March 11, 2026
Honorable Jerry McNerney
California State Senate
State Capitol, Suite 6640
Sacramento, CA 95814
SUBJECT: SB 872 (McNerney) - SUPPORT
Dear Senator McNerney:
The Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD), which serves approximately 270,000 residents in its service area ranging from the San Gorgonio Pass to the Salton Sea, is pleased to support Senate Bill 872 (McNerney) which would ensure ongoing financial support to address the threat of subsidence on the State Water Project (SWP).
Despite being one of the furthest customers in the State Water Project delivery system, this source is an important part of CVWD’s water management portfolio. CVWD has been a contractor since 1963, and due to not having a physical connection to the State Water Project, receives this water through an exchange agreement with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD). In this arrangement CVWD exchanges its SWP for an equal volume of MWD’s allocation from the Colorado River Aqueduct, with the first wet water delivery made in 1973. The SWP continues to be an important part of CVWD’s long-term water supply, and the exchange agreement serves an important role in helping California adjust to changing conditions on the Colorado River that threatens the State’s vital interests.
However, subsidence on the SWP will reduce its capacity to deliver water. The reduced delivery directly places the water supply reliability of CVWD at risk, threatens the State’s ability to ensure a reliable water supply for two-thirds of California’s residence, and reduces the ability to address declining reliability from the water supplied by the Colorado River.
SB 872 proposes an annual appropriation of $150 million to the Department of Water Resources over 20 years to address subsidence along the State Water Project and Delta levee maintenance. CVWD recognizes this is a significant request, but one that is entirely proportionate to the economic stakes involved. Consider what depends on the reliability of the SWP and the Delta: Silicon Valley's water supply, over 750,000 acres of productive farmland generating billions in agricultural revenue, and the broader water security of a state that has grown into the fourth-largest economy in the world. California's remarkable economic trajectory was made possible, in no small part, by the infrastructure the SWP provides. A $3 billion investment over two decades is modest when weighed against what is at stake, and the cost of failing to act would be far greater. For these reasons, CVWD respectfully requests your support for SB 872.
Sincerely,
J. M. Barrett
General Manager