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Chico E-R editorial: A start, but what kind of a start? Anytime the bottom half of the state says it likes the water solutions, we immediately become suspicious

Posted by: Maven on November 8, 2009 at 7:31 am

From the Chico Enterprise-Record:

“Some powerful Sacramento politicians gathered at the Capitol on Wednesday for a celebratory announcement, where they smiled for the cameras, slapped one another on the back, tossed around self-congratulatory kudos, and generally behaved as if they had just brokered peace in the Middle East.

And really, what they did was nearly as difficult.

Though we refuse to celebrate the politicians for merely doing their job, it’s impressive that they passed four bills and a gargantuan bond measure in an attempt to fix the state’s huge water problem.

Despite many competing interests who wanted distinctly different outcomes — farmers, cities, conservationists, anglers, water-rights holders, developers and so forth — the Legislature managed to get the job done.

Jim Nielsen, the north state Assembly member from Gerber who was called to the inner circle of negotiations because of his legislative experience, characterized the tone of negotiations as “from amicable to ugly.”

In the end, they worked all night and voted near dawn on a package of bills that the governor will sign next week.

And then the superlatives flew.

Up in these parts, we look at any water agreements with a skeptical eye. We have a distinctly different vantage point than the rest of the state. We have water; they want it. Any water agreements that win praise from urban water districts south of here always leave us a little concerned. …”

Read more of this editorial from the Chico Enterprise-Record by clicking here.

November 8, 2009 · Filed Under Legislation - State & Federal

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