[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 150 (Wednesday, September 18, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1169]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUE TO CURTIS CREEL

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. KEVIN McCARTHY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 18, 2019

  Mr. McCARTHY. Madam Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Curtis 
Creel, the General Manager of the Kern County Water Agency (KCWA), 
whose steady hand helped guide our community and agricultural producers 
through some of the worst years of drought that Kern County and 
California experienced in recent history.
  Curtis was born in Lakeview, Oregon, but has spent most of his life 
in California. A graduate of California State University, Humboldt, in 
1986, Curtis quickly found a position in California's Department of 
Water Resources (DWR), and eventually rose to the position of Chief of 
the State Water Project (SWP) Operation and Planning Branch. In March 
of 2005, Curtis was hired as the Water Resources Manager for the Kern 
County Water Agency (KCWA). The KCWA contracts about 25% of the water 
on the SWP system, which supports some of the most fertile and 
productive agricultural lands in the United States.
  Promoted to KCWA General Manager in 2016, Curtis recognized the 
strategic importance of planning for the long-term needs of our 
community. During negotiations on the California water-related 
provisions of the Water Infrastructure for Improvements to the Nation 
(WIIN) Act of 2016, Curtis' advice and counsel was invaluable. This 
bipartisan law provides increased flexibility to move water from 
northern California to the Central Valley and southern California to 
meet our communities' needs, while protecting fish and the environment. 
He has also played a critical role in increasing water supply 
reliability for our region through his support of new surface water 
storage projects and enlarging existing reservoirs. In addition, Curtis 
has served on the Board of Directors of the State Water Contractors 
Association, including as president.
  Most recently, Curtis played a major role in advocating for our 
community as various federal and state agencies work to update the 
regulations that govern water exports from the Sacramento-San Joaquin 
River Delta. His ability to draw on his more than 14 years of 
experience as a champion for the SWP at the KCWA, combined with his 
technical expertise from his time at DWR, has been crucial during this 
initiative. In California, they say that ``whiskey is for drinking, and 
water is for fighting over.'' I have always been impressed by Curtis' 
steady hand, his soft-spoken nature, and his continual focus on 
results, even when things get heated. In his office, there is a quote 
from President Theodore Roosevelt prominently displayed that says, 
``Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to 
work hard at the work worth doing.'' Curtis loved working in water 
management and it was critical work worth doing.
  Although bittersweet to see Curtis leave, I know that Curtis is 
looking forward to spending more time with his wife, Traci, his son 
Michael, and his daughter Courtney and her husband Joshua. Curtis can 
rest assured that the planning and work he has done will continue to 
put the KCWA, farmers, and our community in the Central Valley of 
California in the best position possible. On behalf of the 23rd 
Congressional District of California, I want to thank Curtis for his 
dedication over the last decade as he helped lead our community through 
crippling drought and fought for commonsense reforms to federal and 
state regulations to ensure our community received the life-sustaining 
water it needs to thrive.

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