SACRAMENTO, California — Gov. Gavin Newsom touted the availability Thursday of $46 million in state-funded grants to improve water quality at the California-Mexico border, using the announcement to press President Donald Trump’s administration to move faster on a sewage crisis that has closed beaches, fouled the air and frustrated San Diego communities for years.
What happened: The State Water Resources Control Board this week began accepting applications for projects aimed at reducing cross-border contamination in the Tijuana River region. The money comes from Proposition 4, the $10 billion climate bond voters approved in 2024, which set aside the money for border pollution. Newsom (D), who has faced pressure from San Diego communities for not declaring a state of emergency on the issue, used the announcement to score a point in his ongoing battle against Trump.
“California has stepped up repeatedly, but we can’t solve a decades-long federal failure on our own,” Newsom said in a Thursday press release. “The Trump administration must do its part, honor its commitments, and finally deliver the lasting solutions this community deserves, and they have a moral obligation to provide.”
Why this matters: The move comes as Newsom and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin have both tried to claim momentum on the decades-old issue. Newsom met with Zeldin in Washington last month to press for federal action, giving the governor another opening to argue that the Trump administration should follow through. Zeldin signed a U.S.-Mexico memorandum of understanding last year aimed at accelerating cross-border wastewater fixes, including repairs tied to the South Bay International Wastewater Treatment Plant.
