Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed to speed up his administration's plan to build a $20 billion water tunnel under the Joaquin River Delta on the Mount Sacramento and by shortening the permits for the project and limiting the legal challenges.

Newsom urged the Legislature to pass his plan "fast" tunnel on Wednesday, called the Delta Transportation Project, part of his revised budget proposal for May.

“For a long time, attempts to modernize our critical water infrastructure have been stagnant in the endless traditional tape festivals and brought unnecessary delays. We have completed the hurdles,” Newsom said. “Our state needs to complete the project as soon as possible so that we can better store and manage water, preparing for a hotter, drier future. Let’s start building this.”

The tunnel will establish a second route to transport water to state pumping facilities on the southern side of the Delta, where aqueducts are supplied to state water projects and delivered to 27 million people and 750,000 acres of farmland.

Supporters of the program, including water agencies in Southern California and Silicon Valley, said the state needs to build new infrastructure in the delta to protect water supplies facing climate change and earthquake risks.

Opponents, including agencies of Delta and environmental advocates, say the project is an expensive and clumsy that can harm the environment and communities and that the state should seek other alternatives.

"This is the driving force of an unnecessary, unnecessary tunnel that cannot solve the state's real water challenges," said Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of the group's recovery Delta.

She said the governor “wanted to bypass legal and public processes because the project did not pass the economic or environmental standards that Californians expected.”

Newsom, who will serve in 2026 and then leave the office, is working to lay the foundation for the project.

Newsom said his proposal would: simplify the permit by eliminating certain deadlines in water rights permits; narrow legal reviews to avoid delays in legal challenges; confirm the state's right to issue bonds to pay for the project, which will be repaid by the water agency; and speed up state efforts to build land.

“Although the project has obtained some necessary permissions, its path forward is burdened by complex regulatory frameworks and bureaucratic delays,” the governor’s office announced the proposal.

The State Water Control Commission is currently considering a petition from the News Commission to modify the water rights permit so that it can be transferred from a new point on the Sacramento River, where air inlets for the 45-mile tunnel will be built.

The governor's latest proposal was praised by water stadiums, including the Southern California metropolitan waters, which is currently spending about $142 million on preliminary plans.

MWD general manager Deven Upadhyay called Newsom's recommendation a "bold step" to protecting water supply, saying the approach would support completion of planning efforts, reduce "regulatory and legal uncertainty" and allow the MWD board to make knowledge decisions about whether to invest long-term to help build bills.

Jennifer Pierre, general manager of state water contractors, said the governor's approach made sense, addressing expensive delays and upgrading basic infrastructure, which is "an urgent need for modernization."

However, environmental and fishing groups say Newsom's proposal is a reckless attempt to bypass existing legal processes and make it harder for opponents to challenge the project about the harmful effects they argue on the delta and the environment.

Golden State Salmon Assn, an organization representing the fishing community. Executive Director Scott Artis called Newsom's proposal "an attack on the salmon fishing industry and the largest river in the state."

Commercial salmon fishing has been Cancelled for three consecutive years Due to the decline in Chinook salmon population. Artis said building the tunnel would represent “nails in the coffin of a once powerful salmon in California.”