For Immediate Release: 4/12/17
Contact:
Brian Smith, 415-320-9384, brian@bpspr.com
Governor Brown to Meet with Trump Official Thursday:
Public review of Oroville Dam records blocked by state
Sacramento, CA – While California Governor Jerry Brown prepares to meet with the top land manager of the Trump Administration to discuss a number of issues (perhaps including the Delta tunnels proposal), the Sacramento Bee is being denied access to State of California public records surrounding the Oroville Dam crisis.
Delta farmers, fishermen, and residents ask: What is the actual financial situation at the State Water Project, and why is this information being hidden from California taxpayers?
On the denial of public records, The Bee reports:
“Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration is using federal security regulations written to thwart terrorism to deny public access to records that experts say could guide repairs to the Oroville Dam and provide insight into what led to the near catastrophic failure of its emergency spillway.
“The administration also is blocking public review of records that would show how Brown’s office handled the February crisis at Oroville Dam that led to the two-day evacuation of nearly 200,000 Northern Californians.”
Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of Restore the Delta had the following response:
“Restricting access to public records about the Oroville Dam is just another reason why Californians no longer trust Governor Brown’s leadership on water and infrastructure. Not only will the public be forbidden to know what the California Department of Water Resources knew before the crisis, we will not know who is going to pay for repairs.
“This type of cloak and dagger has also become standard with regard to planning for the proposed Delta Tunnels. We filed a public records act request in October 2016 to better understand the DWR’s history regarding the sale of revenue bonds and the tunnels. We still have not received the documents we requested.
“Why is Jerry Brown keeping the public in the dark about the costs and real problems with the State Water Project? Is it because he wants Californians to believe there's enough money for all the needed repairs AND his $17 billion tunnels proposal?”
IMPORTANT NOTE: The Delta Stewardship Council has changed their meeting date on the Delta Tunnels and the Delta Plan amendment from April 27th, 2017 to April 28th, 2017. Please adjust your plans accordingly! More information at this link.