Coalition Calls For Investigation, Postponement After Cyberattack Disrupts Delta Tunnel Hearing
The cyberattack flooded the State Water Resources Control Board’s remote hearing platform with hateful and racist imagery, an incident that appeared designed to intimidate Tribal and community members
Sacramento, CA — The Environmental Justice Law and Advocacy Clinic at Yale Law School, on behalf of the Delta Tribal Environmental Coalition (DTEC), sent a letter to the State Water Resources Control Board to demand a “full investigation and immediate postponement” of the Delta Conveyance Project proceedings following a disturbing cyberattack that targeted a public hearing on March 24, 2025.
The DTEC includes the Buena Vista Rancheria of Me-Wuk Indians, Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, Winnemem Wintu Tribe, Little Manila Rising, Restore the Delta) and San Francisco Baykeeper.
“The cyberattack flooded the State Water Resources Control Board’s remote hearing platform with hateful and racist imagery, an incident that appeared designed to intimidate Tribal and community members who took time to participate in the hearing process. The failure of the Board’s remote hearing infrastructure to prevent such an attack raises grave concerns about security, accessibility, and the integrity of the proceedings,” according to a statement from the DTEC.
In a letter sent on March 27 to the Board’s Administrative Hearings Office (AHO), the groups outlined urgent recommendations to restore trust in the process. These include:
- “A full forensic audit and public report detailing the cause of the breach and corrective actions to prevent future incidents.
- Immediate upgrades to cybersecurity measures, including compliance with StateRAMP standards, which protect government platforms from cyber threats.
- A postponement of evidentiary hearings until May 2025 to allow for a hybrid session where policy statements from Tribal nations and community members can be heard before the Department of Water Resources presents its case-in-chief.”
The letter states, “The March 24 cyberattack was a fundamental breakdown in the State’s duty to provide fair and secure access to public proceedings. The AHO has an obligation to fully investigate the disruption, ensure transparency in its findings, and implement necessary cybersecurity measures to prevent future failures. Continuing the proceedings without addressing these critical issues undermines public confidence in the fairness and integrity of the process.”
“Protestants urge the AHO to act transparently and equitably by conducting a public investigation, ensuring compliance with cybersecurity standards, and postponing the hearings to resume after policy statements and pending Board rulings on motions to cancel these proceedings due to DWR’s failure to respond to the AHO’s supplemental information directives,” the letter concluded.
The Delta Conveyance Project has faced widespread opposition from Tribes, environmental groups, and Delta communities, who argue that it will devastate ecosystems, harm drinking water supplies, and violate environmental justice principles. They also argue that the Delta Tunnel will hasten the extinction of Sacramento winter-run, spring run and fall-run Chinooks, Central Valley steelhead, Delta and longfin smelt, green sturgeon and other fish species.
“The cyberattack has only heightened concerns that the hearing process is being stacked against impacted communities,” the DTEC noted.
The coalition urges the Board to “take immediate steps to uphold the integrity of this process, ensuring that all voices—especially those historically marginalized in California water policy—are heard and respected.”
“The hearing for the Delta Conveyance Project must be conducted with the State's cybersecurity safety standards,” said Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, Executive Director of Restore the Delta. “Because the State Water Resources Control Board took a security shortcut, Delta community and participating tribal members have lost fair access and the equal opportunity to represent themselves in these hearings, even though they are the most impacted parties by the Delta Conveyance Project. This is wrong, morally and legally.”
To read my article on the cyberattack, go to: www.dailykos.com/...
To read the follow up letter from the Administrative Hearing Officer regarding the attack, go here: www.elkgrovedailynews.com/…
Finally, a broadcast story and article from ABC 10 underscores the serious security failure that allowed this breach, eroding trust between the government and community members who planned to testify against the Delta Tunnel.
