Rep. LaMalfa Condemns Government Overreach in Water and Land Management

February 12, 2025 – Washington, D.C.

During this morning’s House floor speeches, Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) delivered a passionate critique of federal water and land management policies, arguing that government overreach and last-minute regulations have devastated California’s water supply, agriculture, and forestry practices. His remarks focused on dam removals, mismanaged flood control, and restrictive land policies that he claims are harming the people of California and the broader Western U.S..

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Key Issues Raised by Rep. LaMalfa

1. Dam Removals Have Devastated Fish Populations

LaMalfa strongly criticized the removal of dams on the Klamath River, calling it a disaster for fish populations and an environmental failure.

• He argued that officials pushed “faulty fake data” to justify dam removals, claiming they would improve fish passage and water quality.
• Instead, he stated that the result has been “thousands of dead fish and other wildlife”, largely due to massive silt deposits released from behind the dams.
• The loss of hydroelectric power from these dam removals has also worsened energy security in the region.

“We warned them about this… The silt behind those dams has been flowing down the Klamath ever since, causing massive fish kills and other wildlife deaths.”

2. Water Mismanagement is Leading to Flooding and Drought

LaMalfa also slammed federal water policy, particularly the Army Corps of Engineers’ “hair-trigger approach” to dumping water from California’s reservoirs rather than storing it for future use.

• He pointed out that officials are currently releasing water from Shasta Dam, even though there’s still ample storage capacity (600,000–700,000 acre-feet available).
• The result? Unnecessary flooding in parts of Redding and Glenn County while California fails to capture water that could be used in the next drought cycle.
• He also criticized outdated weather forecasting models that do not account for modern climate patterns, leading to wasteful and inefficient water management.

“We’re dumping water instead of conserving it. The people of Southern California are waking up to this disaster as they watch their water supply disappear due to mismanagement.”

3. Federal Land Restrictions Are Fueling Wildfires

LaMalfa shifted to land management policies, blasting the Biden administration’s last-minute national monument designations as a direct threat to wildfire prevention efforts.

• He revealed that 250,000 acres in his Northern California district were placed under federal protection, restricting forest thinning, firebreak creation, and land management efforts.
• He warned that this will lead to more devastating wildfires, similar to the million-acre fires that have ravaged California in recent years.

“The Forest Service signs used to say ‘Land of Many Uses’—now it’s ‘Land You Can’t Use’ thanks to last-minute executive orders.”

4. Calling for Congressional Review of Federal Overreach

LaMalfa urged Congress to take back control from unelected bureaucrats, advocating for the use of the Congressional Review Act to overturn last-minute regulations that were enacted without legislative oversight.

• He specifically targeted the Antiquities Act, which presidents have used to declare vast national monuments without input from Congress.
• He called for greater transparency and legislative involvement in environmental and water policy to prevent more “stroke-of-the-pen” disasters.

“Regulations should be made in the light of day, where the American people can see what’s happening—not by the stroke of a pen in a backroom.”