Gavin Newsom Says He May Impose Water Restrictions on California — After Recall Election

Embattled California Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday that the state could face mandatory water restrictions in six weeks — after the recall election is over.

Newsom made the remark during a visit to wildfire-ravaged Northern California with EPA Administrator Michael Regan.

The San Jose Mercury News reported:

Gov. Gavin Newsom said Tuesday that he may put mandatory water restrictions in place in as soon as six weeks from now as the state’s historic drought continues to worsen.

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Asked if he was going to require cities to meet mandatory water conservation targets, as former Gov. Jerry Brown did statewide during the last drought from 2012 to 2016, Newsom noted that he already called for 15% voluntary conservation, but that could change soon.

“At the moment, we’re doing voluntary,” the governor said. “But if we enter into another year of drought — and as you know our water season starts Oct. 1 — we will have likely more to say by the end of September as we enter potentially the third year of this current drought.”

One water expert was disappointed that Newsom had not moved more aggressively, with larger and mandatory restrictions – READ MORE