Newsom Vetoes Unanimously-Passed Delta Water Infrastructure Bill, Citing Budget Constraints

Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a water infrastructure bill Saturday that had passed the California Legislature unanimously, rejecting $300 million in annual funding for aging Delta levees and sinking State Water Project canals that serve roughly 27 million Californians, including San Diego County.

Senate Bill 872, by Sen. Jerry McNerney (D-Pleasanton), would have created the Delta Levees and Canal Subsidence Fund, directing approximately $150 million per year to the Department of Water Resources for restoring conveyance capacity in canals and aqueducts damaged by land subsidence, and another $150 million annually to the Delta Conservancy for levee improvements through fiscal year 2046-47.

The legislation explicitly barred any of the money from being used for design, construction, or maintenance of the proposed Delta Conveyance Project — the controversial tunnel plan Newsom has championed.

In his veto message dated Sept. 27, Newsom wrote that while the bill was "well-intentioned," it was also "unnecessary." The governor pointed to $68 million for subsidence mitigation, $75 million for levee repairs and flood protection, and $20.2 million for the Delta Conservancy already allocated in the current budget.

"This bill would establish parameters for spending revenue from a Fund that did not receive resources in this year's budget," Newsom wrote.

Critics saw the veto differently. Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of Restore the Delta, accused the governor of prioritizing his "white whale" — the Delta Conveyance Project — over critical existing infrastructure.

"Not only did Governor Newsom veto a much needed bill to bring Delta levees to the necessary standards to deal with climate change, he vetoed funding for fixing existing conveyance for the State Water Project," Barrigan-Parrilla said. "He has set California water infrastructure on a course for complete failure as a result of his wrongful quest."

SB 872 was supported by more than 60 organizations and brought together Northern and Southern California legislators, environmental groups, and water agencies. The bill is now pending possible override consideration in the Senate, though overriding a governor's veto requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers.