Two congressmen request review after Times report on Central Valley water heist

Two members of Congress have asked the Government Accountability Office to review how vulnerable the Bureau of Reclamation is to water theft following a Los Angeles Times report on an audacious and long-running heist from a federal canal in the Central Valley.

The facts related in the story “raise serious concerns about how widespread water theft is and what Reclamation can do to prevent water theft in the future,” Reps. Jarred Huffman (D-San Rafael) and Raul M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) wrote in their letter requesting the review.

The Times reported that federal prosecutors in 2022 charged the former general manager of the Panoche Water District, Dennis Falaschi, with involvement in stealing more than $25 million worth of water out of the Delta-Mendota canal over the course of two decades and selling it to farmers and other local water districts. According to the allegations in the federal indictment, proceeds that should have gone to the federal government were instead used to benefit Falaschi, his water district and a small group of co-conspirators.

U.S. Rep. Raul M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) is one of two members of Congress who have called for the Government Accountability Office to review how vulnerable the Bureau of Reclamation is to water theft.

(J. Scott Applewhite / Associated Press)

In late May, Falaschi, 78, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to steal water from the government and one count of filing a false tax return. But in the plea agreement he worked out with prosecutors, Falaschi admitted to stealing less than $3.5 million worth of water.

The government contended in its plea agreement with Falaschi that the investigation found evidence that he “was just one of several individuals who were involved in the misconduct.” The plea agreement also contained the allegation that water continued to be stolen after Falaschi left his post in 2017.

Noting that “much of the West depends” on the infrastructure of the Bureau of Reclamation to “ensure efficient and reliable water delivery,” the congressmen asked the GAO to conduct a review that will look at the process for water data monitoring and managing the risks of loss and theft, data on the number and characteristics of thefts that have happened in the past and challenges the department faces and opportunities for improvement.

In response to a request for comment, the Bureau of Water Reclamation said in a statement that it has “nothing to add.”

Grijalva is the ranking member of the House Committee on Natural Resources. Huffman is the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries.