Costa presses for funding of reservoir forecasting, Reclamation canal repairs and San Joaquin restoration

Representative Jim Costa, D‑Calif., testified to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water during a member day hearing that Congress should fund reservoir forecasting and management tools, repair aging Bureau of Reclamation canals and continue support for the San Joaquin River Restoration Program.

Costa told the subcommittee that changing precipitation patterns, including a larger share of runoff delivered by atmospheric rivers, mean reservoir operations must adapt. He urged funding for the Army Corps and Bureau of Reclamation to adopt seasonal and forecast‑informed reservoir management tools to retain water when it arrives and reduce releases that cannot be captured downstream.

Costa requested $15,000,000 for the Army Corps’ operations technical support program and $15,000,000 for the forecast‑informed reservoir operations (FIRO) program for fiscal year 2026. He also urged full funding of a $134,000,000 water infrastructure investment program and requested up to $30,000,000 in report language to repair Bureau of Reclamation canals, which he said have been impaired by age and land subsidence. Separately, Costa requested $7,800,000 to complete two fish‑screen projects on the Sacramento River that he said will protect threatened species and support water conveyance to the San Joaquin Valley.

Costa emphasized the connection between federal and state projects in California and said the San Joaquin River Restoration Program, enacted in 2008 to implement a court settlement, must be preserved to avoid water‑supply disruption for farmers and to support fish populations. "We need to provide additional support to restore the capability of these canals," Costa said, arguing that canal impairments jeopardize the Bureau of Reclamation’s ability to meet obligations to water users in the San Joaquin Valley.

Members followed with questions about groundwater recharge, reservoir operations and long‑term water reliability in the West. Costa described efforts to recharge groundwater in wet years — including using atmospheric river events to flood fields and replenish aquifers — and said recharge work in the past 18 months has returned significant volumes to underground storage (he cited an aggregate recharged volume figure during the hearing). He said California must balance surface storage, groundwater and reuse to maintain reliable supplies for agriculture and communities.

Costa urged continued collaboration among the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Reclamation and California’s State Water Project but did not request a formal committee vote during his testimony. The subcommittee did not take any appropriations decisions on the items Costa raised during the hearing.