DPC Minutes 2025-11-17

Meeting Minutes
Delta Protection Commission

Monday, November 17, 2025, 10 a.m. (continued From November 13, 2025)
1450 Halyard Drive, Suite 6, West Sacramento 95691, and numerous remote locations

Agenda

1. Call to Order and Flag Salute

Commissioner Oscar Villegas, acting as chair in the absence of Chair Diane Burgis and Vice Chair John Vasquez, reopened the meeting continued from November 13, 2025, at 10:09 a.m.

2. Welcome and Roll Call

Commission Clerk Heather McClure called the roll. Present at roll call: Commissioners Mitch Mashburn (for John Vasquez), Oscar Villegas, Patrick Hume, Sonny Dhaliwal, Anissa Williams, David Kent, Cameron Bregman, Tom Slater, Dean Ruiz, and Josh Eddy for the California Department of Food and Agriculture; and Ex Officio Designee Gary Prost for Senator Jerry McNerney. Villegas was in the physical meeting location and the remaining members attended remotely.

Not present were Commissioners Jim Paroli, Toks Omishakin, and Wade Crowfoot; and Ex Officio Member Rhodesia Ransom.

3. Public Comment – an opportunity for members of the public to address the Commission regarding items not on the agenda

Acting Chair Villegas asked for comments. There were none.

4. (Item 5 on Nov. 13 agenda) The Commission will meet in closed session to discuss potential litigation pursuant to Government Code, Section 11126(e)(2)(B), (e)(2)(C).

Acting Chair Villegas said the Commission would not be taking up this item, but left it open in case it was needed.

5. Consideration, potential approval, and direction to staff, including any delegation as appropriate, on Commission response to the Department of Water Resource’s Submittal of a Certification of Consistency for the Delta Conveyance Project to the Delta Stewardship Council on October 17, 2025, including four potential options:

a. Filing appeal with the Delta Stewardship Council;

b. Submitting comments and recommendations to the Delta Stewardship Council (pursuant to PRC 29773 and 23 CCR, Section 5028);

c. Filing appeal with Delta Stewardship Council and submitting comments to the Delta Stewardship Council on any appeals filed by others (options A and B);

d. Taking no action.

– Virginia Gardiner, Program Manager

Executive Director Amanda Bohl opened her presentation by thanking staff for doing a tremendous job, working weekends and holidays to prepare materials for this item. She reviewed the Commission’s options for responding to the Department of Water Resources’s Certification of Consistency for the Delta Conveyance Project. She noted that based on Commission conversation at its Nov. 3 meeting, staff had prepared an outline for options A, B, and C. She noted that if the Commission chose to appeal, staff would draw on points in Attachment 1 in submitting the appeal.

Based on feedback, she said, staff recommended delegating authority to the Executive Director to pursue Option C.

Commissioner Kent observed that a controversy of this magnitude properly becomes a priority of this Commission. He praised the staff’s collection of evidence as stellar, and said he was confident the case can and should be made by this Commission. He asked Commissioner Hume what he thought the chances of success would be.

Acting Chair Villegas noted that some members could not remain in the meeting for long, which meant there was a risk of losing quorum, and urged people to keep that in mind as they delivered their remarks.

Commissioner Hume answered Kent’s question: “We have a better chance if we take action than if we don’t. It’s still an uphill push,” he said. “People need to understand there’s more to this than just a thing. It is a place, and we are here to defend that place.”

Commissioner Slater asked to ensure that the 1981 contract between the North Delta Water Agency and DWR be included in materials submitted. He said the contract, which ensures suitable water will be available year-round for agricultural and beneficial uses in the North Delta, is incredibly important and had been omitted from the Certification of Consistency.

Hume noted it might be more feasible to include the document in comments on other appeals than in a DPC appeal, which would have to be filed today.

Commissioner Williams said she hoped the Commission could push on mitigation failures, flawed prioritization, best available science, the Delta as Place argument, more use of existential threat language, and analysis on impacts on state Route 160, especially in emergencies and evacuations.

Acting Chair Villegas asked for public comments. There were none.

Motion: It was moved by Commissioner Mashburn and seconded by Commissioner Williams to 1) follow Option C – filing an appeal with Delta Stewardship Council and submitting recommendations and comments to the Delta Stewardship Council, pursuant to PRC 29773 and 23 CCR, Section 5028, and 2) ensure that the 1981 contract between the North Delta Water Agency and Department of Water Resources be included in the Commission’s response to other appeals. The motion passed 9-0-1, with Commissioner Eddy abstaining.

Commissioners Hume and Villegas thanked everyone involved for their herculean efforts on this matter.

6. Commissioner Comments/Announcements