The two candidates for governor on the Nov. 3 ballot are taking very different approaches to water, according to a CalMatters comparison published Saturday.
Republican Steve Hilton has laid out a detailed agenda built on adding supply. Democrat Xavier Becerra, whom a September Public Policy Institute of California survey shows as the frontrunner, has published no specific water policies and declined repeated interview requests on the subject, CalMatters reported.
Hilton: build more
Hilton told CalMatters the state could have abundant water and blamed shortages on policy and mismanagement. He wants more storage, desalination and recycling, and state money to lower water bills. A 2024 plan he co-wrote with the California Policy Center put the cost as high as $150 billion, funded in part by redirecting 2% of the general fund from programs he calls wasteful.
He supports Sites Reservoir in Northern California and the Trump administration's proposal to raise Shasta Dam, and he would loosen endangered-species protections he says favor "a couple of fish species." He opposes the Delta tunnel, calling it "ridiculous, and unnecessary." A retired water manager quoted by CalMatters questioned the math: "There is plenty of water, there is no more cheap water."
Fishing and environmental groups and the Winnemem Wintu Tribe oppose the reservoir and dam raise.
