February 4, 2020 – Today, Congressman Kevin McCarthy applauded the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s (BOR) Fiscal Year 2020 Distribution of Additional Funding plan. The plan details how BOR will spend funds appropriated by Congress in the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 (Public Law 116-94), which McCarthy supported. This includes $11 million for subsidence repair work on the Friant-Kern Canal – which is in addition to the $2.35 million Congress specifically provided for this project – as well as $8 million for design and pre-construction work on the Shasta Dam and Reservoir Enlargement Project. McCarthy released the following statement:
“The Friant-Kern Canal delivers critical water to Tulare and Kern Counties, providing invaluable support to many of the farms that grow the food we eat. Restoring capacity of the canal is expected to increase average annual water deliveries by 8,000 acre-feet, while the Shasta Enlargement Project will capture and store an additional 634,000 acre-feet of water during wet years for use during future dry years. These projects will be a huge benefit to our communities, all Californians, and the environment.
“I am grateful to President Trump, Interior Secretary Bernhardt, and Reclamation Commissioner Burman for continuing to prioritize critical water infrastructure projects in California. These actions will help our state become more drought resilient while also guaranteeing that our communities and agriculture producers receive the water they contract and pay for. I look forward to working with the administration to ensure these projects receive the funding they need to advance quickly.”
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