Golden State Today

Halfway through California’s 10-year Safe and Affordable Funding for Equity and Resilience (SAFER) Program, the number of residents without access to clean drinking water has been reduced by more than half, from 1.6 million in 2019 to 700,000 today.

SACRAMENTO – Five years after its launch, California’s SAFER drinking water program, largely funded by cap-and-trade dollars, has made significant progress in providing clean, safe drinking water to disadvantaged communities.

The SAFER Program has distributed over $830 million in grants to these communities, more than doubling the amount provided during the previous five years.

In Porterville, a community that has recently gained better access to clean drinking water, state officials announced that the number of people served by failing water systems has decreased from approximately 1.6 million to 700,000. This marks a net gain of 900,000 Californians now having safe and affordable drinking water.

“When I took office, 1.6 million people didn’t have access to clean drinking water. We’re halfway through our SAFER program, and more than half of those people now have safe drinking water in their homes and schools. Connecting 900,000 people to water is a huge success, but we won’t let up until every single Californian gets access to this essential resource,” said Governor Gavin Newsom.

In his first week in office in 2019, Governor Newsom emphasized the need for improved drinking water solutions and proposed creating a dedicated funding source for projects in disadvantaged communities. That same year, he signed legislation establishing the Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund, which has since received over $600 million in cap-and-trade dollars.

This morning at Porterville City Hall, the State Water Board and the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA), along with partners including the City of Porterville and various community organizations, celebrated five years of achievements under the SAFER program.

Porterville exemplifies many towns facing failing infrastructure amid extreme weather and climate change. In partnership with the state since 2019, Porterville has led local efforts to expand access to safe drinking water by consolidating neighboring systems into a single sustainable system. The SAFER program has provided over $15 million to Porterville with an additional $5.5 million grant pending for six consolidations benefiting over 900 people. Three consolidations have been completed so far. Statewide since 2019 there have been 142 consolidations benefiting over 100,000 people.

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