of money for the region included in the Legislature's $4.1-billion levee bond.
» Delta water clean-up: $130 million.
» Statewide forest conservation, including in the Sierra forests: $180 million.
» Restoration of flows in the San Joaquin River, which runs dry in stretches during many years: $100 million.
» Remapping of flood plains throughout the Central Valley: $30 million. Many maps are outdated, and the updates are expected to force major levee repairs.
The proposal does not include money for a new reservoir or dam.
Bankrolled by groups such as The Nature Conservancy and the National Audubon Society, the political action committee Californians for Clean Water, Parks & Coastal Protection raised more than $1million to get their bond on the ballot, state records show.
Contact Capitol Bureau Chief Hank Shaw at (916) 441-4078 or sacto@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at online.recordnet.com/blogs/blogs.php