On July 7, 2009, 200 Restore the Delta supporters turned out for a rally and press conference at the State Capitol to express their discontent over legislative maneuvering to create a Delta solutions package that leaves out the people of the Delta.

The event, headed up by Senator Lois Wolk, and organized by Restore the Delta, fishing groups, and environmental organizations, featured talks given by Senator Wolk, Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi, Assembly Members Mariko Yamada, Alyson Huber, and Joan Buchanan, and State Senator Mark DeSaulnier.

Check back over the next few days for the photo gallery on the Restore the Delta website.

Stories on the event have been featured over the last few days in The Stockton Record, The Fresno Bee, and The Contra Costa Times.

After the rally and conference a number of Restore the Delta members, along with representatives from environmental and fishing organizations, paid visits to key assembly members and senators to express our concerns regarding the water bond package. We were assured by President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg's staff that all proper notice would be given so that the people of the Delta could participate in public hearings and have adequate representation in the various hearings.

.In contrast, we have heard this evening that the legislature will possibly amend five Delta bills tomorrow. It has not been decided if the bills will go to a conference committee or a joint hearing committee. Restore the Delta is urging President pro Tem Steinberg to include Senator Lois Wolk in all upcoming Delta hearings.

We are also asking all Restore the Delta supporters to call President pro Tem Steinberg's office to let him know that Senator Lois Wolk must be part of all upcoming hearings in order to represent the people of the Delta. His Sacramento Office number is 916-651- 4006.

It is also equally important to let Assembly Member Jared Huffman, Chair of the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks, and Wildlife that the people of California, especially Northern California, are against a Delta solutions package that offers up new conveyance as the solution to Delta restoration. New conveyance, the politically correct term for the peripheral canal, will only perpetuate California's broken water management policy of sending water from the northern part of the state to the south - all at the expense of the Delta. The people of Northern California are solidly in favor of a water policy that will break Delta dependence on water exports. Assembly Member Huffman can be reached at 916-319-2006.

What is most interesting is that as this process unfolds, the public has still not been able to access any legislation drafts that show the cost of the water bond package or the funding sources for the peripheral canal.

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