California Fresh Fruit urging federal water bill

The California Fresh Fruit Association recently joined a growing choir of California based industry groups to urge members of the House and Senate to pass a bill that would help to mitigate water issues plaguing many of California's agricultural regions.

A bipartisan agreement between Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield) dealing with short and long term solutions for drought afflicted California, has been included in the FY17 Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). The WRDA bill is currently on the House Floor and is assumed to be brought up for a vote tomorrow, Thursday, December 8th.

President of the California Fresh Fruit Association, George Radanovich, recently made the following statement regarding the California specific provisions being included in WRDA:

"I spent many years in Congress crafting legislation and advocating for a California water fix. I understand the difficulty in bringing people together, the difficulty in finding compromise and the difficulty in identifying whether this is the best we can do," said Radanovich. "The bill is not perfect, nor will it solve the entirety of California's water issues, but it is a step forward and will help ease much of the pain inflicted upon many Californians during this long drought, including many of the growers that I represent. I applaud Senator Feinstein, Majority Leader McCarthy and other Members who I know have put much of their time and effort into this endeavor. The time is now and you have our support."

Ian LeMay
California Fresh Fruit Association
Tel: 559 226 6330
Mob: 559 905 7751
Fax: 559 222 8326
ilemay@cafreshfruit.com
www.cafreshfruit.com