U.S. Rep. Elton Gallegly
Serving the 24th District of California

http://www.house.gov/gallegly/media/media2007/media2007.htm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 19, 2007
Contact: Tom Pfeifer, (202) 225-5811

Gallegly Secures More Than $3.5 Million in Spending Bill

WASHINGTON, DC—The House of Representatives today gave final approval to requests by Congressman Elton Gallegly (R-Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties) to fund more than $3.5 million in projects in Ventura County.

The requests were included in the Consolidated Appropriations conference report, which passed the House on a 272-142 vote, sending it to the President for his signature. The Senate approved it Tuesday evening.

The Ventura County projects Gallegly championed included criminal justice, educational, environmental and transportation programs. Specifically, the projects championed by Gallegly include:

Route 118 Corridor Study—$250,000—The majority of this highway, which extends from Moorpark to Ventura, is only two lanes wide and has experienced significant congestion and safety issues, including heavy volumes of truck traffic. Unfortunately, there have been a large number of accidents on the road, including a recent accident with seven fatalities, which drew substantial media attention. This funding would allow the California Department of Transportation (CALTRANS) to begin environmental studies for necessary improvements to the corridor.

Metrolink Ventura County Farm Crossings—$500,000—This funding will improve the safety at rural crossing sites along Metrolink’s Ventura County commuter rail line. There are very few active warning devices at these crossings, which experience heavy train and farm vehicle traffic, which fluctuates from 30 to 250 crossing per day with the agricultural harvesting cycle.

Ventura County Family Justice Center—$164,500—Funding will assist the creation of a centralized Family Justice Center to serve victims of crime in Ventura County. Victims of crimes such as domestic violence, sexual assault, elder abuse and child abuse require timely and skilled intervention services. Because there is a great diversity in individual victim characteristics, no specific strategy can apply to every intervention. The project would involve collaborating with other law enforcement agencies, human service agencies and nonprofit service providers to bring coordinated services to individuals and families that have multiple and changing needs resulting from their victimization.

Ventura County Sheriff’s Department DNA Services—$188,000—The Ventura County Sheriff’s Regional Crime Lab is the only laboratory in the county doing DNA profiling and analysis. Although the Ventura County Regional Crime Laboratory has invested heavily in DNA technology during the last several years, it has not been able to keep up with demand. Thus, for every 100 requests submitted for body-fluid screening, the lab only processes 74; other requests are eventually cancelled without processing. There is currently a 10-month processing backlog. Continued federal funding is necessary to keep criminals off the street and to exonerate the innocent.

Ventura County Crisis Intervention Team Training Program—$195,000—Funding will support the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT), comprised of specially trained law enforcement officers and communications specialists trained to respond to mentally ill persons in crisis. The goal of the program is to safely de-escalate crisis situations involving the mentally ill, reduce the use of incarceration to deal with mentally ill persons, and decrease recidivism by referring these persons to appropriate treatment.

California State University, Channel Islands—$146,000—CSUCI is preparing to offer a much needed registered nurse (RN) licensure program and a bachelor of science in nursing degree program due to begin this fall. To address the need for more nurses, CSUCI will need a patient simulation laboratory as a way to provide a wide variety of patient scenarios that students can participate in, receive critique in a safe environment where repetition and reinforcement do not jeopardize patient safety, and allow students to progress at their own pace. The initiative has support throughout the region, where this will be a one-of-a-kind facility.

Calleguas Municipal Water District—$1.033 million—To reduce its dependency on imported water, the Calleguas Municipal Water District is cooperating with other local water agencies to implement the Calleguas Municipal Water District Recycling Project, which consists of nine component projects that together will result in the reclamation and reuse of more than 50,000 acre-feet of reclaimed water annually for nonpotable purposes. Reclaimed water will replace water that otherwise would have to be imported.

Santa Clara Watershed Protection Plan—$246,000—Encompassing more than 1,600 square miles, the Santa Clara River watershed is the largest in Southern California and is divided into two almost equal parts by the Los Angeles-Ventura County line. Since 1991, a group of more than 26 stakeholders has been developing the Santa Clara River Enhancement and Management Plan (SCREMP) for the 100-year floodplain. Recognizing the continued pressure of urbanization in both Los Angeles and Ventura Counties that may affect the floodplain and environmental resources in the Santa Clara River Watershed, the Ventura County Watershed Protection District, Los Angeles County, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers agreed to cooperate in expanding the SCREMP to complete a feasibility study for the Santa Clara River Watershed Protection Plan.

Matilija Dam Restoration Project—$799,000—Funding is for engineering and design work for the dam removal project. Constructed in 1947 by the Ventura County Watershed Protection District, Matilija Dam was intended to provide a local water supply while offering flood protection for downstream communities. During its 50 years of life, the build-up of sediment behind the dam wall has undermined both original functions. Additionally, the presence of the dam has adversely impacted the ecosystems of the Matilija Creek and the Ventura River, preventing the natural flow of sand and sediment from the mountains to the beaches and blocking the endangered steelhead trout from reaching the place of their ancestral spawning and rearing. Today, more than half of the original steelhead spawning habitat lies locked behind the dam.