Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed legislation that would have given Native tribes a greater role in California water policy decisions, saying the state is already making this a priority.
The bill would have directed state agencies to recognize historical inequities affecting tribes, and to consult with them on water projects, plans and policies.
Newsom said in his veto message Wednesday that his administration has worked to address wrongs committed against tribes and has prioritized respectful “government-to-government dialogue.” He said, however, that California “must streamline its water policies to protect our water supply from the reality of climate change.”
“I am concerned this bill would undermine that imperative,” Newsom wrote. “Adding new sources of uncertainty will delay our urgent fight to secure Californians’ water supplies.”
The bill was introduced by Assemblymember Ash Kalra (D-San José). It was sponsored by the Karuk Tribe and the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, which said state agencies should be required to consider tribes when making water policy decisions.
Opponents of the bill included the Assn. of California Water Agencies, which argued it was vague, lacked clear standards, and could expose agencies to more legal disputes and delays. The California Farm Bureau also opposed the legislation.
Malissa Tayaba, vice chair of the Shingle Springs tribe, said the bill was a modest step toward correcting the exclusion of tribes from decisions.
“Newsom has shown us that he doesn’t care about tribes,” Tayaba said. “It’s just a real, I feel, slap in the face.”
The bill called for state agencies to address “the inequities regarding access to, and control over, water caused by state-sanctioned acts of termination, removal, and assimilation.” It called for the governor’s Office of Tribal Affairs to mediate any disputes between tribes and state water agencies.
Karuk Tribe Chairman Russell “Buster” Attebery said tribes “need to be at the table when decisions are being made,” and the bill was an important step toward changing that.
California’s system of water law dates back to the Gold Rush, when the state government promoted the extermination of Native people to make way for white settlers. As land was taken from tribes, they were left without rights to water.
In 2019, Newsom issued an executive order apologizing on behalf of California for the history of “violence, maltreatment and neglect” against Native Americans.
“We really thought that Newsom was very sincere in his apology, but vetoing this bill really is showing that it didn’t matter,” Tayaba said.
It means tribes should expect to continue to be excluded from decisions, she said. “We don’t have a voice.”
Tayaba’s tribe has opposed the Newsom administration’s push to build the Delta Conveyance Project, a 45-mile tunnel that would transport water beneath the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. Newsom has said building the tunnel, as well the proposed Sites Reservoir northwest of Sacramento, would help the state adapt to worsening droughts with climate change.
Newsom said he was concerned the legislation could “disrupt important regulations, policies, permits” that are moving forward.
The governor also vetoed a bill authored by Assemblymember James Ramos (D-Highland) that would have established protections for tribes to hold religious ceremonies at sacred sites on state lands.
Newsom said he’s sympathetic to those goals, but it could have “far-reaching impacts on the basic operations of state government and the management of state property.”
Other measures the governor vetoed this week included a bill that would have helped low-income Californians pay rising water bills. It was introduced by Sen. Caroline Menjivar (D-San Fernando Valley).
Newsom said in his veto message that he couldn’t support creating a permanent water rate assistance program “without identifying a sustainable, ongoing funding source.”
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