SR0084717_SSNL - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

california Water Today 107 some levees and reclassification of some areas as within the 100-year floodplain. In 2006, state voters approved nearly $5 billion in bonds to fund flood system upgrades, and in 2007, the state legislature passed, and the governor signed, a set of flood policy bills to raise the level of flood protection in urban areas and reduce new development in high-risk areas. Although this renewed attention to flood protection is valuable, more fundamental policy shifts are needed to protect California’s residents from harm and to improve the environmental performance of flood infrastructure (Chapters 5, 6). Water System Management and Finance In the United States, most water management is local, and California is no exception. Although state and federal legislatures, agencies, and courts have roles in all aspects of water management, thousands of local entities have the frontline responsibility for serving customers, complying with water quality regulations, and raising revenues to cover the operations, maintenance, and capital investments needed to support these tasks. The governance of water in California also involves many nongovernmental interest-based organiza- tions and many large and small private groups, including business interests and ultimately the general public, which make water-related decisions in homes, in businesses and farms, and at the ballot box. In this section, we review the primary roles of different players in managing water, including their opportuni- ties to improve their management and their principal constraints—financial and otherwise. We begin with local decisionmakers (the most numerous and important group) and proceed to state, federal, and other groups involved in managing California’s water. An “Adhocracy” of Decentralized Decisionmakers Although the federal and state governments played a major role in large-scale water infrastructure development, California’s water system remains highly decentralized, with roots dating back to the Era of Local Organization in the late 19th century (Chapter 1).35 Well over a thousand specialized and general purpose local governments, water companies, and other organizations manage water locally (Table 2.6). Several dozen wholesale utilities sell water to other water agencies, and roughly 400 large retail utilities (those serving at least 3,000 35. This reality contrasts with traditional views of water management in the western United States, which emphasize the role of the state and especially federal governments (e.g., Worster 1985).