Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation for DWR personnel of significant news articles and comment
June 29, 2007
1. Top Items
Congressman questions role of ex-Interior staffers in water deals - Associated Press
Ex-official's new job makes a splash; Irrigation district employs former Western water czar -
Congressman questions role of ex-Interior staffers in water deals
Associated Press – 6/28/07
By Garance Burke, staff writer
Jason Peltier left his job as a top water policy adviser at the Interior Department on Friday to take a management post at the Westlands Water District, a coalition of giant agribusinesses that is the department's biggest water customer.
Westlands is currently discussing a settlement with the government that would give farmers a stake in a massive reservoir, millions of dollars in pumps and pipes and permanent water rights in exchange for cleaning up cropland tainted by toxic runoff in a botched federal project.
The department must ensure that those negotiations and other water discussions with the Westlands district aren't affected by Peltier switching sides, Committee Chairman Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., said in a letter to Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne.
"We are deeply troubled by the potential impact Mr. Peltier's use of the 'revolving door' will have on the Department's policymaking," said the letter, also signed by Rep. George Miller, D-Calif.
The congressmen's letter also questioned the hiring of Susan Ramos, a former assistant regional director at the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation who now works as a deputy general manager at the water district. The bureau oversees the vast irrigation system that pumps water to Westlands growers and other
Westlands spokeswoman Sarah Woolf confirmed that Ramos is involved in negotiations between the district and the bureau on a proposed settlement of a decade-old lawsuit by
Kempthorne's press secretary Shane Wolfe said he couldn't address the claims because he had not seen the letter, but said the department's ethics program ensures compliance with federal conflict-of-interest laws.
A spokesman for the Bureau of Reclamation declined to comment on either Westlands employee.
The letter requests documents that would show when Peltier and Ramos started seeking their new jobs, citing a statute barring former federal employees from attempting to influence government workers on matters in which they were personally and substantially involved.
Woolf said Peltier, who started at the district on Monday, will not be involved in the drainage discussions.
Peltier will make sure farmers get the irrigation water they need by lobbying for the full operation of the Central Valley Project, a water delivery system that has been partially shut down in recent weeks over concerns that its giant pumps were grinding up a protected fish species, Woolf said.
"Westlands is very excited to have him on their staff with his immense amount of knowledge on Western water issues," Woolf said. #
http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_6255281?nclick_check=1
Ex-official's new job makes a splash; Irrigation district employs former Western water czar
By Michael Doyle, staff writer
Until recently, Jason Peltier handled Western water issues for the Bush administration as principal deputy assistant secretary for water and science. On Monday, Peltier started his new job as
Westlands calls Peltier an invaluable new employee who's done everything by the book. Capitol Hill skeptics, including a Bay Area congressman who has frequently clashed with Westlands, worry about potential conflicts of interest.
"We are deeply troubled by the potential impact Mr. Peltier's use of the revolving door will have on the department's policymaking," Rep. George Miller, D-Concord, wrote Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne on Thursday.
Miller and the chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, West Virginia Democrat Nick Rahall, voiced "great concern" in noting that Peltier had "played a major role" in California water disputes over the past six years.
The two lawmakers gave Kempthorne a month to provide documents concerning Peltier's work and any steps he took to avoid conflicts with his new employer.
Federal ethics rules govern when government workers must recuse themselves from dealing with past or potential employers.
Title 18 of the U.S. Code, for instance, requires former federal officials to wait at least two years before trying to influence the government on a matter "in which the United States is a party … or has a direct and substantial interest."
Westlands spokeswoman Sarah Woolf said Peltier had obtained all necessary ethics approvals.
"We're very excited that he's able to come back and work with Westlands," Woolf said.
Ex-official has roots in Valley water
Peltier's new job is, in fact, a bit of a homecoming.
Prior to joining the Bush administration, Peltier had lobbied on water issues from 1988 to 2001 as director of the Central Valley Project Water Association. The association and its members, including Westlands, fought against passage of a 1992 law dedicating more
Peltier's first job with the Bush administration was as a special assistant in the Bureau of Reclamation, which is responsible for putting the 1992 Central Valley Project Improvement Act into practice.
Westlands and other water districts have periodically sued to challenge parts of the controversial 1992 law, such as how 800,000 acre-feet of water is provided to help the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
There is considerable interplay between Westlands and the federal government, which built the dams and canals the irrigation district relies upon. Earlier this year, for instance, the Interior Department floated the possibility of turning over the San Luis Reservoir and local canals to Westlands in exchange for being relieved of the duty to resolve irrigation drainage problems.
Westlands also is closely monitoring proposals to restore the
Earlier this year, Peltier testified on the Bush administration's behalf at a congressional hearing called in support of the
"I can't emphasize enough how important it is for federal implementing legislation to be authorized and approved," Peltier testified before the House Natural Resources Committee.
Peltier's new boss, Westlands General Manager Thomas Birmingham, followed Peltier at the committee hearing in March and likewise voiced support for the restoration plan so long as water districts are protected as much as possible. #
http://www.modbee.com/local/story/13739557p-14323756c.html
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