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FRESNO, CA – Congressman Jim Costa expressed his deep anger during a hearing in Fresno over the lack of progress on solutions to bring additional water to the Valley. Costa has time and again supported policies advanced by his colleagues on both sides if they meet the simple test that they have the potential to improve water reliability. During the hearing, Costa urged his colleagues to put aside sound bites, stop playing the blame game, and get to work on a compromise bill that can clear both the House and the Senate.
FRESNO, CA – Congressman Jim Costa praised the State Water Resources Control Board for their prudent decision to increase operation flexibility, which will help balance the water needs of all water users, including agriculture, refuges, and municipal uses. In early March, the Board was reviewing a proposal that could have ended deliveries to Valley agriculture except during times of extremely high outflow.
Washington, DC—Rep. Jim Costa will travel with a bipartisan group of Senators and Representatives to the Mississippi Delta and Selma, Alabama,with civil rights leader Rep. John Lewis. The trip will mark the 50th anniversary of Freedom Summer and commemorate the 1965 crossing of the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Fresno City Councilmember Oliver Baines will accompany Costa on the pilgrimage.
Legislation Would Expand Shasta Dam, Temperance Flat, and San Luis Reservoir
Washington, DC — Rep. Jim Costa introduced emergency legislation that will help maximize available resources and assist farmers and communities during this historically dry year. According to some estimates this legislation has the potential to generate more than 500,000 acre-feet for water agencies that receive water from the Central Valley Project and the State Water Project.
Washington, DC — Rep. Jim Costa applauded President Obama's signing of the Farm Bill which marks the end of a more than 3 year contentious debate about the nation's farm and nutrition policies. As a member of the conference committee that was tasked with crafting compromise legislation, Costa worked with his Democratic and Republican colleagues to find middle ground on political and regional interests.
Washington, DC — Rep. Jim Costa supported legislation aimed at easing environmental restrictions that can prevent water from reaching farmers and communities in the San Joaquin Valley. Pointing toward recent bipartisan success on rescheduled water, Costa also urged his colleagues to recognize that now was the time for bipartisan, triage legislation that will bring immediate relief to farmers and rural communities, not revisit previous battles in the California water.
Washington, DC — Rep. Jim Costa joined U.S Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and California Department of Food and Agriculture Secretary Karen Ross to announce $20 million for agriculture water conservation efforts in California to help mitigate the impacts from the ongoing drought. During the call, USDA said that landowners and managers will have until March 3rd to apply for assistance from Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Fresno, CA — Rep. Jim Costa cheered the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation's decision to honor rescheduled water deliveries to San Joaquin Valley farmers. Costa joined with Sen. Dianne Feinstein and Reps.
Washington, DC — Rep. Jim Costa, the highest ranking Californian on the House Agriculture Committee, supported a long-overdue compromise Farm Bill that delivers many victories for the state's farmers, livestock, and dairy producers. As a member of the conference committee that negotiated with the Senate, Costa fought to protect programs that are critical to California agriculture such as specialty crop investments, drought assistance programs, and air quality mitigation efforts.